The Proper Way to Address Wedding Invitations

Adhere to formal wedding etiquette and address your invitations properly.

Wedding invitations announce to your guests the date and time of your impending nuptials. According to Crane & Co's website, in the past, wedding invitations were delivered by footman to the guests' homes, so a mailing address was not required for delivery. If you want to adhere to formal wedding etiquette, without hiring a courier to hand deliver envelopes, you'll need to know how to address your wedding invitations properly.

Things You'll Need

• List of guests' addresses and names
• Stamps
• Maps

Instructions

1. Gather the final list of the invitees. Obtain your guests' correct mailing addresses, including apartment numbers, 6 to 8 weeks before your wedding date.

2. Enlist a writer with pristine penmanship. If your writing is sloppy, ask a friend with impeccable handwriting abilities to address your envelopes. If you have room in your wedding budget, hire a calligrapher to write the addresses on the inner and outer envelope neatly and beautifully.

3. Address the invitation's outer envelope. Write the invitees' names on the top of the envelope. Before their names, use one of the following five prefixes: Mr., Miss., Ms., Mrs. or Dr. For a married couple the outer envelope is addressed, for example, "Mr. and Mrs. Frank Smith." For a divorced woman, who uses her married name, address the envelope as "Mrs. Jane Smith." For a divorcee who prefers the use of her maiden name, address the envelope with the Ms. or Miss. prefixes, for example "Miss. Jane Smith or Ms. Jane Carter." For the married couple, where the woman uses her maiden name professionally, the envelope is addressed, "Mr. John Carter and Mrs. Jane Smith."

4. Address the outer envelope for physicians or guests with Ph.Ds using the following examples: "Doctor and Mrs. Kennedy" for the medical doctor, and "Dr. and Mrs. Levin" for the Ph. D. For the single female or male physician use "Doctor Alex Guidry." For teens or young adults aged 18 or over, address the envelope using "Miss Jane Smith" or "Mr. John Smith." For unmarried couples who live together, address the envelope alphabetically by their last names. For example "Ms. Jane Allen" or "Mr. Frank Doe." Alphabetize the last names for same sex couples as well.

5. Add street names to the second line of the envelope. When writing the mailing address on the outer envelope, the word "Street" and the names of the cities and state are spelled in full. When adding a suite or apartment numbers, write out the words "Apartment or Suite."

6. Write the guest's name, including the prefix on the front of the inner envelope. Insert the inner envelop into the outer envelope so that the guest's name faces the back flap of the outer envelope. Insert any maps and response cards into the outer envelope with the printed side up.

7. Write your return address on the back of the invitation envelope. Add a stamp and seal the invitation for mailing. Invitations to a formal wedding are mailed a minimum of to six to eight weeks in advance.

Tips & Warnings

• While some brides use silver and gold ink for printing their wedding invitations, traditional wedding envelopes use black ink only.

• Send a separate invitation to each adult member of the family.

• If the outer invitation is to include children, address the outer envelope to the parents, and include the names of the children on the inner envelope.

References

• Crane & Co: Addressing the Envelope
• Wed Alert: How to Address, Assemble and Mail Wedding Invitations
• Southworth: Wedding Invitation Etiquette Guide

Resources

• The Knot: Wedding Invitations Etiquette