Congratulations, you’re engaged! It’s a heady time for most couples. The sparkling new ring, the story of proposal, party planning according to your wildest dreams….
Wait a minute. Your mother will be involved. Likely also your mother-in-law. What happens between the moment of your engagement and when wedding invitations hit the mail isn’t always about making your dreams come true. It’s also about communication, expectations, a dash of compromise, and a whole lot of diplomacy.
Start off on the right foot with your engagement party. This is the event where one side of the family (or both together) introduces you as a couple to their own circle of relatives and friends. It’s especially important if either the bride or groom isn’t well known by one side’s family, increasingly common in our modern, mobile, far-flung society.
Whatever your particular family’s traditions, use these five helpful “rules of engagement” to guide this part of your wedding planning:
Rule 1 – It’s not really just your party.
The engagement party will reveal a lot about how involved parents may be in the wedding planning. Whichever side plays host, the engagement party is ultimately in their hands, and the style and substance of this event is significantly more in their control than yours.
Rule 2 – Agree on a host.
Rule 1 lead to the next big decision….Traditionally the bride’s parents host the engagement party, but as much with modern life, anything goes. Accept an offer from a friend or relative only if you’ve first cleared it with your own parents. Confirm that key family and friends from the “other half” will be invited.
Rule 3 – Do it within 3 months of proposal.
Don’t delay too far into your engagement. The excitement of your news and celebratory atmosphere may become stale and turn a little narcissistic the closer to the actual wedding date you get. Also, don’t send out save the date cards before you send out party invites!
Rule 4 – Be consistent with your wedding guest list.
Those invited to the engagement party must also receive wedding invitations. An occasional dramatic “falling out” aside, your engagement party guest list is a partial preview of the wedding guest list. Err on the side of fewer guests if you aren’t sure early on to whom you’ll be sending wedding invitations.
Rule 5 – To register or not?
You do not need to register for your engagement party, but it can help out guests who in all likelihood will want to bring something. You may specify No Gifts Please on the party invitations, or, if you register, choose gifts in a more moderate price category.
With these rules in mind, you can shop for all your wedding stationery needs online through wedding invitation websites that allow you to personalize those components you want. You’ll find an exciting selection of engagement party invitations, save the date cards, wedding invitations and much more at www.looklovesend.com. Wedding invitation designs are original designs and include all the details you’ll need for your wedding to create a coherent, beautiful wedding day style on paper.
