Wedding Thank You Notes
Thank you notes for your wedding are an essential part of your wedding planning process. They should be thought about in the beginning stages of planning and not one of those tasks that gets put by the wayside for several months after the big day! Whether you are taking a honeymoon or just end up going back to work full force after the craziness of the wedding week, thank you notes often don’t get sent out until almost a year after the wedding day.
Give A Handwritten Note
For some reason, many couples find it daunting and exhausting to find and buy the cards and envelopes, sit and handwrite dozens (or a hundred or more) cards and then address the envelopes, buy stamps, and get to the post office to mail them. With everything being digital these days, many couples may not use snail mail very often and therefore it’s not even part of their weekly routine. Also after potentially footing the bill for the wedding, it may seem like kind of an annoying purchase to have to make.
HOWEVER, this is one of the most important things you will do in the entire wedding planning process! Your guests have potentially traveled, spent money on accommodations and (hopefully) a beautiful gift for you. They may have run last minute errands for you, hosted a wedding weekend event, allowed out of town guests to stay with them, or a number of other helpful tasks for you! It’s important to thank your guests immediately, before they have to think to remember what your wedding was like, and nothing says thank you more sincerely than a handwritten thank you note.
Tips For Wedding Thank You Notes
To make the process of wedding thank you notes seem less daunting and tedious, consider the following tips:
Have A Professional Do The Heavy Lifting
If you are using a stationer for your save the dates, invitations, place cards, menus, or anything else, ask them to design and send you thank you cards and pre-addressed envelopes or labels before the wedding! This means you wouldn’t use a photo from the wedding, but maybe an engagement shoot photo, a picture of your venue, or just a really nice card with pretty accents and details. You should ALWAYS handwrite a customized note to every guest, but it’s perfectly fine to have some generic text pre-printed, and the envelopes printed.
Ask Your Photographer For Photos
If having a photo from the wedding day is a non-negotiable, ask your photographer (ideally before you hire them) if they can provide one or two photos within the week after the wedding. Typically, this is something photographers will do, but it’s important to provide them with notice and your expectations. You can send this photo to your stationer, or use it to print your own cards.
Make It Fun! (Why Wouldn't You?)
I suggest you make this a fun task to do together. Pour a glass of wine and slideshow pictures from Instagram from the wedding day a week or two after the wedding! Tag team it so that you both write half, or you both write a note on each card. Do it quickly so you don’t have to worry about it months later!
When to Send Wedding Thank You Notes?
So when should you really send them out? Definitely not a whole year later! The old rule of waiting for a year is not really the case anymore. We believe the sooner you can get them out, the better! Your guests don’t want to wait an entire year to make sure you got their gift. You should send the thank you note within a few weeks after the wedding, while you are opening and enjoying the gifts and the feelings the from the wedding day are still fresh! Reach out to Luxe Life Event Design today for wedding planning help, tips on thank you notes and stationary design!