Ways to Word your Details Card – with Mila + May

 

Wording for wedding invitations and detail cards can be hard to navigate, especially when it comes to trickier details that you might be considering for your special celebration.

Mila + May not only design incredible stationery suites (be sure to check their work out), but they are also experts when it comes to tackling those wording woes.

Laura, the talent behind Mila + May has kindly shared her expertise when it comes to wording your details card. From detailing destination weddings, to how to gently relay that children are not on the guest list, read on here to get a handle on your special occasion copy.

 

 

Invitation suites are the first impression of your wedding day. Here, guests open up their envelope and begin to browse your invitation, details and RSVP cards. Your design and colour palette will certainly give an indication of the type of wedding day your guests can look forward to participating in!

However, as a lover of words, I also believe there is great power in language and the way we “say” things that can make a guest feel warmly welcome and loved, and articulate key details so that people have a good understanding of what to expect… and save you fielding questions later!

I sometimes get questions around how to word potentially “tricky” details. Some of these may include the awkward note on gifts, requests that your day is adult-only and children stay home, or recommendations to wear particular attire. Couples may be concerned about causing offence or misunderstandings. So, I’ve compiled a list of possible wording that you can use for these finer details that I hope will sound polite, warm, and clearly communicate what needs to be said.

 

Wedding Gift Wording Ideas

It is generally assumed that couples may have either a registry or wishing well for their day, and it is not unusual to include details of this on a details card. However, there can be a concern that specifying what and how to give may sound a little presumptuous. These are some of my favourite phrases (and can be adapted for either a wishing well, gift registry or honeymoon fund as required).

 

Your presence on our special day is the greatest gift of all.
However, if you would like to contribute a gift, there will be a wishing well available at our reception.

 

Our life together has already begun, and we would really just love to celebrate with you on our special day. However, if you wish to buy us a gift, we would be incredibly blessed to receive an item on our gift registry: [insert link here].

 

Your presence is present enough, but if you would like to buy us a gift, a contribution towards our honeymoon would be greatly appreciated.

 

If you’d like to give a gift
to help us on our way,
a contribution to our wishing well
would really make our day.

 

I sometimes see on signage and details cards the term “cards and well wishes” which is a polite and subtle way to suggest cash and cards.

Mila + May offers thank you cards to send guests after the wedding day to thank them for their presence and gifts. I think it is kind and polite to thank guests, particularly following specifications such as the ones above!

 

 

How to word “No Children” at your wedding.

There are a number of reasons why couples may wish to hold an adults-only reception and/or ceremony, without children. Here are ways to gently specify that children are not invited:

 

While we love your little ones, we unfortunately cannot accommodate children. 

 

While we love your little ones, our reception will be an adults-only event.

 

We kindly request that this be an adults-only event. Only children of the immediate family will be in attendance at our reception. Thank you for understanding.

 

I received an order the other day with the following wording:

 

Let’s make it a date night!
Little ones are more than welcome to attend our ceremony, however we unfortunately cannot accommodate children at the reception.

 

Occasionally a couple may be holding a destination wedding that may make it difficult for guests to find babysitting for their children. I’ve sometimes seen wording such as:

 

While we love your little ones, we unfortunately cannot accommodate children at our reception. To assist with finding local babysitting services, we have compiled a list of possible options on our website. Please let us know if you need any assistance with this.

 

Wording for wedding attire / dress code.

Most of the time, wording on attire can be short and sweet, such as:

 

Dress code: formal attire.

 

However, there are times when particular footwear may be recommended, or a couple may wish for a certain theme of guest attire.

 

Parts of our day will be located in grassy, outdoor areas. We recommend footwear to be selected accordingly.

 

We are hoping to create a gorgeous colour theme for our day; please wear white, beige or light-coloured clothing.

 

Our wedding day will be held on the gorgeous tropical island of ___. Please feel free to dress in light and comfortable, smart casual attire.

 

 

How to word a note on transport.

Sometimes wedding venues may have limited parking, or it may be a difficult area to book last-minute Ubers. Some wording for this could be as follows:

 

Please note there is limited parking at our venue. We kindly request that guests utilise Uber or taxi services wherever possible, and suggest pre-booking the ride home.

 

Please note that there is limited parking at our venue. We respectfully request that these car park spaces are left to our elderly guests, and street parking is used as an alternative wherever possible.

 

Sometimes couples will organise a bus service from a central location to take guests to a more regional venue. Drop off and pick up times and locations can be specified succinctly, and booking for the bus service should be included with the RSVP.

 

 

Wording for destination weddings

For my wedding, half of our guests were located interstate and would have to travel for our day. I wanted to make sure that they knew that there was no obligation to make this trip, but that their presence would be considered so special if they still wanted to come.

Some wording for destination weddings or travelling guests:

 

Travelling guests:
We understand that ___ may be a long way for many of you. Please do not feel obligated to make the trip if you are unable to; we totally understand. However, if you do wish to travel to be a part of our special day, we would love to have you with us!

Please let us know if we can assist with accommodation suggestions.

 

___ is a special place for us, and we are excited to hold our special day there. In order to assist with travel plans, please find a list of accommodation suggestions below:…

 

We know that ___ is a long way to travel. If you are unable to be with us on our special day, we totally understand, and look forward to celebrating with you when we return!

 

 

Thank goodness for stationery experts such as Mila + May who know a thing or two about wording, but also create the most darling designs. Check out all the stunning stationery suites for your own day here.