Planning a wedding can be a fun and exciting activity that allows you to add your own personal artistry and style into creating a memorable and joyous event for friends and family to celebrate your nuptials. Before starting any plans, though, as soon as a ring gets placed on your finger, you should be aware of certain etiquette rules to follow from this point on until after your wedding.
Wedding etiquette practices change with the times so to make sure you follow the most up-to-date rules, the wedding florals experts here at Walter Knoll Florist have listed modern wedding etiquette rules keep top of mind.
Wedding Etiquette Rules for 2021 & Beyond
1. Pause Before Posting
Getting engaged is one of the biggest moments in your life, and you probably can’t wait to share the good news on your social media sites with amazing pictures, of course. Before you post anything, though, share the news with your family and closest friends first. People in your inner circle deserve to hear personal “big news” directly from you rather than your social media accounts. Think ahead to your wedding day and who might play an important role. These are who you should deliver the news to first before pressing any “share” buttons.
2. Small Is In
Since smaller weddings have become more popular, you can easily limit your guest list without feeling guilty about not inviting everyone. Friends and family you are no longer in close contact with and haven’t seen for years do not need to be invited. It’s acceptable more than ever now for couples to have a limited guest list, and focus, instead, on the perfect venue, quality food and drinks, and gorgeous fresh florals. There is also the option to provide live streaming of your wedding for those who would enjoy partaking in the event from the comfort of their home
3. The Invitation Rule
Anyone who is invited to your engagement party, bridal shower, bachelor or bachelorette party should also be invited to the wedding. If you want to keep your guest list to a minimum, which includes members of the bridal party, then you may need to keep your pre-wedding activities to a minimum number of people as well. If you have your heart set on celebrating with a large crowd of all your friends, then host a post-wedding celebration.
4. Have a Gift Registry
Having a gift registry allows guests to follow proper etiquette when it comes to gifting. The registry allows them to find a gift from a suggested list of items rather than sending money via an app (like Venmo, Zelle, or PayPal), which is an etiquette no-no. If there is no gift registry, it’s perfectly acceptable to send a check enclosed in a card, but do not send gift cards. In lieu of a gift registry, providing links to sites where guests can donate money to a charity or a honeymoon fund is perfectly fine.
5. Communicate Expectations
To keep your wedding fun and stress-free, be sure to manage guests’ expectations regarding whether or not masks, test results, or vaccinations are required. Also, limited cell service or any other unique particulars that might be cause for alarm should be clearly communicated in a timely manner so guests can plan accordingly.
6. Use Email and Snail Mail
It is still customary to send out printed Save the Date cards and wedding invitations via snail mail. However, for any updates or small changes regarding the wedding, notifying people with a phone call or an email is perfectly fine.
7. Handwritten Thank You
A wedding tradition not likely to go anywhere anytime soon is hand-writing thank-you notes to each of your guests. Send Thank You cards as soon as possible after your wedding and no later than six weeks past.
Follow the above rules to ensure a smooth wedding so you can just focus on the fun. And for all your wedding flower needs, contact Walter Knoll Flowers & Weddings.