With so many wedding preps to finalize, mixing up your pre-invite essentials is easy, and nobody wants that! That’s why we bring you the ultimate Save The Date guide to make a great first impression on your wedding invitees.

Read on as we address all the burning questions to help send out the perfect Save The Date card.

Can I Skip Sending Save The Date Cards?

If you are having a quickfire wedding with a short engagement, it may make more sense in your head to skip sending the Save The Dates. While we get the logic behind the decision, and no engraved rule says you HAVE to send the Save The Dates, it actually serves you well to do so.

Save The Dates are much more than pretty cards to announce your wedding.

They let your guests know crucial information, like when to keep their schedule free to attend your wedding festivities. Even with only a few months left until your nuptials, sending the pre-invites helps you plan better. Moreover, sending these cards is even more critical if you have a weekend-long wedding, a destination wedding, or events lining up during the busy wedding or travel season.

What To Include On Your Save The Date

Ensure you do not bombard your invitees with information through the Save The Date cards. Instead, save additional details like RSVPs and hours for the invites. For Save The Date, your goal is to announce your wedding and inform potential attendees of which dates to keep open.

You need only add the following information:

Your and your partner’s names
The location (city or town and state)
The date
Your wedding website URL
Note information invitations are to follow

Keep in mind that everyone who receives a Save The Date must also get the following formal invite. So you need to be very clear about your attendees and address everyone by name so there is no confusion.

Time The Save The Date Right

You must send the Save The Date cards at the right time, around 6 months before your nuptials. However, if you have a destination wedding make sure you give them ample time to schedule things by sending the pre-invites even earlier; usually, eight months works fine.

Do not mistake sending them out too much in advance.

While your heart may be in the right place trying to give your attendees longer time to prep, there is a higher chance they may forget about your festivities with so much time to spare. A good idea to keep the pre-invite on top of your guests’ minds is to go the trendy route of choosing Save The Date magnets, which are placed where your attendees can see them several times during the day.

Send Change the Date Cards If Plans Change

It’s crucial you only send out these cards once you settle on all essential information. However, if there is a plan change, you can send out Change The Date cards to inform your guests. You will also have to update your wedding website and go with verbal reinforcements.

Tip: Don’t hesitate to ask for help from your bridal party to relay information if there is a change.

Don’t Be Afraid To Think Outside The Box

Now let's come to the fun part: the Save The Card design.

While there is a formal etiquette to follow when sending out the pre-invites, you must not worry too much about following a theme with the design. This is the perfect opportunity to let your personality shine with out-of-the-box ideas; think bold fonts and fun colors or anything that you may try out now but not for the wedding invites and theme, which you can match.

Here are some of our favorite eye-grabbing designs:

Addressing The Save The Dates

Address your Save The Dates clearly and directly to the recipient. Do not use nicknames or abbreviations; even the street names should be fully spelled out. For unmarried couples, add “and” between full names.

Moreover, you must also stick a return label on your envelope.

If you cannot address your card well by hand, you can either:

get them printed,
use a custom stamp for uniformity
or order address labels to match your pre-invite aesthetic.

For more information, please view our complete guide on addressing your Save The Date Cards.

Electronic Save The Dates: Should You Go For It?

Sure, no rule says you cannot send e-postcards as Save The Dates, but there is something about traditional keepsake invitations that feels special. Moreover, there is a chance that your electronic postcard will land in the spam folder. Another thing to consider is attendees that may not be as tech-savvy to receive e-cards.

However, if you decide to go the electronic route, send old-school stationery to people who might want to save them as souvenirs.

Designing Your Own Save The Date With Mixbook

Designing a Save The Date postcard that matches your taste and showcases your personality is easy with Mixbook.

All the designs are customizable, from the trim to the paper to the envelopes (choose between premium white and printed). So you can be as creative as you like to design your dream Save The Date postcard.