COMPLETE WEDDING STATIONERY CHECKLIST: WHAT YOU ACTUALLY NEED

Are you wondering which wedding stationery is essential and which items are more of a nice to have? Let's get straight into the wedding stationery checklist of what is essential for your wedding day....

Essential Vs Optional Items

The essential wedding stationery checklist is:

• Wedding invitation

• Order of the day sign

• Table plan

• Table names or numbers

• Wedding menu

• Guest place names

Jennie Colbourne

The wedding stationery items which are optional, depending on budget and what you're looking for are...

• Save the dates

• A welcome sign

• His and hers vow booklets

• Order of service

• Small signs

Hannah McClune

The first piece of stationery guests will typically receive is the save the date, I can design a gorgeous card with your wedding date on which sets the tone for the day. However, you might want to save your budget and spend it on the wedding invitation instead.

The wedding invitation is an essential and probably the hardest working piece of stationery, giving your guests all the details of what is to come from your big day including the wedding venue address, timings, taxi numbers and accommodation options.

Holly Booth Studio

For on the wedding day itself, the essential larger stationery items are the order of the day sign which is essential so everyone knows what is happening and when, and a table plan sign so guests can see where they are seated. For the wedding breakfast essential stationery items are table names or numbers, menus and guest place names.

A welcome sign isn't a neccesity on the big day, however it is a gorgeous way to welcome your guests in style as they arrive to your venue. It also provides a pop of colour or a pretty entrance when styled with wedding flowers. Just something to consider!

An order of service isn't essential but if you'd like guests to follow the civil ceremony or the church service then you will want some printed. I can design these in the same style to match the rest of your stationery.

Small signs are completely personal. Some couples choose lots of small signs to signpost their guests to different things on the day. Popular small signs are the cake flavours, any bespoke cocktails or showing guests where to leave cards and gifts or where the guestbook is. But I can produce a small sign for anything you'd like!

Gemma Randall

Timeline for Ordering Wedding Stationery

If you choose to send save the dates, I recommend sending them 12- 18 months in advance so your date is secured in your guests' diaries. For a wedding invitation I recommend 6 - 9 months in advance. But remember to allocate some time for the design and printing too! For on the day stationery around 8 weeks is when I'll start working on your stationery items. If you're ordering save the dates, wedding invitations and on the day stationery then all of the items will have the same cohesive design and colour palette.

Wedding Budget

When it comes to your budget and wedding stationery think about what is essential and what is is nice to have. There are lots of things you can do to help the budget, such as a combined welcome and order of events sign, a menu per table rather than individual menus or combined menu and place names for on the day. if you choose a save the date, I can design and you send to your guests rather than printing them out and posting.

Essential Wedding Stationery

I hope that helps with giving you an idea of what wedding stationery items you need and which items are nice to haves!

I have a curated collection of wedding stationery designs available on my website which are a fab starting point to see which kind of wedding stationery design you like. All of the collections can be customised to suit the colour palette and style of your big day.

If you're looking for more wedding stationery inspiration then there's lots on the Loupaper blog, Instagram account and Pinterest account.

Once you know the wedding stationery items you're looking for, contact me here with all the details of your big day! I look forward to hearing from you.