Nowadays, many couples opt to have a motif for their wedding, and that makes it less challenging to think up unique ideas for your invitations. Themed weddings have been popular for quite a long period of time, yet less formal themes like hobbies and sports are a more recent trend. Should you and your partner both participate in a particular pastime, you can use it as a theme for your invitations. You're virtually guaranteed to have distinctive invitations if you do so.

You may wish to incorporate certain creative elements that reflect the ambience of the event. A fall motif, for instance, is reminiscent of multicolored leaves floating to the ground. So you could incorporate an image of a fall leaf in your design. If the event is occurring at the beach, you can use sea shells as decoration on the invitations.

Yet not all engaged couples opt to have a motif for their wedding. Some couples are more comfortable having a formal ceremony and ambiance. In this case, you'll have to work harder to come up with distinctive designs for your invitations.

With a conventional, formal wedding ceremony, be a little cautious when it relates to creativity in the invitations. For these kinds of situations, correct etiquette will have to be followed. Anything too creative will diminish the decorum of your wedding ceremony.

Nevertheless, you can still personalize your invitations in a tasteful way. Incorporate a splash of color that hints at the special occasion itself. Or incorporate a photograph of the bride and groom. Make sure it's small and discreet, with a soft appearance.

You might get more unique wedding invitation ideas from specialized printers of wedding invitations. They frequently have an individual working there who has a lot of familiarity in these matters. You're far more likely to get the ideal one of a kind wedding invitation when you work with an individual who has this kind of experience.

Preparing the guest list and sending invitations is one of the biggest jobs of planning a wedding. The right wedding invitation wording is one of the most important aspects of this. Learn how to do it right by visiting the Wedding Invitation Etiquette site.

If you're not sure what the wedding invitations should say, start by determining the basic details of your wedding day. Where will the ceremony and reception be held, and at what time on what day? What must your guests know before they arrive? You'll also need the full names of those hosting or paying for the wedding, which typically means the parents of the couple. Other details that are important to decide before you start thinking about invitations are whether to invite children and whether to set a dress code. Both of these will impact the wording on your wedding invitations.

With formal invitations, those whose names appear on the card are those who have been invited. For this reason, you'll need a finalized guest list before proceeding with the invites. If the names of children or significant others are not written on the card, it is assumed that they are not invited. Always write your guests' names formally; use their full names, not a nickname or shorter version, even if you know them well. Formal wedding invitations should spell out the names and addresses, rather than simply writing them in numbers.

Even if the company creating your wedding invitation design will also write the wording, you'll need to select the style that you want. You don't want to ruin a very beautiful wedding invitation card with inappropriate or stilted wording. You might look around the internet for samples to get an idea of the range of styles that exist.

Although many couples focus much more on the invitation design than on the wording of their wedding invitations, both are important because they let guests know what to expect on your wedding day. The invitations should reflect your personalities, as well as the style of the occasion, whether it is casual or formal.

Wedding planner Sara Johnson knows all of the wedding etiquette rules when it comes to designing and sending wedding invitations for any wedding ceremony.

It's never too early to start considering the design of the invitations, which serve to notify guests not only of the time and date of the ceremony, but also of what kind of ceremony and reception to expect, whether your perfect wedding is a large, formal occasion or a contemporary and casual event. The invitations should be ordered as much time as possible before the wedding, at least twelve to sixteen weeks. This will give you enough time to receive them and to address them at a relaxed pace, ensuring that you're not filling out hundreds of addresses the night before the invites go in the mail.

Now that you've ordered and received your invitations, when should you plan to mail them? For most weddings, eight to twelve weeks before the big day will be enough time. There are some situations, wherever, when it would be appropriate to give the guests several extra weeks. For example, if your wedding falls on or near a holiday, the extra time ensures that guests haven't made holiday plans before your invitation arrives. Destination weddings and theme weddings also call for invitations to be sent well in advance to give guests time to prepare.

By mailing your invitations well in advance, you'll be leaving plenty of time for guests to respond, allowing you to notify your caterers of an accurate head count or adjust your guest list to add guests who were not included on your original list.

Sending invitations well in advance of the wedding isn't just courteous, it also helps you plan the rest of your wedding. An accurate head count is needed for the caterer, and RSVPs allow you to adjust the guest list as needed, perhaps including guests who did not make the original list.

Amanda Halm is a wedding expert who can help you take your plans to the next level by sharing hints about ordering and sending wedding invitations and other steps in the wedding planning process.