wedding invitations

One of the trickiest elements of wedding etiquette is the plus-one problem: who gets a date, who doesn't, and how do you know one way or the other? Invitation wording should make it crystal clear, but not everyone is familiar with the common wedding protocol. If you're confused about the "and guest" arrangement, we have the answers to the most common plus-one questions:

Who gets a plus-one?
A good rule of thumb: for both the rehearsal dinner and the wedding itself, all spouses, fiancés, and live-in partners should be invited. As for long-term boyfriends and girlfriends, it's more or less up to you, but it's smart to go with a hard-and-fast rule — all or none — to keep things fair across the board.

How do you clarify plus-ones on the invitation?
Two magic words: "and guest." The name(s) on the inner envelope are the only people who are invited, so if you'd like to offer your guest the opportunity to bring a date, you must write: "Miss X and Guest." Otherwise, based on traditional etiquette, she should understand that there's no plus-one involved.

What if a guest replies for an uninvited plus-one?
It may be an awkward conversation, but you shouldn't hesitate to reach out and politely let the guest know that your budget doesn't allow for any guest list additions. As Anna Post writes in the Emily Post etiquette guidelines, "It's not okay for guests to ask you to make exceptions, so it won't be rude in the least to stand by your guest list."

What about children?
Again, stick with an all-or-none guideline to keep things fair. Guests may be offended if you make an exception for one family but not theirs, so be sure to communicate clearly whether or not children are welcome at the wedding. If you're struggling with the decision, try establishing an age guideline — no one under 18, for instance — to stay consistent.

Have any tips for keeping the guest list clear? Share your advice in the comments below!

Photo by Photo Pink courtesy of Style Me Pretty

Long before your wedding date, guests will get their first impression of the event through your paper goods, so you want to be sure that your save the dates and invitations are right in line with your vision. Still, with so many creative, out-of-the-box ideas highlighted on Pinterest and wedding blogs, trying to find your original style for paper goods can feel intimidating — especially when you're trying to stick to a budget. Read on for answers to the most common questions related to paper goods, plus expert tips on style, trends, and logistics.

How do I make my paper goods stand out?
As Barbara Callow of Barbara Callow Calligraphy says, everyone wants to be unique, but that doesn't mean all the pieces in your suite need to be wildly different. Instead, she suggests that you focus your creativity on the save the date, which can be a more contemporary, colorful piece, then stick to more traditional invitations.

When it comes to fresh save the date designs, the sky's the limit. Barbara says she's written calligraphy on everything from pumpkins to fans to wine corks, so don't be afraid to bring innovative ideas to your paper vendor. Hoping to add an original touch but stick with a more classic style? Design a custom stamp to personalize your paper goods.

Read on for popular trends and tips to save on paper goods.

A save-the-date might be your guests' first impression of your big event, but is it imperative that it arrive embossed on heavy cardstock? With so many paper-light or paperless options out there, your wedding stationery could be the simplest way to trim back your budget and help you afford that honeymoon in the Maldives!

• Investigate printing options. Letterpress may be the ticket to an expensive-looking invitation, but the price usually matches the appearance. Look into thermography, which provides similar raised printing for much less than traditional letterpress. Or, for casual wedding invites, laser printing is fast and inexpensive.
• Go paperless. Evite may have been the first to market with online invitations, but plenty of other services have followed suit with gorgeous templates and customization options to create the online save-the-date or wedding invitation of your dreams. Try Paperless Post, Glo, or Pingg. Most options allow you to send an invitation and field RSVPs without a single stamp. Even if you send paper invitations, cut down on costs by asking guests to RSVP by email or on a password-protected website.
• Print your own. If you're a whiz in Photoshop (or have a good pal who is), then think about designing and printing your own invitations and stationery. It might be more work, but you'll have the flexibility to choose any printing method that works with your budget, and you'll have the satisfaction of creating works of art for your big day!

For more money-saving ideas, just keep reading.

Going the DIY route when it comes to your wedding? Wedding invitations are one place where you can save big bucks, but one thing you need is an original font! Don't be a bore with standard fonts given to you, like Times New Roman and Helvetica (albeit classic bores, ahem) — fonts set the tone for style as much as the color scheme and design. Below, we cover a few places where you can download free fonts to use for truly unique invites!

• Fonts 500 — This site has over 500 free downloadable fonts and something for every wedding theme: classic (Jane Austen), edgy (Nauvoo), and your-name-in-lights (Marquee). There's also tons of commercially used fonts, so if you've been dreaming of directing your family to the reception in Simpsons font, well, done and done.
• 1,001 Free Fonts — Just as the name implies, you can search and download scores of fonts for use on your wedding invites, save the dates, RSVP cards, and more.
• Dafont — Search for your perfect font by style — comic, Western, sci-fi, typewriter, etc. — or by your basic serif or san-serif styles. There's over 14,000 fonts to sift through, so you could be here a while.
• LostType — Not only is LostType a great place to find free, cheap, and premium fonts, but it's also a good place to browse to get some invite inspiration.
• MyFonts — Search under "specials" to wander through hundreds of inexpensive and free fonts to use for all of your printing needs. You can even try fonts before buying if you are willing to drop some cash on the perfect font.

If you haven't already checked out our dynamic YumSugar Community, now's the time. Not only is it a round-the-clock hub for recipes, mouthwatering food photography, and culinary questions, but it's also the go-to place to get advice and inspiration for an upcoming wedding.

Join Wedding Talk to start discussing party plans for the big day, and be sure to share your favorite elements — like wedding invites and save the date cards! — with the rest of us. Our favorite stories, pictures, questions, and advice might just get featured here on YumSugar.