Wording

There is a standard traditional wording for wedding invites where the bride's parents are married and are the hosts of the wedding. Many families, however, will not fit into this pattern; parents may be divorced, mothers widowed, and so on.

N.B. Nowadays, the inclusion of the bride's middle names is personal choice, but should be consistent for both the bride and groom.

Example Wording

There are a number of alternative styles of wording for different circumstances. Here are some samples:

The traditional wording where both parents are married:

Mr and Mrs John Debrett
request the pleasure of
your company at the marriage
of their daughter
Caroline Jane
to
Mr Richard Manners
at St Paul's Church, Knightsbridge
on Saturday 17th July 2010
at 3 o'clock
and afterwards at
The Hyde Park Hotel, London SW1

N.B RSVP address is included in the bottom left hand corner

If the bride's mother is the hostess:

Mrs John Debrett
requests the pleasure of
your company at the marriage
of her daughter
Caroline

If the bride's father is the host:

Mr John Debrett
requests the pleasure of
your company at the marriage
of his daughter
Caroline

If the bride's mother and stepfather are the joint host/hostess:

Mr and Mrs Edgar Forsythe
request the pleasure of
your company at the marriage
of her daughter
Caroline Debrett

If the bride's father and her stepmother are the joint host/hostess:

Mr and Mrs John Debrett
request the pleasure of
your company at the marriage
of his daughter
Caroline

Where the bride's stepmother is the hostess:

Mrs John Debrett
requests the pleasure of
your company at the marriage
of her stepdaughter
Caroline

If the bride's parents are divorced, but are co-hosting the wedding:

Mr John Debrett and Mrs Edgar Forsythe*
request the pleasure of
your company at the marriage
of their daughter
Caroline

* 'Mrs Jane Debrett' if she has not remarried

If the bride's relatives, guardians or godparents are host/hostess:

Mr and Mrs Robert Newton
request the pleasure of
your company at the marriage
of their ward Caroline Debrett*

* The bride's surname may be included if it is different to the host's/hostess'

If the bride is the hostess:

Miss Caroline Debrett
requests the pleasure of your company
at her marriage to
Mr Richard Manners

Where the bride and groom are the host and hostess:

Mr Richard Manners and Miss Caroline Debrett
request the pleasure of
your company at their marriage

second and subsequent marriages

In the case of a divorced bride embarking on a second marriage, whichever example above is applicable to the bride should be used.

If the bride's marriage has been dissolved, she is described as 'Mrs Jane Over'.

If she has reverted to her maiden name, it is only necessary to list her forename, as in the standard invitations above.

If the bride is the hostess, the examples above should be followed, with her name as 'Mrs Joseph Over' or 'Mrs Catriona Over', as applicable.

If the bride is a widow, she is described as 'Catriona, widow of Mr Joseph Over'.