You’re planning your wedding and making a budget and now you need to decide, do you send a Save the Date or skip the Save the Date?!?
Let’s travel back in time to the early 2000’s…where were the Save the Date’s then? Oh, yeah…they didn’t exist 15 years ago. So why have they become such a trend or even mandatory in some people’s eyes? You can blame most of it on technology, which is usually the culprit for most things these days. The internet has allowed, what may have been small, printing and design companies to expand rapidly. Companies like Shutterfly, Minted, & Vistaprints are now able to provide reasonably price prints because they are able to reach a larger customer base.
Technology has also blessed us with the ability to make our own wedding websites with one click of a finger. But what good is a website if no one knows it exists. Hence that Save the Date, toss your website address on there and your guests are now up to date with everything related to your wedding!
Our creativity has also expanded with resources such as Pinterest. Someone who may have lacked ideas and creativity before can now borrow ideas from the talented artists. And don’t forget that most people now get the rights to their engagement photos and love to share them with their future guests!
On top of technology and creativity, there has also been a rise in destination wedding locations. Whether it be a few cities away or an entire country away, travel requires extra planning on everyone’s behalf.
So, do you have to send out a Save the Date?
The answer is no. It is what I like to consider a “wedding add-on” and it is completely up to you if you want to give your guests the extra notice or not. A great checklist to help finalize your decision would be:
How far are your guests traveling?
Will most people need to stay in a hotel or find sleeping arrangements?
Is your wedding date close to a major holiday or sporting event?
Are you having your wedding on a Friday or a day people may be working?
Does your wedding date fall in the “busy” wedding season (June-September)?
When are Save the Dates Truly Necessary?
Save the Dates move from the add-on list to the required list when you decide to have a destination wedding. If you are planning a destination wedding that will require your guests to
not only make travel arrangements but to also take off work, it is only good manners to give them a little extra time to plan. Especially seeing you will now not be the only person that needs to create a budget. Your guests will also incur additional expenses, such as accommodations, flight or gas costs, car rentals, cost of food, and don’t forget…they most likely are missing work for you! Giving them additional time to plan will increase your chances of your guests being able to attend.
Don’t let a trend cloud your judgement. Go over your wedding details and decide if a Save the Date is right for you!