Each Wednesday, we tackle wedding etiquette. At times, it’s a reader question or one from a colleague, friend or family member and other times we’ll cover a popular issue.
Question: My fiancé and I are getting ready to order invitations. Our plan was to invite close and not-so-close family, friends and coworkers to the wedding, but only close family, friends and coworkers to the reception. We figured the people we aren’t as close to wouldn’t want to come to the reception and have to hang out with a bunch of strangers. Also, since people usually bring gifts to the reception, we thought they’d save money on gifts too. Do we have to invite wedding guests to the reception?
Answer: It seems as though your heart is in the right place (saving your acquaintances from awkward small talk and unnecessary expenditures), but the hard and fast rule is if a person is invited to the ceremony, he or she also is invited to the reception. Additionally, anyone invited to a shower, also is invited to the ceremony and reception. If you are having a small family only ceremony it’s permissible to invite people not invited to the ceremony to a larger, friends and family reception. But again, it’s not OK to do it the other way around. Best wishes on your nuptials!
Do you have a solution to share or a wedding etiquette question? Respond in the comments or email Melanie@MyNewOrleans.com.
