List of everything that should be sent?

There is so many different things to put inside. I am sending graduation announcements. There is an announcment card two envelopes, seals and return adress labels, what things go where??



In Reply


The information you need is right in the middle of our page Graduation Announcement Etiquette. If you need more just let me know.

PROPER STEPS (WAY)TO PUT ALL STUFF IN GRADUATION CARD AND SEND OUT?

What is the corect order for the graduation announcements envelope items? I have 2 different envelopes, tissue paper stuffing, the graduate's photo, response card, open house card, mailing stickers and address labels. I am not sure where to put what the proper way. Thank you for your help.


In Reply


My graduation announcement etiquette page has all the details you need.

The envelope should be addressed by hand in a blue or black envelope. That gives a real personal touch.

The outer envelope is the mailing envelope and should be formal. Example:

Mr and Mrs F Ferguson
2 Ayr Road
Chessington, Washington 65432

The inner envelope holds the announcement and any graduation picture. It should be addressed informally such as Aunt Mary.

Put your card in the card holder. Put the announcement in the smaller envelope with folded edge inserted first. The announcement front faces the flap. This envelope is placed in the mailing envelope with the flap facing the mailing side.

Add your tissue paper and you have a complete package. If you have an envelope seal then that is a great touch.

stuffing the envelopes

what is the proper way to stuff the announcements, tissue paper, and photos? Thanks




In Reply


The envelopes section of our page Graduation Announcement Etiquette gives the details.

when parents are divorced which name should be printed first?

How do you know which parent should be listed first?



One more question if anyone knows....

How do you state that the meal is being paid for by graduates parents?


Thank you,


Trish


In Reply

A tricky one. In these cases I would be tempted to use the father's full name and then the full mother's name. I would let them know in advance.

On the meal issue you should be able to word the invitations saying that a meal is included. You could say that the meal is included courtesy of (the parents). On a personal note I would take the chance to publicly thank my parents for paying for the meal as part of all the other things I would be thanking them for at the party. For example you may be having a cake and that gives a chance to say a few words.

HELP: Question about return address etiquette for grad school commencement invitations

by Proud Wife
(Georgia)

Question: How should the return address read for my husband's doctoral commencement invitations? Do I print his name with no title? Do I print a name; should I only include a return address? Do I include my name? HELP!


In Reply

First off congratulations to your husband!
The return address could be to the person who is dealing with the RSVPs. If that is you then your name would be just perfect.
You will know how the invitations are worded. Perhaps the invites are worded as being from you or your husband. The return address should fall into line with this. Perhaps you have even added RSVP to a particular person.
Many institutions do not feel happy about qualifications being used before the graduation ceremony so if the returns are to your husband it may be better to use his name without the title.

Annoucements and Invitations in the Same Envelope

Is it proper to send College Graduation Announcements and the Party Invitation in the same envelope?



In Reply

Thanks for getting in touch. Congratulations to the graduate. There is nothing to stop you doing this. Good luck with all your graduation celebrations

Ms Melissa Hardberger

Do you write the names of the guests on the inside envelope?



In Reply

No need to do this, the invitations will have the names.

Using double envelopes

When sending out invitations for an open house graduation party/BBQ, do I need to use double envelopes? And if not do I still have to hand write the address?


In Reply


To be strictly correct you should follow the etiquette on our etiquette page and do the envelopes and write adresses by hand.


However many families are fairly relaxed about the etiquette for open house parties. You may wish to use your own judgement here.

Inside of the invitation

by Sandra
(Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA)

So, my graduation invitations are pre-made in a fashion that has been used by my school for the last 20 years. All of the information is printed on the front (location, time, etc.), but the inside of it is absolutely blank, and I'm not sure if I'm supposed to write something there, or if it would be rude to just leave it blank and just insert the little name card. HELP!


In Reply

First off, congratulations on your graduation.

You will have satisfied the graduation etiquette requirements with the invites you have. If you are in doubt you can check on our main invitation etiquette page. In terms of any additions you might like to add inside the invite that would be a personal choice. Perhaps you could check with other graduates and find out what they are doing.

Everyone who receives an invite will just be delighted to be involved in your special event!

change of time insert

I had invitations printed up for an event where the timing has to change. How can I word an insert card that tells guests about the change of time?



In Reply


Simple wording is always best like "Please Note the change of time to...."

mailing labels

Hi, I am sending out a box with my invitation in it due to an orchid being attached to the invitation so extra padding is required. Do I hand address the mailing labels or can these be printed out from my computer? Do I put my return address on the same mailing label in the upper left hand corner or a separate address on the box? Thank you for your time.

Regards,
Kathell



In Reply


This does sound like a wonderful way to invite guests, I am sure they will really appreciate everything you are doing.

The strict etiquette is to have handwritten addresses with the return address on the back. Good luck!

photo size

Is there a proper size photo that should be sent ?



In Reply


No real etiquette question here. Probably best to speak to your photograher and they will give you the options on size that fit in your envelope.

Reception Invitation Etiquette

by Uma Rankin
(Los Angeles, California)

I have a reception immediately following the graduation ceremony. I looked around for suitable wording and in the end chose:

The pleasure of your company
is requested
at the Reception
immediately following the graduation ceremony
Venue Details
Los Angeles, California

Personal Thank You Notes

by Yvonne Martin
(Toronto, Canada)

I am not quite sure how this fits with thank you note or even invitation etiquette. I wrote very personal and warm messages to all those who gave me graduation gifts. My thanks included just how great it was to see the person at the party, or hear from them. I added any personal note I had for them and also very warm thanks. I was happy with that however it did take me a few weeks to get through them all.

I expect 10 weeks is a bit too long. If I was to do this again I may write a little less and get the notes out within 4 weeks.

Envelopes

by Tracey
(Little Rock, AR)

I have a question. My daughters graduation invitations came with two envelopes; one larger than the other. I need to know do I put anything on the outside of the one that will go inside the other?

In Reply

Many thanks for contacting us. The usual way of filling the main invitation envelope from the bottom up should be Invitation, Reply Envelope and Reply Card. Worth checking with your supplier but it could be the smaller envelope is your reply envelope which could be addressed.

Good luck and congratulations to your daughter.

Postage Stamp on Reply Card?

by Robin
(Palm Beach, FL)

Must I include a postage stamp on the RSVP card?



In reply

Many thanks for getting in touch. You do not say what the event is however it is your choice. I do as I feel it gets the replies in that I need without delay.

Invitation Etiquette

Is it o.k. to send a party invite in the same envelope as the graduation announcement?


In Reply

Should be fine.

Tara

by Tara Sies
(Peebles, OH)

My daughter has been attending college since she was 15 for high school and college credits, therefore, she will be graduating from 2 places receiving her high school diploma and her associates degree. The high school graduation was May 30th and the college graduation is June 12. We are having the party in mid-end of July. We have high school announcements to send out with the party invitation. Is it proper to include a note of her achievements and graduation from the college? Also,is it ok to mail the announcements including the party invitation since they will be mailed after both graduations are over?



In reply


First off congratulations to your daughter, to graduate from high school and college is fabulous. Great idea to announce all the details in one announcement and to include the invites and announcements in the same envelope.

I hope you have a great time!

Do you still invite?

by HLS
(Ohio)

I am planning a large formal event for this spring. During the course of casual conversation/email exchanges, I have had people on my "guest list" tell me they could not come to the event. Invitations don't go out for about 2 more months.

Do I send these people invitations, even though I know for certain they cannot come?



In Reply

This is a hard call. I certainly would want them to know they were invited and we did really hope they could attend. How you cover that is probably quite personal and depends on your relationship with them.
You could tell them they will be invited as you value them as friends. You know there is 2 months till the invites go out so you hope their arrangements change. When the invites go out they can let you know if they can come. Particularly if they have only told you casually they cannot attend this also removes the chance they were mistaken about their plans. Personally I would add a personal note to the invites explaining that they may have told you they could not attend but you are inviting them in the hope that things have changed.

I hope this hleps, however please let me know if there is more you need.

Revoking an Invite--

by Cathleen
(Wrentham, MA)

I was invited to a function, asked to RSVP, but when I RSVP'd I was told that the function was full. Is that not completely rude? Or am I bent out of shape over nothing?

Thanks


In Reply

It does seem rather unfair!

Save the Dates

by Tiffany
(Winfield, AL)

Whose return address should be on the save the dates? The bride and groom's or the parents of the bride, who are paying for the wedding?


In reply

Many thanks for contacting us.
We do not have expertise in wedding etiquette, we just love graduation. However I would tell you we used the same address as was used for invitation RSVPs.

Graduation Invitation Received with an Extra Blank Envelope

I've rec'd many high school graduation invitations over the years, but I am left speechless by one I received yesterday.
It was from the child of a friend. During a phone coversation with the parent when asked if I rec'd the invitation, I said yes and asked if there was supposed to be a reply card because there was an extra blank envelope inside the invitation. I knew that it didn't make sense that there would be a reply card because the extra envelope was not addressed so that you could mail it back, but I was puzzled. Her answer to me was that she thought "that was so that you could send the graduation something....like they are saying....hey, send me some money" (direct quote)
I was horrified! Although, it was my intention to do exactly that, to think that they are now actually solicting money with their invitations seems in very poor taste and judgement. Are you familiar with this happening and what is your opinion?
After re-examing the invitation, I think I have a more likely answer and that is that the invitation was not double enveloped as it should have been....it was only in the outer mailing envelope and the other envelope was a result of unacceptable work from the printer and was just slightly too small for the invitation to actually fit into the envelope as the inner envelope. I guess no one knew what to do with it, so they just enclosed it with the invitation. Please comment.



In reply


Hard to know the families' intention here however, trusting in human nature, it does sound like they just did not handle the inner envelope correctly.

College Announcements - Return Address

by Stella Gold
(Texas)

Our Son has been living and working in New York and will be graduating college this May. If we are sending out the announcements do we put his NY address as the return address or our Texas address?

In reply

Many thanks for getting in touch with us. The return address could best be where you want them to go to. Perhaps you need to decide how they can best be handled. If your son will handle the returns properly then NY would be fine. If you feel you need to handle them then Texas would be best.

including picture in college graduation invite

by Bree
(CO)

Can you include a picture with a college graduation invitation or is it just for high school?


In Reply



Thanks for contacting me.

A photograph is great at all stages, including college graduation invitations!

I hope the graduate has a great time.

Colleen

Am I allowed to request "No Bluejeans or Shorts" of my family at my sons Law School Graduation?


In Reply

Many thanks for contacting us.

There is no etiquette question as such here. The question of dress code is entirely up to you.

On a personal note only, if I felt that I wanted a certain standard of dress that excluded blue jeans etc I would just do it. I would word it politely but firmly.

If you are using a particular venue they may have a dress standard that you can refer to.

Let me know if you need any more help here!

Regards

Jane

Parent of graduate

When should I mail "save the date" reminders for a high school graduation?


In Reply


As soon as you know the date I would get them out. I do like to get everything booked well in advance, bearing in mind that I will send the invites out 6 to 9 weeks before the event.

However if you have an open house party you may be more relaxed in terms of timescales.