Wording library
Engagement party
wording.
Warmer and shorter than a wedding invitation — with one trap that causes real hurt later if you fall into it.
How do you word an engagement party invitation?
Name the hosts, say what is being celebrated, name the couple, then the particulars. Keep it warmer and shorter than a wedding invitation. The one rule: anyone invited to the engagement party should also be invited to the wedding. Guests read the first invitation as a signal about the second.
01
The wording.
Mr and Mrs Charles Okonkwoinvite you to celebrate the engagement ofAmaraaDaniel Reyes
The commonest form. "Celebrate" rather than "request the honour" — this is a party, not a ceremony.
We're engaged —and we'd love you to celebrate with us.Amara and Daniel
First person is entirely correct here, in a way it is not on a formal wedding invitation.
Shh — it's a surprise.Join us to celebrateAmara and Daniel's engagement
Put the surprise instruction first and the arrival time in bold. Guests arriving late to a surprise is the standard failure.
The trap. An engagement party guest who does not receive a wedding invitation will notice, and will be hurt. If your wedding list is going to be smaller than your engagement list, keep the engagement party small too — it is much easier than explaining the gap afterwards.
02
Common questions
Should we mention gifts?
How far ahead do these go out?
Should the wedding date be on it?
One identity, from engagement to wedding.
The engagement party is the first piece guests see. When it descends from the same design as the wedding suite, the whole sequence reads as one event rather than three.
See how it works