Marriage Announcement: Post-Wedding Notification Cards

So You Got Married and Now Need to Tell Everyone

Okay so post-wedding announcement cards are basically for when you’ve already gotten married—usually a smaller ceremony or elopement—and now you need to let everyone know it happened. I had this client back in spring 2023 who eloped in Iceland and then came back totally panicked because her grandmother was gonna find out through Facebook before getting a proper announcement and honestly that whole situation could’ve been avoided with better planning.

The whole point is you’re not inviting anyone to anything. The wedding already happened. You’re just sharing the news, kinda like a birth announcement but for your marriage. Some people get weirdly offended by these which honestly annoys me because not everyone wants or can afford a 150-person wedding, but that’s a whole other rant.

When You Actually Need These Things

You need post-wedding announcement cards if you had an elopement, a destination wedding with just immediate family, a courthouse ceremony, or if you got married during—well, a lot of people needed these during 2020-2021 for obvious reasons. Also if you’re having a super delayed reception, though that’s slightly different.

I’ve also seen them used when couples have a religious ceremony in one country and a legal one in another, or when there’s been a significant time gap between the legal marriage and any celebration. Basically anytime the “official” wedding happened but a chunk of your social circle wasn’t there to witness it.

Timing Is Actually Important Here

You wanna send these out within three months of your wedding date. Ideally sooner. Like, two to six weeks after is perfect. Waiting too long makes it weird—people will have already found out through social media or the grapevine, and then your beautiful announcement card shows up and they’re like “oh yeah, I saw the Instagram posts four months ago.”

If you’re planning an elopement, you should actually order these cards BEFORE you leave for your wedding so they’re ready to go when you get back. I learned this the hard way with that Iceland couple because rush printing fees are no joke, and also you’re gonna be in newlywed bliss mode and not wanting to deal with stationery decisions.

What Actually Goes On The Card

The wording is pretty straightforward but people overthink it constantly. You need: your names, the fact that you got married, the date, and the location. That’s literally it. Everything else is optional.

Standard wording is something like “Jane Smith and John Davis were married on June 15th, 2024 in Savannah, Georgia” or “Jane Smith and John Davis joyfully announce their marriage” etc. You can do “are pleased to announce” or “happily announce” or whatever fits your vibe.

Some people include their new address if they’ve moved in together, which is practical. Some include a photo from the wedding, which I actually recommend because it makes the whole thing feel more personal and less like… I dunno, a formal notification that you filed paperwork? My cat knocked over my coffee while I was designing a set of these last month and honestly the coffee-stained version looked kinda artistic but we didn’t go with it.

Photo or No Photo

This is totally preference but photo announcements feel warmer. You can do a single photo on the front with text on the back, or text on the front with a photo collage inside if you’re doing a folded card. I usually steer people toward one really good photo rather than trying to cram in twelve tiny ones.

Make sure you have high-resolution images—this is where people mess up constantly. That cute Instagram story screenshot is not gonna print well at 5×7. You need actual photo files from your photographer or at minimum really good iPhone photos taken in decent lighting.

Design Choices That Actually Matter

The design should match your wedding style but it doesn’t have to be super matchy-matchy with wedding invitations since, well, there weren’t wedding invitations if you eloped. Unless you’re doing a delayed reception with invites, then yeah maybe keep some consistency.

Popular formats are 5×7 flat cards, 5×7 folded cards, or postcard style. Postcards are cheaper to mail which is a real consideration if you’re sending to like 100+ people. But they feel less formal, so if you’re announcing to your grandmother’s entire bridge club, maybe go with the regular card.

Paper Quality

You don’t need crazy expensive paper for these. A nice smooth or linen cardstock works great. I’ve seen people spend $8 per card on triple-thick cotton paper with gold foiling and it’s like… this is just letting people know you got married, not the actual invitation. Save your money for the delayed reception or your honeymoon fund or whatever.

That said, don’t go with flimsy printer paper either. 110lb cardstock minimum. It should feel substantial when someone holds it.

The Mailing List Situation

This is where it gets tricky and kinda political. You’re basically deciding who gets a formal announcement versus who just finds out organically. Generally speaking, send them to:

• Family members who weren’t at the wedding
• Close friends who couldn’t attend
• Distant relatives who’d be offended not to receive something formal
• Parents’ friends and colleagues if that’s your family dynamic
• Anyone you’d normally send a holiday card to

You don’t need to send them to people who were actually at your wedding—they already know you got married because they were there. Unless you want to send them as keepsakes, which some people do, but it’s not expected.

The Gift Question Everyone Asks

So here’s the thing that annoys me most about post-wedding announcements: people think they’re gift grabs. They’re not. You’re literally just sharing news. BUT some people will send gifts anyway because that’s what they do when people get married, and you can’t control that.

Do NOT include registry information on the announcement card. Seriously. Don’t do it. If people want to send a gift, they’ll ask or they’ll find your registry through your wedding website or whatever. Putting registry info on an announcement card looks like you’re asking for presents for a wedding people weren’t invited to, and yeah, people will judge you for it.

If you absolutely must share registry info, put it on your wedding website and include the website URL on the card in small print. That’s the most tasteful way to handle it.

Addressing and Mailing These Things

You can handwrite addresses if you’ve got nice handwriting and a small list. For anything over like 30 cards, I’d print labels or do envelope printing. Your hand will cramp and they’ll start looking progressively messier.

Use full formal names and addresses. “Mr. and Mrs. Robert Johnson” or “Ms. Sarah Martinez” not “Hey Aunt Sally” even though that would be funnier. Include apartment numbers, get the ZIP codes right, all that boring stuff that matters when you actually want the cards to arrive.

Postage

Weight your card before you buy stamps. A 5×7 card in an envelope with a photo might need extra postage. Take one complete assembled card to the post office and have them weigh it. Buying a sheet of forever stamps and then finding out you needed 85 cent stamps instead is frustrating, and also your cards will get returned to you with “insufficient postage” stamps all over them.

If you’re doing square envelopes, those cost more to mail. The post office charges extra for non-standard sizes. Rectangle envelopes under a certain size are cheapest.

Digital Announcements Are Also A Thing

Look, if you’re on a tight budget or you have a huge extended network or you’re just not into paper cards, digital announcements are totally fine. You can design an e-card and email it, or do a really nice graphic for social media. Just make sure your close family gets some kind of heads-up before you blast it on Instagram—trust me on this one, I’ve seen family drama over someone’s mom finding out through a public post.

For digital, you still want it to look intentional and designed, not just a screenshot of a photo with text slapped on it in whatever font your phone offered. Use Canva or hire someone on Etsy to make a template you can customize. Include the same info you’d put on a paper card.

What About Reception-To-Follow Cards

Okay so this is slightly different but related—if you eloped but you’re planning a reception or celebration later, you might do announcement cards that also mention the upcoming party. Or you might do separate invitation cards for the reception. It depends on timing.

If the reception is happening within a few months of the elopement, I’d honestly just send reception invitations that mention you recently got married. Something like “Jane and John, who were married on June 15th in Savannah, invite you to celebrate with them at a reception on September 20th” etc.

If the reception is way later—like you eloped in spring but the party is next summer—send announcements now and then send separate reception invites closer to that date. People can’t be expected to hold a date for 10+ months based on an announcement card.

Wording For Reception Invites

The wording shifts because now you ARE inviting people to something. You’d say “request the pleasure of your company” or “invite you to celebrate their marriage” and include all the standard invitation details: date, time, location, RSVP info, dress code if relevant. These function like regular wedding invitations except they’re for a post-wedding celebration.

And yes, NOW you can include reception/registry info because you’re actually inviting people to an event where gifts are traditional. Still don’t put it on the invitation itself—use a details card or website.

Common Mistakes I See Constantly

People wait too long to send them and then they feel pointless. People include too much explanation about why they eloped or got married small—you don’t need to justify your choices, just announce the marriage. People use low-quality photos that print blurry. People forget to proofread and then “marriage” is spelled “marraige” on 80 cards (this happened to someone I know and we still laugh about it).

Also, people sometimes send these to like, their hairdresser and their dentist and random acquaintances, and it comes across sorta… gift-grabby? Even if that’s not the intention. Stick to people who would genuinely want to know this news about your life, not everyone you’ve ever met.

Printing Options

You can go through online printers like Minted, Shutterfly, Zazzle, Artifact Uprising—they all have templates and decent quality. Local print shops can do custom work if you want something really specific. Etsy sellers offer printable files if you wanna print them yourself, which is cheapest but also most labor-intensive.

For online printers, order samples first if you can. Colors look different on screen versus printed, and you wanna make sure the paper quality is what you expected before you order 100 of them. Most companies offer sample packs for a few bucks.

Timeline-wise, printing usually takes 1-2 weeks depending on the company and whether you’re doing rush shipping. Then you gotta assemble everything, address envelopes, add postage, and mail. So plan for at least 3-4 weeks from design to delivery if you’re not rushing.

Budget Breakdown

Ballpark costs: basic cards from online printers run about $1-3 per card depending on quantity and options. Envelopes are usually included. Postage is currently 68 cents for a standard letter (but double-check current rates). So for 50 announcements you’re looking at roughly $50-150 for printing plus $34 for postage, so under $200 total.

If you want fancy stuff—foil stamping, custom illustrations, letterpress—you’re gonna pay more. Way more. Like $5-15 per card. Which is fine if that’s important to you and you have the budget, but it’s not necessary for the cards to serve their purpose.

Extra Details People Sometimes Include

Some couples include a short personal note, especially if they’re sending to people they’re close with. Like a handwritten line at the bottom saying “Can’t wait to celebrate with you soon!” or whatever feels natural. This is a nice touch if you have time but not required.

New address info is practical to include if you’ve moved. Name change information if applicable—like “Jane Smith, now Jane Davis” or “Jane Smith-Davis” so people know what name you’re using going forward. This helps with future correspondence and holiday cards and all that.

Some people include a quote or song lyric that’s meaningful to them, which… I mean, it’s your card, do what you want, but it can come across a little cheesy. Unless it’s really perfectly chosen and brief, I’d probably skip it.

What Happens After You Send Them

People will congratulate you via text, call, email, social media comments, whatever. Some will send cards back. Some will send gifts even though you didn’t ask for them. You should send thank-you notes for any gifts, obviously, and probably for really thoughtful cards or messages too.

Don’t stress if some people don’t respond at all—not everyone is great at acknowledging this stuff and it doesn’t mean they’re not happy for you. Life gets busy, mail gets lost, people forget. It happens.

You might get questions about why you didn’t have a big wedding or when you’re gonna have a reception or whatever. Have a simple, polite response ready that doesn’t go into a whole defensive explanation. “We wanted something intimate” or “It felt right for us” is plenty. You don’t owe anyone your reasoning.