Writing Engagement Announcements

Writing engagement announcements is the first step in your wedding plans. You want the first public announcement of the happy news to reflect your joy and excitement. So how do you pick the right format and words to fit your personality? Learn about the various ways to write engagement announcements.

Announcements are part of engagement etiquette.

You can announce your engagement in a number of different ways. Here are the different types of engagement announcements:

• Announcement cards: Cards are the traditional form of announcement. Couples send announcement cards to family and friends. The cards may follow a traditional or casual format. Traditional cards may include the names of the couple's parents.
• Newspaper announcements: Newspaper announcements reach a larger audience and provide the basic details of the names of the engaged couple, their parents and sometimes, the wedding date. Years ago, the bride's parents placed the announcement in the newspaper as the first public announcement of their daughter's engagement. Today, couples place their own newspaper engagement announcements.
• Email announcements: Email engagement announcements are a casual alternative to formal cards. Some couples send email announcements to friends and formal cards to family.
• Other Types of Public Engagement Announcements: Couples can verbally announce engagements at public gatherings of family and friends. Common places to announce engagements include engagement parties, Christmas parties, Valentine's day parties and church gatherings. Wedding websites are another way of announcing an engagement and informing people of wedding plans.

Couples may use more than one method to announce their engagement to tell different groups of people about their plans.

Once you select an announcement type, you are ready to pick your tone. Your wording will depend upon the tone of the announcement.

• Formal and Traditional: Either the parents of the bride or both sets of parents announce the engagement in a card sent out to family and friends. The parents also announce the engagement in the newspaper.
• Informal: The couple announces their own engagement to family and friends in a card and/or newspaper announcement. The couple may choose the same card stock as a formal announcement. However, they may use formal or informal language in the wording.
• Casual: The couple announces their own engagement, using more casual language. The announcement cards are not limited to formal card stock. Other types of cards and papers are used. Email announcements also fall in this category.

Modern couples are free to choose whichever tone fits their style. It is just best to match the announcement tone with the type of wedding planned. A couple planning a traditional wedding should also send a formal announcement.

When writing engagement announcements, you must include certain types of information. All engagement announcements require the following information:

• The names of the engaged couple
• The news of the engagement

Optional details include:

• A general reference to the wedding date, if known
• The names of the couple's parents
• The name of the church where the wedding will occur

It is not recommended that you write the actual date of the wedding because people may confuse the announcement with a wedding invitation. A general reference to a June wedding or a spring wedding ceremony is sufficient. You can also opt not to mention the wedding date.

Now that you have selected an announcement type and tone, you can figure out the right wording. Here are some examples to serve as a guide:

Formal Announcement:

Dr. and Mrs. Charles Reynolds are pleased to announce the engagement of their daughter, Catherine Marie Reynolds, to Kevin James Foster. An August wedding is planned.

Informal Announcement:

Jenny Stevens and Chad Lewis joyously announce their engagement. They are planning a Spring wedding.

Casual Announcement:

We're getting married! Please share in our happiness as we announce our engagement. We love you all. Carol and Jack

Most newspapers require people to fill out a special form to announce an engagement. Newspaper engagement announcement forms typically request the following information:

• The engaged couple's names
• The couple's city of residence
• The parent's names
• The city where the parents reside
• The city of residence of the couple and parents
• The high schools and colleges attended by the couple
• Course of study or degrees obtained by the couple
• The place of employment and career field of the couple
• The date of the wedding and location

A reporter will then write an announcement based on the information provided.

Some newspapers will allow people to write and submit their own engagement announcement as long as they meet certain guidelines.

Here are some helpful Internet resources on writing engagement announcements:

• Bridal Weather: Bridal Weather offers advice on how to write engagement announcements.
• Cost Effective Bride: The site provides helpful information on how to plan an engagement and wedding on a budget. She has some cost effective announcement options.
• E Z Wedding Planner: The E Z Wedding Planner site has advise for writing newspaper announcements.
• Elegant Woman: The Elegant Woman site has information on proper engagement announcement etiquette.

No matter which words you pick, the engagement announcement will be special to you and your fiancé. Make sure that you keep a special copy of the announcement for a wedding scrapbook or keepsake box.

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