Guest List Etiquette
Photo Credit: It Girl Weddings
So... you're recently engaged. YASSSS! BUT one of the first (and daunting) tasks of planning your wedding is coming up with a guest list. It's time to sit down with you fiancé, grab a pen and paper, and start writing out that list of names! One tip to keep in mind as you think of your guest list -- if you invite ONE aunt, you should invite ALL aunts. Or, if you invite half the people from your office, be prepared for others in the office who weren't invited to be a bit upset. Also, think about if you want to have children at your wedding. Many couples are opting for children-free weddings lately. As for that topic, that's a whole other blog post ;)
Once you have ALL of the possible names you can think of written down on paper, you'll then want to count these and see where you're at. Note, although you might invite 300 guests, keep in mind not every single person is going to RSVP yes. In fact, on average, about 20% will RSVP no. So, if you have 300 guests on the invite list, plan on about 240 attending. This is only an example as these details will depend on many factors such as if you're guests live nearby, are from out of town, have something else going on that day, etc. Although, the average guest count seems to be right around that 200 spot, however, we've seen as little as 30 guests attend a wedding all the way up to about 400!
Once you have your guest list written out and the final count is in place, be sure to check with your parents as well. Sometimes they will want to invite their coworkers, the neighbors, and whoever else which can sometimes be frustrating especially if you've already got a pretty large guest list. From here, be sure to check with your wedding venue (or prospective venue) on the max number of personnel they allow. You'll also want to take budget into account when dealing with your guest list. Food & beverage will be the main factor in this. If it comes down to it, you may need to split your list and come up with an "A" list and a "B" list. The "A" list being those who are 100% for sure invited, and the "B" list being those who are invited if some of the "A" list cannot attend, you get some wiggle room in your budget, etc.
As always, if you have any further questions on this topic, please don't hesitate to reach out. We're here for you!