What is the difference between an engagement announcement and save-the-date?

Question

I hear/read so many people saying "Don't send an engagement announcement--do a save-the-date card instead!" Is there even a difference?

I'm engaged, but not getting married for two years. We'll be running an announcement in the paper sometime this fall or winter just to let people know. The thing is, we live about 350 miles away from home so we're only putting it in the paper back home (we decided not to do it where we currently live--rural area prices vs. big city prices). Though we're not running an announcement in the paper here, we are inviting people (from our current school, work, etc.).

So what exactly is the difference between an engagement announcement and a save-the-date card?

Answer 1

An engagement announcement is a formal way of telling people you are engaged. Unless you have tons of money, most people don't send them. A save-the-date is a card, magnet, or something that is sent out a few months before the wedding to tell people to mark the date on their calendars so they will be able to attend the ceremony. It helps them know the wedding date when it's still too early to send out invitations.

Answer 2

Engagement Announcement Cards

Answer 3

No no no! No save the date- then people start making flight plans and taking vacation time; both which are often irreversable!



Experts in the wedding industry will say, send out save the date card no sooner than 6 months of the date and no later than 4 months of the date. You'll want that flexiblity prior to that when you are making arrangements for your reception venue and other things that you can not change or arrange.



Do an engagement announcement- it just tells everyone that you are engaged, when you got engaged and to whom you are engaged to.

Answer 4

engagement announcements are sent out only to formally announce your engagements. they do not have to include an actual wedding date but normally say something like 'the wedding will take place in the spring of 2012" or whatever you choose. venue information is not included on engagement announcements. save the date cards are only to alert people as to the actual wedding date you have chosen so that they can set that date aside and not plan anything else. they are normally sent about 4 or 5 months prior to the wedding and do not have any information on them other than your names and wedding date. some people put a nice photo of the two of them on or in the save the date cards. the invitations are sent between 6 and 8 weeks prior to the wedding and they would include all the pertinant information concerning the venue and time and date and directions alond with rsvp cards. most people coordinate all of their paper selections with their wedding colors, but you don't have to. you do not have to use any of those items except the invitations. save the date cards are really only necessary if you have a lot of family and friends who lead busy social lives and might otherwise plan something else to do if you do not alert them to your wedding date. engagement announcements are not used that much anymore since most people use the internet and other sources of electronic notifications. the most common day to get married is of course saturday....but it is also the most expensive day. sunday is a great day for wedding and normally costs less than saturday. the most affordable time for a wedding is any day monday through thursday. almost all venues give great discounts for weekday weddings. the only reason most people do not use weekdays is due to guests having to go to work the next day, but wednesdays are becoming more popular for week day weddings.

Answer 5

Just think of the save the date magnet as a way to ask people to put your wedding in their calendars. More than 2/3 of wedding brides send either a save the date magnet or card. Save the date are usually informal and they can also give the guests information about your wedding website.



By having the magnet on the refrigerator, they will not loose your website address. This site has several examples of save the date magnets ( save-the-date-magnets.com)

Answer 6

They are indeed very different things. An engagement announcement takes the communication "OMG, Fred and Liz have finally decided to get married!" and puts it into formal language, like "Katherine and William Hargood are pleased to announce the engagement of their daughter, Dahlia Elizabeth Hargood, to Frederick James Kudzu, son of Patricia and Carl Kudzu. The wedding is planned for Autumn of 2011." In the old days, the proud Mama wrote these out by hand on her good stationery and a servant hand delivered them to the homes of nearby acquaintances. Those who did not live near by would be contacted via postal mail. In modern times it is more usual for the announcement to appear in a local newspaper, along with a photo of the couple.



A "save the date" is a horrible invention by some printer who was stuck with too many fridge magnets and other "junk mail" items and wasn't able to unload them on dentists and gynecologists. Knowing that brides "have stars in their eyes" and will buy almost anything if you tell them it is "right" or "traditional", thousands of brides each year are misled into buying the ghastly things.



What these brides (along with grooms, and members of both families) should be doing is sending these people a handwritten personal letter or note. If someone knows The Simpsons well enough to want their names on the guest list, then that someone knows them well enough to take pen in hand and write to them "Dear Marge and Homer, Fred and Lizzie have finally set a date. The wedding will be on October 13th of 2011. I hope you two will be able to come to Chicago for the wedding. Expect a formal invitation around late July. Yours truly, Lydia"



People with things to sell will tell you differently, but a personal handwritten letter is always better than something impersonal that has been commercially produced, no matter how "cute" it is.

Answer 7

Engagement announcements let people know your engaged...save the date is to let people know the day you have chosen to get married on