Writing in a Thank you Note

The wedding is now over and the task of writing thank you notes to friends and family is the next step. It is customary for the newlyweds to send out thank you cards within two to five weeks from the day of the wedding. Aside from what seems like such a huge task, people are often stuck on exactly what to write in a thank you note. These are a few tips to help get you started.

Gather together the names and addresses of the people who attended your wedding as well as the people who could not attend your wedding, but sent a gift. Once you have the list at hand, you can begin writing your thank you notes.

Wedding thank you notes should always be sent on formal stationery. Choose a good pen in either black or dark blue ink and always hand write your thank you notes.

Address the note to whom gave you the gift. If it is someone you know, you can use an informal greeting such as, "Dear Aunt Nancy and Uncle Joe". If it is someone you do not know real well, a more formal greeting such as, "Dear Mr. and Mrs. Smith", should be used. You can adapt the closing, using words and phrases such as, "Sincerely yours", "Love Always", "With love", "Best Wishes", and the likes.

Always personalize the note. Make mention of the gift, how much it means to you, and how you will use it, if possible. For example if Aunt Nancy and Uncle Joe gave you a complete set of hand crafted porcelain dishes, you could say something like, "Thank you for the wonderful porcelain dishes. They are really beautiful and we plan to use them for special occasions. They will also be a great family heirloom."

If you received a gift that neither you or your husband likes, still thank them, but you can say something like, "Thank you for the oil painting of the Siamese cats drinking beer. It is truly a unique gift.".

Mention how you appreciated how he or she could attend your wedding. If they traveled a long distance to attend your wedding, acknowledge this and how much it meant to you that they shared in your special day. If someone was unable to attend, but sent a gift, mention how sorry you were that they were unable to attend.

When receiving money or gift certificates, always include how you intend to use the money when sending a wedding thank you note. For example, if your husbands boss gave you $1,500.00 , you could say something like, "Mark and I want to thank you for the check we received. We are saving for a new house and your gift will help us reach our goal.".