Never in a million years did I think I’d be writing on this topic, but here we are. Since social gatherings have come to an abrupt halt in the midst of the pandemic, engaged couples have had to rethink how they will celebrate their nuptials. Even in these unprecedented times, it’s still nice to send an invite, announcement or update to keep your family and friends informed. If you’ve decided to put things on pause and postpone your wedding, there are tons of options for getting the word out to guests. “Change the Dates” have popped up literally everywhere! But today I’m sharing wedding announcement ideas and tips for couples who are either moving forward with a smaller guest list or have chosen to have a private ceremony with a bigger celebration at a later date.

Personalized Wedding Announcements

Pandemic or not, if you’ve decided to elope or get married in a private ceremony, you can choose stationery designed specifically for announcing your marriage. Wedding announcement cards have been around forever, but my guess is they will see a significant bump in popularity after all of this.

Shown above (clockwise from top): 1 . Classic Traditions  / 2 . Classic Introduction  / 3 . Wedded Bliss / 4 . Wedding Party / 5 . Swashed Script / 6 . Serif Traditions

Customize invitations into an announcement

If you have your heart set on a particular invitation suite or even a save the date, try tweaking the copy a bit to fit your circumstances. Most online retailers have options for customizing most, if not all, the text on a design. If you plan to have a celebration at a later date, this is also an opportunity to let people know they’ll be invited. I edited my “Proposal” design at Minted as an example:

Send digital invitations

At this point, the guidelines for gatherings are changing so rapidly, it can be difficult to keep your guests up to date if you’re planning an in-person celebration. If you use a service like Greenvelope, you can go back and edit your invite to reflect the most recent information. When you make a change, it will update all previously sent cards, so there’s no risk of forgetting anyone! It’s kind of brilliant. (Shown below: Mod Minimal)

Bonus Tip: Include a photo

If you’ve eloped or had a private ceremony, sending a picture from the day is a really nice touch. People want to share your joy and see you on such an important day, especially in a time when being face to face is so difficult. Even if you choose a non-photo announcement, you can usually add one or two pics to the back of the card. Greenvelope allows you to add a photo gallery to any design as well.

These are just a few basic tips for announcing your wedding under the most difficult of circumstances. How are you announcing your marriage in these crazy times?