When you are planning your wedding invitations, the wording becomes very important. Many brides and grooms are concerned about using proper etiquette when writing out invitations, but there are some tricky situations that require a more refined form of etiquette. It is hard for couples to think that they would offend people, so wording on the invitations could provide enough hints for guests to understand your desires for your wedding without having to be rude. Here are some sensitive situations that using proper wedding invitation etiquette can help you navigate:

Many couples want a more mature wedding ceremony and reception, and so they do not want couples bringing their children to the event. You spend a lot of time planning your wedding, and it is perfectly acceptable for you to not want children at your wedding. However, writing, “No Children, Please,” on you invitations is not acceptable. The easier way to deal with the problem is to refrain from putting the children's names on the invitations, nor should you use the term “family.” Also, spread the word among friends and family that you do not want children at the wedding.

Some guests will want to know where you are registered, and it can be tempting to put that information in your wedding invitations. As part of your wedding planning, you spent a lot of time going through stores registering for the specific things you want. However, etiquette dictates that you avoid putting your registration on your invitation. Instead try putting your registration information on your wedding website. This way you can include the website in your invitation, but you don't actually have to advertise your gift registry information.

Some couples do not want any wedding gifts. Often brides or grooms that are celebrating a second marriage do not want any more gifts, so they wish to convey to guests that just their presence at the wedding is required. While it is not okay to list where you are registered, you can acknowledge that you do not want gifts on your wedding invitations. The proper place to put the phrase, “No gifts, please,” is on the response card.

There are some brides and grooms that are not close to their parents or have family issues. In these situations the invitations can be worded to avoid giving the wrong impression about family relationships without putting up a banner that says, “dysfunctional family.” Some brides and grooms just refrain from mentioning the parents on the invitation while others use pre-determined wedding invitation wording that reflects separations or divorces in an unobtrusive way.