Trinidad Weddings' Ultimate Guide To Writing Thank you Notes!

This week, on a visit to my daughter’s school, I happened to be waiting in the reception area for a short while. A bold sign displayed on the notice board caught my eye, “Be a CLASS act, have good manners!” 

It struck me how much this holds true not only in daily life but when it comes to events in general and weddings, in particular. It’s an area often overlooked after the flurry of the honeymoon is over and as newly-weds settle into married life and back into their working lives, post-wedding.

However, proper etiquette dictates that even if you have thanked guests in person, you are still expected to send out a formal note or card. Thank you cards should always be handwritten and should contain a personalised message to your guest.

Your thank you notes should be sent within 6-8 weeks of the date the gift was received. Although it does involve “work” – (sometimes writing hundreds of cards!) it is a gesture that guests will appreciate and remember for years to come.

If you have received a gift from a group, perhaps co-workers or another association, you are required to send a thank you card to each person in the group. Should the group’s members be in excess of 10 persons, you can do a general thank you card to the entire organisation.

Here’s a fool-proof guide to get you started:

1.    Keep a detailed list of gifts received and from whom.

2.    Direct the note to all of the gift-givers of the particular gift; with the names and titles that you are accustomed to addressing them by.

3.    Always mention the gift by name and try as much as possible to avoid referring to it as “the gift”

4.    Mention any special effort that the guest would have made for you e.g. helping you craft a speech, volunteering their time, giving a heartfelt toast or travelling from abroad.

5.    State how you plan to use the gift, particularly if it was a cash gift. You can say that perhaps you are putting the monies toward new appliances or using it for a one-year anniversary vacation.

6.    Only if it is realistic for you, you may also want to mention a future encounter with the gift-givers, for example having them over for dinner or going out for drinks, but this is totally optional and depends on how close you are, to the guests in question.

7.    Thank you cards need not be limited to guests alone. They can also be sent to wedding suppliers who did exceptional jobs, your officiant, persons who organised the bridal shower and bachelor party and your parents!

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