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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