One of the best things about being engaged and getting married is the fact that everyone wants to shower you with gifts!  Whether they are wedding gifts, generous cash gifts, or just sweet, sentimental cards, each gift, no matter how big or small, deserves a thank you note.

With technology, emails, and social media keeping us connected with people instantly just by the touch of our fingertips, it seems that letter writing is becoming more and more of a lost art.  Nothing can replace the feeling of getting a heartfelt note in the mail from a loved one, but why are less and less people doing it?  My theory is that they simply don’t have time to write letters or that they don’t know how.  Unfortunately, I can’t create more time in your life, but I can give you some tips on how to write the perfect “Thank You” note!

1. It Must Be Handwritten
When you’re writing upwards of 100 thank you notes for wedding gifts, it can be tempting to want to type them out or just email them!  Proper etiquette states that thank you notes should always be handwritten, as it shows the amount of appreciation you have for the gifts and the people who gave them.

2. Send Your Note As Soon As Possible
This is really tough when it comes to weddings.  Because of the sheer volume of thank you notes to be written, the task can seem daunting and you may want to put it off.  But remember, you are going to have to do it sooner or later.  Our tip is to break it up over a couple of days.  Set aside time with your new husband or wife and plan to each write a certain number of notes.  The rule is for thank you notes to be received no more than two weeks after a shower and no more than one month after you return from your honeymoon.

3. Make It Personal
When you’re writing a thank you note, you should always start with thanking the note’s recipient- super obvious, right?  As far as weddings go, I would encourage people to thank their wedding guests for coming to the wedding (especially if it was a destination wedding!) in addition to the gift.  If a guest wasn’t able to make it to your event but still sent a gift, you should mention that they were missed at said event as well as thanking them for the gift.

4. Mention the Gift & How You’ll Be Using It
Always mention the gift when thanking someone.  Instead of saying “Dear Aunt Susie, Thank you so much for the gift,” say “Dear Aunt Susie, Thank you so much for the steak knives.  We are so excited for warmer weather, that we’ll definitely be putting the knives to use when we grill steaks this weekend.”  If you are given a cash gift, do the same thing.  For example, “Thank you so much for the generous wedding gift.  We are going to be using it toward a down payment on a house.”

5. Thank Them Again
It sounds redundant, but that’s the point!  This can be part of the closing sentence of your note.  However, you don’t need to name the gift specifically like you did in the first sentence.  Here’s a good example: “Thank you again for the wonderful gift, and we look forward to seeing you soon.”

Until next time,
Savannah