Wedding cards get read out loud sometimes, and almost always get kept. That is more pressure than a card deserves, and it is why so many end up saying “congratulations on your special day” in handwriting that clearly hesitated.
Address both of them
The most common slip is writing to the person you know and treating their partner as furniture. Use both names, even if you have met one of them twice. It is a card about the two of them existing as a unit — write to the unit.
Specific beats profound
“Wishing you a lifetime of happiness” is fine and forgettable. “I have never seen Dan this relaxed as when you two are in the same room” is the sentence they will remember. You do not need wisdom about marriage. You need one true observation.
For a close friend
Say something you would only say to them. Humour is safe here, and often better received than sentiment: “Genuinely thrilled for you both. Also relieved — I was running out of ways to describe Sam as ‘my friend who is very much taken’.” Then one warm line to land it.
For a colleague
Short and warm, no in-jokes. “Congratulations to you both — the photos looked wonderful. Wishing you a brilliant start.” Do not comment on the cost, the venue or when children might appear.
For a couple you barely know
Honesty works better than borrowed intimacy. “We do not know each other well yet, but it was lovely to be there — congratulations to you both.” Nobody minds a short card. Everyone notices a fake one.
What to avoid
Marriage advice, unless you were asked. Jokes about the honeymoon phase ending. Anything about how expensive weddings are. And any sentence that begins “now the real work starts” — it has never once been welcome.
If you are staring at a blank card
TextAI’s Invitation text and Compliment message tools cover the wedding card case. Give it the relationship and one detail about the couple and it drafts something you can put in your own handwriting.
