Bar Mitzvah invitations are an incredibly important aspect of the overall celebration, as they are the first impression that your guests will receive. There are many different ways to word a Bar or Bat Mitzvah invitation. Here are a few guidelines to remember…
Basics to include in your Bar Mitzvah & Bat Mitzvah invitations:
- First and last name of the young man or woman
- Type of celebration ( Bar Mitzvah or Bat Mitzvah )
- Day, time, and location of the ceremony - as well as the reception or party venue
- RSVP information - This includes names, phone numbers and/or email addresses, along with the latest date for your guests to reply
- Any special restrictions or wishes - This includes dress codes, gift requests (usually "no gifts please"), or anything else for that matter
Optional:
- The theme of your party - and any special circumstances that relate
- Map to the ceremony location or reception venue
Before choosing and creating your invitations, it's important to have all of your party specifics already decided upon. It might be necessary to make multiple versions of your invitations for different groups of guests (ex some guests may be invited to lunch following the ceremony, while others just invited to the reception afterwards). Also you may want to incorporate your invitations to match whatever theme you chose (also whether they are matching just the colors or beyond).
Now that the basics are covered - we will go into detail on each specific part of your Bar Mitzvah invitations.
Introduction:
There are a number of different ways to start off your Bar Mitzvah or Bat Mitzvah invitations. The variations can lie in the wording or in the perspective. To explain, invitations can be issued in the voice of the parents, a single parent, or the actual child.
Examples:
Mr. and Mrs. (last name)
Cordially invite you to worship with them
on the occasion of the
Mitsvah Simcha of their son
(Bar Mitzvah name)
on (date)
(time)
Congregation (venue)
the service will be followed by lunch
*or*
With great pride and joy
we invite you to share
a special moment in our lives
when our son
(name)
will be called to the Torah
as a Bar Mitzvah
on (day, date)
(year)
at (time)
(venue)
(street address)
(city, state)
(parent names)
*or*
Please share in my joy
on a special day in my life
when I become a Bar Mitzvah
(day, date)
(year)
at (time)
(venue)
(street address)
(city, state)
(Bar Mitzvah name)
More examples can be found under "suggestions" when personalizing your invitations on BarmitzvahCards.net.
Other factors to consider are the dates& time, location, and names on the invitation.
Date & Time
- depending on your preference you can choose to write out the full month, year and date - or choose to simply abbreviate them.
Names
- some parents prefer the name of the Bar or Bat Mitzvah to be written in Hebrew - BarmitzvahCards.net can accommodate these special requests (contact customer service for more details)
Location
- depending on the number of out of town guests attending and their familiarity with your local area, it might be a good idea to include an address and/or map to the ceremony and reception (again, this is optional)
The last wording issue to cover relates to phrasing a Bar Mitzvah or Bat Mitzvah invitation under different circumstances.
1) Single Parents
Here is a great example:
With pride and joy
I invite you to join my family as we celebrate
the Bar Mitzvah of my beloved son
(name)
(day, date)
at (time)
(venue)
(city, state)
*Feel free to play with the wording however you wish until it suits you - this is just a general example, as there is no right or wrong way!
2) Remarried Parents
There are a few options for Bar or Bat Mitzvah invitations of remarried parents. It would not be improper to word the invitation in the exact same way that you would as if you were married (with different surnames if needed).
Daniel Lipton and Susan Berenbaum
invite you with great pride
to share our joy when our son
(name)
is called to the Torah as a Bar Mitzvah
Another option is to take the single parent approach and allow either the mother or the father of the young man or woman to send out invitations.
Or try this one:
Mr. and Mrs. David Feinstein
and
Mr. and Mrs. Natalie Frazier
Invite you to join us...
Hopefully these examples, wording ideas, and guidelines help you create the perfect Bar and Bat Mitzvah invitations.
Whichever way you choose - remember that the Bar Mitzvah invitations will set the tone of the party, so make sure you are consistent throughout your approach.
...And as long as you are happy with your invitations - you can't go wrong!