Invitations to these entertainments are issued in the name of the
hostess only, and are sent out from ten days to two weeks in advance.
Informal occasions, however, give very short notice, and it is well to
use the word "informal" in the invitation, that guests may not put
themselves to inconvenience as regards dress. It must be remembered
that this term is too often misleading in its nature, and many a
sensitive guest has been seriously annoyed by finding herself, after a
too literal interpretation of the "informal" character of the
entertainment, in a crowd of gay butterflies, a misuse of the word
that should be seriously protested against.
Invitations to evening parties and private balls are less elaborate
than formerly; the word "party" or "ball" is never used unless on the
occasion of some public affair, such as a charity ball, but any
especial feature of the evening may be mentioned in the invitation.
To an evening party where dancing may, or may not, be a feature of the
entertainment, the following, either engraved or written on a small
sheet of note paper, is a very good form:
[Illustration:
_Mrs. Stuyvesant Wentworth_
_Requests the pleasure of the company of_
_Mr. and Mrs. Mark Cowden,_
_On Wednesday evening, July 4th,_
_At nine o' clock._
_Informal._]
All invitations are to be considered as "formal" unless the word
"informal" appears on the card. If the card states that the
entertainment is to be "informal," the invited guest is fully
justified in considering it so, and dressing accordingly. Neither
host, hostess, nor other guests can take any exception if the
invitation is treated just as it reads.
If dancing is the feature of the evening, the same form may be used
with the word "Dancing" added in the lower left hand corner. Or:
[Illustration:
_Mrs. John Burrows,_
_At Home,_
_Thursday evening, October first,_
_At nine o'clock._
_1080 LeFrance Avenue._
_Quadrilles at ten._]
If the ball is at a public place, as at Delmonico's, in New York, the
following form is appropriate, always making use, in case of so public
an entertainment, of the host's name in connection with that of the
hostess:
[Illustration:
_Mr. and Mrs. George Douglas_
_Request the pleasure of your company,_
_Thursday evening, December twelfth,_
_At nine o'clock._
_Delmonico's._]
Another form that would be equally appropriate is as follows:
[Illustration:
_Mr. and Mrs. Augustus Saltus,_
_Sanger Halle,_
_Wednesday evening, January twentieth._
_German at nine._
_R.S.V.P._]
If any of these occasions are intended to introduce a _debutante_, her
card may be enclosed. If they are given in honor of a friend, or some
celebrated individual, the following form is appropriate:
[Illustration:
_Mrs. Henry Alexander_
_Requests the favor of your company on_
_Tuesday evening, October tenth,_
_From eight to eleven o'clock,_
_To meet the_
_Rev. Prof. Dr. Kemp,_
_Of the Princeton Theological Seminary._
_684 West 49th Street._
_R.S.V.P._]
Or, if very formal, the name of the guest may be given first, as: To
meet the CHIEF JUSTICE OF THE UNITED STATES and MRS. FULLER. MRS.
HAROLD COURTRIGHT, At Home, from eight to eleven o'clock, Thursday,
February seventh. _R.S.V.P._
This same precedence may be given to the name of an honored guest in a
dinner or other invitation. Still another form is where the name of
the guest is written on a separate card, thus: To meet MRS.
SUMMERVILLE. Enclose this in the same envelope.
For a club party the following may be used: THE LA SALLE CLUB requests
the pleasure of your attendance Wednesday evening, June eight, at nine
o'clock. 555 West 51st Street. _R.S.V.P._
A still more simple form for a party invitation is an "At Home" card
filled out thus: MRS. DON CARLOS PORTER, At Home, Tuesday evening,
March fourth. 1021 Broadway. Cotillion at ten. _R.S.V.P._
Masquerades.
The entire invitation for a masquerade may be engraved, or it may be
written, with the exception of the word "Masquerade," which should be
engraved on the card. For example:
[Illustration:
_Mrs. L.J. LeFevre_
_Requests the pleasure of your company,_
_Saturday evening, November twelfth,_
_At eight o'clock._
Masquerade.
_R.S.V.P._
_55 East Thirtieth Street._]
Musicales, Soirees and Matinees.
Invitations to a Musicale are simply written on "At Home" cards, thus:
[Illustration:
_Mrs. P.V. VanVechton,_
_At Home,_
_Tuesday, April second._
_Music at half-past three._]
Or: MRS. P.V. VANVECHTON, At Home, Tuesday afternoon, April second,
from half-past three to five o'clock. _Matinee Musicale._
If the Musicale is to be an evening affair, and dancing is to follow
the music, the following form of invitation may be used: MRS. HERBERT
HUGHES, At Home, Friday evening, January tenth, at eight o'clock. 200
Winchester Avenue. Music. Dancing at ten.
Precisely the same form is to be used in giving out invitations for a
_soiree_, save that the word "_soiree_" is substituted for that of
"_Musicale_" or "_matinee musicale_." It may be farther added that the
term "_matinee_" applies exclusively to entertainments given in the
morning, or at any time before dinner, a distinction to which our
custom of late dinners gives a wide latitude, so that any
entertainment up to eight o'clock in the evening may receive the name
of _matinee_, notwithstanding the fact that drawn curtains and
gas-lighted rooms may give all the semblance of night-time.
"_Soiree_," however, is used only where an evening party of a
semi-informal character is denoted.
Garden Parties.
Precisely the same form of "At Home" cards can be used for these
entertainments, substituting the words "Garden Party" in the left hand
corner and sending them out some two or three days in advance. Or, if
a more formal affair is intended, use the following: MRS. WAITE
TALCOTT requests the pleasure of the company of MR. and MRS. JOHN
CLAY, on Monday, August fifth, at four o'clock. Garden Party. "The
Oaks."
If it should be desirable to include the entire family in the
invitation, the wording would be as follows:
[Illustration:
_Mr. and Mrs. John Clay and Party._
_Mrs. Waite Talcott,_
_At Home,_
_Tuesday, August fifth, at four o'clock._
_"The Oaks."_
_Garden Party._
_R.S.V.P._
_Carriages will meet the 3.40 train from Union Depot._]
This clause to be added only when the party is to be given at some
distance from the station. If preferred, these directions may be
written on a separate small card and enclosed in the same envelope.
In this country we are not so accustomed to giving garden parties as
people are in England, but a garden party may easily be made one of
the most inviting and enjoyable of any.
Breakfasts, Luncheons and Suppers.
Breakfast invitations may be engraved or written upon a lady's
visiting card, thus:
[Illustration:
_Mrs. George Norton._
_Breakfast, Wednesday, at ten o'clock._
_24 Euclid Avenue._]
A written invitation is usually in the first person, and should read
somewhat as follows: