Keep the accents, hyphens, apostrophes, spacing, and name order each person confirms for your wedding invitation. Send the wording as copyable text, then check those exact characters in the chosen font and the final digital proof. If a letter disappears, changes shape, or becomes a box, request a corrected proof before approving production.
A name can look almost right and still be wrong. Sofía and Sofia may be different people's preferred spellings. Anne-Marie is not automatically interchangeable with Anne Marie. A decorative flourish can make an apostrophe hard to see even when the file contains it. This guide helps you catch those specific problems without becoming a typography expert.
The cover is an AI-generated educational illustration, not a photograph of a product for sale. All names and messages below are fictional examples.
Start with the person's spelling, not a template's assumptions
Before discussing fonts, ask each person whose name appears on the invitation to provide the exact version they want printed. This includes the couple and any named hosts. Request the complete display line rather than collecting pieces and guessing how they fit together.
The W3C's guide to personal names explains why names do not fit one universal given-name/family-name structure. Name order, spacing, capitalization, and the number of name components vary. For invitation planning, the useful takeaway is simple: do not shorten, reorder, join, or hyphenate somebody's name merely to make it fit a familiar format.
Ask privately: “Please type your name exactly as you would like it printed, including accents, punctuation, and capitalization.” A social-media username, shipping label, or old contact entry may not be the version someone chooses for a formal invitation. The person is the best starting point for that choice.
Build one small name reference sheet
Keep an approved-text document with one row per printed person. It does not need identification documents or a legal-name history. It needs only the information the invitation designer and proofreader will use:
- The exact full display name, copied from the person's reply.
- The shorter name, if a separate envelope design or monogram needs one.
- The approved capitalization and punctuation.
- Where the name appears: main card, envelope design, or another ordered piece.
- Who confirmed it, and whether that confirmation is still current.
Separate the short version from the full version. “Use Sofía on the front and Sofía Martínez on the invitation” is much clearer than sending two versions in different messages with no explanation. If you later revise a surname or name order, update this reference first and tell the designer which earlier version it replaces.
For guest mailing names, use the same exact-spelling principle alongside our guest-address collection guide. Do not assume this means guest-address printing is included with an invitation order; confirm any additional service separately.
Check these four kinds of small differences
1. Accents and other marks
Compare every marked letter directly with the approved text. In the fictional name Sofía, the accent belongs on the í. In Zoë, the two dots belong on the ë. Do not move a mark because another location looks more balanced, and do not remove it simply because the surrounding invitation is in English.
Uppercase styling needs a second look too. If the designer changes a name to all capitals, ask the person to approve that exact rendering. The aim is not to invent a universal rule for every language; it is to preserve the person's chosen spelling and make the result legible.
2. Hyphens and spaces
Anne-Marie and Anne Marie show why punctuation cannot be inferred from appearance. For a longer name, check whether a line break splits a component in an awkward place or makes a hyphen look like a decorative divider. Request an alternative layout before accepting a shortened name you did not want.
3. Apostrophes
In O’Neill, the apostrophe is part of the displayed name. Check that it has not disappeared, become an opening quotation mark, or collided with the neighboring letter. Straight and curved apostrophes can look different across fonts. Ask the designer to show the intended final form rather than assuming a chat app's appearance will carry through unchanged.
4. Capitalization and name order
A designer may use all caps, small caps, or a script style that makes capitals less obvious. Compare the rendered version with the person's preference. Do not treat a short word inside a surname as disposable, and do not move it just to create a more symmetrical line.
Test the exact name in the actual font
A font preview showing “Emma & James” does not prove that it will display your names correctly. Ask to see the complete names in the proposed typeface before committing to the layout. Check the letters as a group, because a mark can be present but overlap a neighboring flourish.
Adobe describes a glyph as a particular form of a character; a font can offer alternate letterforms, and the available forms depend on the typeface. An elaborate capital or swash is therefore a design choice to review, not evidence that every required character will work equally well.
You do not need to diagnose the software yourself. If a letter looks mismatched or is replaced by a square, send a marked screenshot plus the correct copyable spelling. Ask for a font or letterform solution that preserves the name. Do not approve a missing accent as a temporary placeholder and expect it to be fixed after approval.
For the separate issue of text size and contrast, use our invitation readability guide. Correct spelling and readable styling are two different checks; passing one does not guarantee the other.
A practical decision table for proof problems
| What you see | What to ask for | When to approve |
|---|---|---|
| The typed reference is wrong | Correct the reference and identify every affected piece. | After the revised proof matches the corrected text. |
| The reference is right, but a mark is missing | Check the exact character and chosen font. | After the mark appears correctly in the final rendering. |
| The name is correct but crowded | Adjust size, spacing, line breaks, or the typeface. | After reviewing both the close-up and full layout. |
| Two proof files show different letters | Identify which file is current and request a consistent final proof. | After one clearly identified version is confirmed. |
Send corrections that cannot be misunderstood
A message such as “fix my name” leaves too much room for interpretation. These original examples identify the location, exact text, and requested next step:
Missing accent: “On the main invitation, please change Sofia to Sofía, with the accent on í. The envelope front should also say Sofía. Please send the revised proof for review before printing.”
Incorrect hyphen: “Please use Anne-Marie exactly as written here. The current proof says Anne Marie without the hyphen. Keep the rest of the name unchanged and show the complete revised name line.”
Unclear apostrophe: “The spelling O’Neill is correct, but the apostrophe is difficult to distinguish from the flourish. Could you show a simpler letterform or spacing adjustment while preserving the spelling?”
When several people are reviewing the design, have one person combine the corrections into a single message. Conflicting replies such as “approved” and “please change the surname” can make it unclear which instruction is final. Finish the name review before giving a final approval.
Review the delivered proof, not just an earlier screenshot
Open the latest proof file itself and compare it with your approved-text reference. Zoom in to inspect individual marks, then return to the full layout to judge balance. If the proof is supplied at print scale, an actual-size paper print can help you evaluate placement; it cannot reproduce the material or printing effect of a physical acrylic invitation.
For PDF files, Adobe explains that embedding permitted fonts prevents font substitution, while substitutions may not reproduce unusual script letterforms accurately. That is a file-preparation question for the designer. It does not mean every proof will be a PDF, or that you should buy software to check your order.
If the name appears differently in two viewers, pause and show the discrepancy to the designer. Ask which final file will be used and request clarification. A correct text message alone is not enough if the visible production proof still looks wrong.
Apply the check to your LunaInvites order
Browse the acrylic invitation collection with your actual names in mind. For example, the Black Envelope Gold Border Acrylic Wedding Invitation lists a clear acrylic invitation card and black envelope. Its personalization process includes a digital design proof and font and layout adjustments. Confirm how your full names will fit that particular design rather than judging only its example text.
The digital proof is the design-approval stage of a physical invitation order. It is not a physical sample or a separate digital invitation purchase. Our samples-versus-proofs guide explains what a screen review can and cannot establish.
As checked on October 15, 2026, the shipping policy states free US shipping and estimated total delivery of approximately 7–8 days after final design proof approval, including 2 days of production. This is an estimate, not a guarantee. Allow time for name corrections before approval instead of treating the estimated delivery period as proofreading time.
Final name-check checklist
- Every named person has confirmed their displayed spelling.
- Accents, hyphens, apostrophes, spaces, and capitalization match the reference.
- Any shortened form or monogram has its own explicit approval.
- The actual font shows every required character clearly.
- All ordered pieces use the intended version consistently.
- The latest complete proof has been checked after the last correction.
A successful name check ends with a visible, agreed version. Keep that version with your order correspondence so nobody needs to reconstruct the decision from scattered messages.