When to send birth announcements, and how many cards to order
The window for sending birth announcements is wide. The Emily Post Institute advises sending them as soon as possible and says etiquette gives you six months, and French Wikipedia says a birth faire-part reaches its recipients, generally family and friends, in the weeks, or even months, after the birth. To work out how many cards to order, count households and add a few spares.
When should you send birth announcements?
Send them once you are home and have a free evening for envelopes. The Emily Post Institute says to send announcements as soon as possible, then adds that, with your hands full, "etiquette dictates that you've got six months to get the announcements out".
The window looks similar in France. French Wikipedia's article on the faire-part says its recipients, generally the parents' family and friends, receive it in the weeks, or even months, after the baby is born.
So a card that goes out in the third month is still well inside Emily Post's six months, and its page on announcing a new baby also says it is never too late to send your announcements, though if you have already sent electronic ones, you would not repeat the announcement with a mailed one.
What do you need before you can order the cards?
You need the baby's details: the name exactly as it should be spelled and the date of birth, plus the time, weight and length if you want them on the card. Those exist only after the birth. Everything else can be settled before it.
The Emily Post Institute says it usually helps to do some of the preparation before the baby arrives, and printers already work this way. Dutch Wikipedia's article on the geboortekaartje describes printers who print cards chosen in advance as soon as the baby's details are known. You can do the same by picking a style and writing your message during the pregnancy, with the address list ready by the due date, so that after the birth you only fill in the facts.
Then allow for the order itself. In our shop you fill in the card, check and approve a proof, and pay (how it works). Before you pay, the basket shows the expected delivery date for your cards and country, and our FAQ answers when an order arrives. Add an evening for addressing and stamping the envelopes.
Who should get a birth announcement?
Dutch Wikipedia describes the geboortekaartje as a card meant to let family, friends and acquaintances know a baby has been born. Turned into a checklist, that wide circle can include:
- grandparents, brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles
- godparents, or whoever you have asked to play that role
- close friends, and friends you see less often but would like to tell
- neighbours
- colleagues - one card for the team can do the job
- the midwife or maternity nurse who helped you
- older relatives who will not see a photo online
One exception comes from the Emily Post Institute: "Try not to send announcements to those who already know your happy news and who have already sent a gift."
Do Dutch and French customs change the plan?
Two customs around the card are worth knowing before you plan. In the Netherlands, Dutch Wikipedia notes that a geboortekaartje often gives the visiting address and visiting times for the kraambezoek, the maternity visit. If your card invites people to visit, it has to arrive before the visits start.
In France, the faire-part asks something of the person who receives it. French Wikipedia says politeness requires a recipient to reply quickly, most often with a card, so some post may come back to you. For the customs around a birth beyond the card, read our post on birth traditions in the Netherlands, Germany and France.
How many birth announcement cards should you order?
Count households, not people. The Emily Post Institute says one announcement per household is all you should send, so a couple with three children gets one card. Write the list and count the addresses before you add spares: a couple for your own memory box and a few for the names that come to you after the order.
One card per household, plus a few for the people you remember too late.
Our cards come in packs of 10, 25, 50 and 100, folded A5 and flat A6 alike. Four example lists:
| Your list | Households | Spares | Pack |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close family and a few friends | 8 | 2 | 10 |
| Family, friends and neighbours | 20 | 4 | 25 |
| Add colleagues and a sports club | 42 | 5 | 50 |
| Large families on both sides | 80 | 8 | 100 |
Land between two sizes and the next one up gives you more spares. Every pack has one envelope per card, for the folded A5 cards and the flat A6 postcards alike. The difference is room to write: the folded card has an inside left panel for your own message, while the postcard prints on its front and back only.
Once you have your number, start a folded card or a flat postcard in the card editor and choose the pack size there. If the words are what is holding you up, our guide to birth announcement wording has openers and short messages you can copy.