Ask any bride and groom what the worst part of their wedding planning process was and they’ll look into each other’s eyes and, without a dollop of hesitation, tell you it was, “the guest list.” And they’re right. Drafting and cutting your guest list - and then drafting and cutting your guest list another sixteen times - is a real migraine-maker. But there is a pretty little silver lining, and that’s coming up with ways to display your table plan.
If every part of the wedding planning saga can be divvied up into two groups - the fun stuff and the not-so-fun stuff - turning your table plan into a talking point definitely falls into the fun stuff category.
It’s that one detail that each of your guests will stop in front of and stare at, and that’s why you should have some fun with it. As the biggest piece of your wedding stationery, this is your chance to give your wedding a big dose of personality, make your guests smile, raise their glasses to your genius, see your Instagram album feel the love and give your big day a more coordinated feel -- and here are some gorgeously eye-catching ideas to help you create a truly forget-me-not table plan.
1. Stairway To Heaven
There’s a reason everyone loves attending a rustic wedding -- they’re packed full of creative tidbits and recycled treasures, and turning an old stepladder into a table plan is exactly that. Simply dust it down, decorate the rungs with your favourite flowers, pop a flower-filled teapot on the top and then hang the details of who’s on each table using twine and pegs. It’s as simple as it is stunning.
2. Go Crazy For Crates
If you can’t get your hands on an old wooden stepladder, try using wooden crates to create the perfect table plan display for your rustic wedding. All you need to do is stack a few different sized crates on top of one another, line the bottoms with lace, decorate them with mason jars and lavender, and then hang your table details in front using hemp rope and wooden pegs. Voila. Your barn wedding vibe will be complete.
3. Plants Make Everything Pretty
There’s a million ways to make your wedding reception wow, but we’re pretty sure there’s nothing more gorgeous than seeing pretty little flowers bursting from little terracotta pots, sat on the top of an old writing desk, with your table details tacked onto little wooden lolly sticks and stuck into each one.
4. Simply Gorgeous Suitcases
They might be impractical for travelling the world, but vintages suitcases can be turned into the most delicious details, and using them to display your seating plan is proof. All you need to do is raid your parent’s attic, dust of their old trunk, open it up, stand it on its side and then decorate it however you please. Hang mini bunting across the front, dangle vintage jewellery from the clasps, lay a bunch of wildflowers on the top and then use lace ribbon to hang each of your seating assignments from.
5. Pretty On Perspex
Perspex stationery is the wedding trend we really hope is here to stay. It’s just so stunning. And there’s a thousand ways you can use it to display your table plan. Have each of your table layouts printed on different panes of a window frame, or suspend your perspex seating arrangements from a copper pipe and decorate with macrame and ivy. We guarantee your guests won’t be able to look away.
6. Mirror, Mirror On The Wall
If you’re looking for an inexpensive, rustic and luxurious looking way to display table plan, you need to head to your nearest charity shop and pick up an ornate mirror. Then, once you’ve decided who’s going to be sitting where, ask that friend with the #calligraphygoals handwriting if they could write down your table plan on to the glass using a white marker pen. And here’s the best bit: once your big day is over and you’ve run into the sunset together, you can hang this mirror in a quiet part of your home as a fun little memento.
7. Heart To Heart
Nothing says madly in love like a table plan displayed on a head-turning heart. You could create a big rustic heart using upcycled wooden pallets complemented with pretty frames or hang your table details in the middle of a floral hearts that celebrates the natural vibe of you wedding theme. Hearts are a gorgeous gesture your guests won’t be able to get enough of.
8. Map Out Your Love Story
Whether you met on the London Underground or you got engaged in some far-flung pocket of paradise, displaying your table plan on an antique map would be the talking point no one expected. You could even make it personal by using luggage tags to show where each of your guests are sitting, and make each destination somewhere you and bae have been during your love story.
9. Use Actual Love Stories
The greatest love stories ever told have burst from the pages of lip-biting novels, which is why we love the idea of using old book covers to show off your seating plan. You could use the covers of Penguin Classics and display each table’s details next to them on old style library cards, or you could use the covers of your favourite love stories. You could even pull out your favourite lines from each, pop them on chalkboards and add a bit of romance to each corner of your venue.
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