Table Seating Tip

Not too long ago we shared with you our RSVP card numbering tip, but we know that is only half the battle. One of the not so fun things involved in wedding planning is the actual seating arragement. Who can keep up with who gets along with who, who dated who and who can't stand who's children. It can get quite overwhelming and the problem is, you can't really do much about all the RSVPS are in, leaving you with the challenge just weeks before the big day. Staying sane at this time is hard enough without having to tackle so we wanted to share a little advice to make the process a little smoother.

If you are lucky enough to have parents and/or in-laws to help tackle some of this with you, I would strongly suggest using them for this. They have the best up to date knowledge about all the family 411 that might make or break your guests night. We do of course want everyone to have a great time. Jt and I actually were blessed with having both our mothers arrange our family seating, leaving us only to place a few outlier guests and our own friends. This cut the insanity in half!

If you aren't that lucky, no fear. We are here to help. Start out by getting a large piece of paper or cardboard. Draw out the room with the number of tables and place large landmarks such as entrance, door, windows, dance floor and music so that you can get a general idea of how the lay out will be.

Once that is done, get sticky tabbed page markers or cut up post its into strips. Write each guests name a seperate strip and then start sticking them to tables. This allows you to move people around simply by un-sticking and re-sticking them to a new table without a lot of messy crossouts or missing guests (both of which are likely to happen when you do it via computer or paper). Once you have arranged every guest (via sticky post it) you can then make a hard copy list to give to your wedding venue, as well as keep for the writing of the place cards.

Some sites offer seating table arrangement charts via the internet, but they often don't exactly mimic the room and to me, were more confusing and difficult to visualize. It also makes it easy to lose some guests as you are deleting and re-entering them.

Don't forget there is also the option to opt out of seating arrangements all together. This allows guests to pick and choose who they want to share company with throughout the night and makes for a more casual affair. Many brides have begun to go this route and it seems to work just fine! I would beware of using this option when your wedding is big though as it can become overwhelming to guests.

For more questions on this time saving, easy method or other seating arrangement tips, email us!

(Image Credits Robert & Kathleen Photography & Sweet Monday Photography respectively via Stylemepretty.com)