Wedding planning can be fun but at times very stressful. I am sure, that for most couples, drawing up the table plan belongs to the stressful category. But remember there are no hard and fast rules you have to stick to, unless you want to of course. Today’s blog aims to give you tips and ideas to help you enjoy the whole experience and to hopefully make the whole process easier.
The Table Layout
Before you decide on where to sit your guests you should start with how to arrange the actual tables. This may be dictated by the size and shape of your reception room, and the style of your wedding. The top table which traditionally sits the Bride and Groom, their Mums and Dads, Best man and Chief Bridesmaid can be oblong , round or even horse shoe shaped. It’s really up to you how you want it to be. A good idea is to talk to the venue coordinator for advice. They will generally have printouts of possible table plans that best suit their venue. Regarding who sits at the top table is again your choice, but it is quite unusual not to have your parents sitting with you. If your parents are divorced and remarried then this can make the decision extremely hard on who sits where. In this case I would think about perhaps having a table set up just for the two of you. That way no one is offended and you can seat your Parents, Best man, Chief Bridesmaids etc close to you. I have to say I rather like this idea. Its often hard to get your new husband by himself for any part of the wedding day and to have him to yourself throughout the wedding breakfast really appeals to me, but I do advocate having a wedding you want and not the one everyone wants you to have.
If your venue has individual rooms and your guests are seated over two or three small rooms with adjoining doors, an idea for you is to table hop so you can spend time in each room. One of our weddings in the summer had a room layout just like this and the Bride and Groom moved room with each different food course. They swapped seats with two guests who went to sit on the top table for a food course. It worked very well and it gave the chance for relatives who don’t see the family often to spend time with the immediate family on the top table. Another way of doing this is to have a small table for you and your husband set up in each room to table hop to. One last consideration with table layout is how many people to seat on each table. Again this depends on the size of the room but ideally for an average size wedding eight or ten people works well.
Whot to Sit and Where?
Seat your guests in the way that suits you! Nearly all the guests you invite to your wedding you should know quite well. This will give you a good idea of who to sit with whom, and to take into account their different opinions and personalities. If some of your relatives are distant ask your Mum for advice, she will know them. Below is a list of things to think about that you may find helpful.
- Sit families with their children unless there are specific childrens tables.
- Keep exes apart and people who actively don’t like each other.
- Try and make sure at least one person knows another person on a table.
- If you have singles its ok to sit them together. Weddings are a great place to meet people. As before, try and ensure each person knows at least one more person on the table. My own wedding for instance had eight single girls. Rather than split them up with couples they all wanted to stit together and had a great time.
- If there is a lot of children at the wedding, its a good idea to have their own table if they are old enough to sit alone. Putting them in the same age group works well too.
- Try and ensure elderly and disabled people are close to accessible exits.
- Its also helpful to consider people with different religious and political beliefs.
- Sit male and females alterntively on round tables and opposite each other on oblong tables.
Remember its your wedding and you can help your guests mingle. You can set the atmosphere but it is up to your guests to enjoy themselves. Do what makes you and your guests most comfortable.
How to Make the Table Plan?
A good way is to get a big piece of paper, plain wallpaper works really well, draw round cups or bowls to denote your tables. Write each guests name on a sticky note and them place them round the tables. That way you can move them around as you see fit.
If you are computer savvy I love the idea of using a software package that is cheap, easy and fun to use. I am quite a fan of TopTablePlanner. For the price of £10.00 you get a login to the software for six months. Its secure, you can access it anywhere you like, and even print out the finished table plan to give to your stationer and venue coordinator.
The software allows you to choose the type of table, the quantity and amount of people on each table. You can even put objects in the room such as a bar and your cake table. Adding guests could not be simpler, either import them using excel or word, alternatively manually enter them yourself. Its a great way of keeping track of your RSVP’s and even lets you note vegetarians or different options of menu choice. TopTablePlanner adds up your guest list, splits them into male, female and children, and if you have told the software, shows you how many guests have still not RSVP’d. Take a look at their website and download a free software package to see if you like it.
Anything that makes life easier and is fun to use is a plus in my book. Its also incredibly cost effective when you think of what you can spend on for your wedding.
Well dare I say it but Christmas is approaching fast, and I am beginning to feel the festive spirit. Next week our blogs feature tips and ideas for Christmas weddings. Be on the look out we are going to post every day for an extra treat.
If you want to send me your ideas and tips for anything Christmas I will feature them on our blog.
Until then happy planning.
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