When a couple decides to get married, there are many things to think about. It is necessary to go step by step, so that the organization of the wedding is a complete success and, above all, that you, the bride and groom, enjoy each of the preparations.
One of the most complicated tasks, if you want everyone to feel comfortable and have fun, is organizing the tables for your wedding guests.
The first thing we advice you to do, is to make a list of guests grouping them by categories. Like families, friends, coworkers, hers and his. Then it will be easier to arrange them on the tables as they are known, have similar affinities or tastes.
Once we know the number of guests approximately, it is time to decide the shape and size of the tables. They can be rectangular or round, and for 6, 8, 10 or 12 diners per table. Round tables, for example, enhance the interaction between the guests, but also take up more space. The staff of the venue of your wedding will help you in this, and even recommend what will be the best distribution of the tables. And if you have any special request, they will listen to you. After all you are the protagonists.
During the allocation of the tables, you can opt to designate only who will sit at each of the tables, and then each person chooses its place, or you can further customize it and specify in which seat each guest will be placed.
For this, you must take into account several details:
- That the guests at the table know each other and get along well. You can accommodate them according to their tastes and affinities.
- If you are not sure where to accommodate someone, ask them which table they think they will fit in best. They will be grateful.
- Reserve special places, such as the tables closest to the bride and groom, for those closest to you.
- If children are going to attend, you can prepare a special table for them with children’s decoration, and even a monitor to take care of them. Their parents will surely appreciate it.
- Reserve an extra space for last minute guests.
You can organize the tables graphically, in order to get an idea of how they will look. There are free programs and applications that can help you, such as those from bodas.net or zankyou.es, that allow you to design your banquet room, draw the plan, put as many tables as you need, assign a name and move them as much as you wish. Once you have everything clear, you can print it.
If you are more of a pencil and paper type, then draw in A3 the distribution of the tables with the chosen geometric figure. Get a color post-it, in which each color is a category: he, she, friends, coworkers, children…. Dedicate one post-it to each guest. Place or relocate each post-it in the chosen place.
Assign original names to the wedding tables, and decorate them with materials such as wood, bottles, corks, slate, frames, ceramic, etc. You can choose titles of songs or movies that you like, characters that you are very fans of, names of your favorite books, names of fruits, of cities that you would like to visit or that you have visited. You can also name every table for a given year, and place your photos at that age on them.
The way of presenting these original names on the tables should complement their design. Combine with or even be part of the centerpieces, and, above all, they must have an adequate place and size, so that they are visible to the guests.
We have given you some ideas on how to organize the wedding guests in a more structured way. Now continue with the other preparations…
And keep in mind that the most important thing is to passionately enjoy the organization of your wedding. You will always remember it.