When you think about wedding stationery, I bet that you automatically think about save the dates, invites and RSVP’s…. But wedding stationery is much more than that, much more indeed. There are lots of other elements of your wedding day that will require stationery that you probably haven’t even considered. Things like your place names, menus, order of service, parking signage to name a few. In this blog, I’m going to give you the low down of all the on the day wedding stationery you will ever need, From the ceremony to the reception and everything in between! Let’s go.
Order of Service/Ceremony
It’s a really good idea to have this type of on the day stationery. The correct term is an order of service if it is a church service and an order of ceremony if you are having a civil ceremony. These are really handy to help navigate your guests through your service so they know what is happening and when. This may be in the form of a card or a small booklet. You will want to include that it is your wedding ceremony and the date and location. Then inside you will want to add what is planned during the ceremony. Whether there are speeches and if so, by whom. If you have chosen hymns, it’s a nice idea to include the words for these. Guests will be very grateful for that! It is also a nice item for guests to keep.
Parking
If the parking at your wedding venue and reception is not very clear, it may be an idea to put some signage up around the entrance to your venue/s to stop any confusion. Alternatively, a personal approach is to have an usher guiding guests to the car park.
Welcome Sign
Welcome signs at weddings are one of my favourite things. They come in so many shapes and forms. They really do make the entrance to your wedding ceremony and reception something special. If you’re a little unsure one way to do it is to add some beautiful signage to the entrance of your ceremony to welcome your guests. This may simply say ‘welcome’ or perhaps ‘welcome to the marriage of….’ and can be designed so it’s in keeping with the rest of your décor. Some couples add flowers to their signs while others opt for a copper frame.
Take a Seat
If you are having guests seat themselves on particular sides, you will want to make this clear to them as they arrive at your aisle. Alternatively, you may want to let guests know that they can sit wherever they like. Signs for this sometime say, ‘Pick a seat, not a side’. Pinterest has some wonderful ideas for short poems and rhymes for this. If you are having ushers this would be the perfect role for them.
Unplugged Wedding
If you have decided to have an unplugged wedding, which I would recommend, then it is crucial that your guests are made aware of this. So, signage is key! Make it visible and have more than one, so that people can respect your wishes. From my experience, having an unplugged wedding means no unwanted, aisle photobombing relatives with phones in their hands on your wedding pictures, that’s the last thing you want. If you’d rather not have signs for this another way for you to get the word out is by having your officiant let your guests know prior to the ceremony starting.
Wedding Hashtag
Now this is a great one. Perhaps you are totally fine with social media and people taking photos at your wedding? I recommend saving this one for your reception. You may decide to have a wedding hashtag, to make it easier for you to discover everyone’s wedding pictures. You can display a sign or two on each reception table, so your guests know what to do. Not only does it get your guests involved in your big day it also means that all the pictures they take will sit in one place and you will get to see your wedding through the eyes of your guests, priceless. When you are thinking up your hashtag be sure to keep it simple to avoid typos etc.
Timeline Of the Day
Knowing what is happening when, puts people at ease. Especially when it comes to their tummies. If guests know what time the wedding breakfast is and when the dancing begins, they will likely relax into the day even more. So consider having a timeline of the day drawn up and putting this at the entrance for when guests arrive. So right from the word go, they know what is happening, when!
Place Names
Place names indicate where a guest should sit during the wedding breakfast. Without them, they will sit whoever they want on their designated table. Which is fine if that is the desired effect, and you are perhaps doing sharing boards.
Table Names
Each table is named, so that guests can find their way to their table a lot easier. It can be as simple as numbers 1- 10, or you may wish to call your tables within your wedding theme or something relevant to you as a couple. For example holiday destinations or even your favourite bands.
Table Plan
A table plan is how you display where your guests are sitting and at what table. They would look at the table plan, find their name and see what table they are supposed to be seated at. They can then easily make their way to said table and find their place name, to know which seat is theirs.
Escort Cards
Now this is one you may not have heard of!
Escort cards are an alternative to a table plan. You would display what essentially looks similar to your place names, but on the back, it may say the table name or number where the guest would be seated. Each guest collects their escort cards, see’s their table and then makes their way to their table finding their place name.
Menus
Menu’s are not essential, but can be a nice touch. You can have one per table, so guests know what they will be eating, or even one per guest or one between two. There are no rules. I have previously had a client have menus that were illustrated with drawings of the food, we then had them printed onto fabric and used them as a napkin for each guest as well as a menu.
