What’s the deal with table numbers?
To say I’ve been to a lot of weddings over the past few years might be a bigger understatement than saying I like the color yellow. That being said, the team and I have seen our fair share of AWESOME and awesome-but-it-doesn’t-work decor.
One of those pieces are table numbers.
Photo by Kim Winey Photography
The table number is used for a wedding with assigned table arrangements. A guest will find a card (or similar item) that has their name and assigned table number on it. Each table then has a corresponding table number letting the guest know where to sit.
These table numbers can be numbers, names, locations, and other personal choices, but I will tell you — hands down — nothing works better than a plain old, easy-to-read NUMBER.
Your table numbers are going to be used to help guests find their seat. While they would love to be sitting at “Philadelphia” table (because that’s where your first apartment was, of course) when they are walking into a room of 15+ tables, finding “Philadelphia” is a bit harder than finding table “5”.
Obviously, we always recommend keeping your tables in some type of order in your floor plan or else having a table number becomes much less helpful. You can also do even table numbers on one side and odd on the other, but by all means, keep it simple (unless your venue requires otherwise).
You can still do the “cute” thing and incorporate moments from your life on your table numbers. You can have a big “5” at Table 5 making it easy to find their table, and then include a nice sentiment about “Philadelphia” and how you found the most perfect — despite being incredibly tiny — apartment that was your home for the first year. Maybe include your favorite restaurants or coffee shops while you lived there or just a story about that time you decided to paint the walls a trendy green only to find out it looked more like baby puke. (eh, it happens) The important thing is that the guests were able to easily and quickly find their table AND they were able to learn more about you as a couple. BONUS!
Ok, the last thing I want to mention with table numbers…
Make them easy to see.
They don’t have to be gaudy and tacky to be visible, but making them a dark color in a dimly room makes them very hard for Aunt Myrtle and her gang to see. Keep in mind that guests need to find these numbers to quickly find their seat as everyone transitions from cocktail hour to dinner and the longer it takes for guests to find their seat, the more time gets taken out for cutting a rug later in the night.
And, keep in mind, the numbers do not have to stay out all night. Once guests have found their seat, you can ask your coordinator, caterer, or venue if they can remove them from the tables. If you’re a DPNAK client, we are more than happy to help you out with this (and just about anything really) and we know many caterers and venues who will do the same. Often the less amount of “clutter” that’s on a table, the more enjoyable time the guests will have.
