Play Your Cards Right

Get your guests to their assigned seats with these clever cards

You tackled the seating chart—now it's time to move on to the cards to help everyone get to their tables. While you can't beat white, folded cards for simplicity and style, there are lots of ways to give the table assignment cards a little pizazz, so they can enhance your decor or even double as favors.

Not convinced? Check out our ideas for perfect place cards.

Keep it simple. Use an elegant card that mimics your invitations. Think white or ecru card stock with black, charcoal or navy script. Have your place cards embossed or die cut with your initials or an image that relates to your theme.

Get framed. Put cards in picture frames, which guests can keep at the end of the night.

Leaf it to me. Mother Nature provides the perfect place cards—leaves. Use lemon leaves or other interesting foliage in the spring and summer, or orange, crimson and yellow leaves for a fall wedding. Buy leaves from your florist or scout out your yard, then write with a metallic marker and spray them with a laminate to make them sturdier and shinier.

Sweeten your party. Use royal icing to write names and table numbers on gingerbread men and women, sugar cookies, cupcakes or tiny tarts.

Dish it out. Paint each guest's name on an unglazed mug or dish from your local craft shop. Deck the dishes with hearts and flowers—or anything else that suits your wedding. Or simply tie tags with the name and table onto the handles of store-bought mugs.

Give a toast. If you've got the dough, have the seating info engraved on champagne flutes. If not, write it on a tag and tie it around your site's flutes. Station a waiter nearby to fill the glasses as your guests find them.

Go to seed. Use handmade paper embedded with seeds. Guests can take the card home, plant it and watch it bloom.

Get in a jam. Glue handmade labels onto jars of homemade jelly.

Be fruitful. Tie tags onto apples, pears, small gourds or pumpkins.

Tie a yellow ribbon. Tie a ribbon with a guest's name and table number onto a small potted plant (try herbs like mint or rosemary or flowers like violets or hyacinth).

Indulge in some sweet talk. Write your guests' names and table numbers onto boxes of chocolates or other treats.