Home
>
Marriage & Wedding
>
Wedding Receptions: How To Set Up The Tables

Wedding Receptions: How To Set Up The Tables

Getting the wedding tables right can make a big difference to your wedding reception. Get things right, and the reception will be a great event enjoyed by all, with everyone having fun and no-one getting stressed. Get it wrong though, and people will be bored, worried and confused.

There's one common mistake that people make that often kills conversations at a reception before they can even start. It's easily avoided, but I've seen way too many receptions ruined because of this one simple mistake. But I'll discuss that later - first I need to cover the seating arrangements...

When setting the seating positions, you should start with the bride and groom. Place the bride and groom together, with the groom on the left hand-side of the bride.

From here there are 2 standard ways to set up the guests:

With the first way set the Chief Bridesmaid and Best Man to the right-handside of the bride. Then place a groomsman and a bridesmaid to the left of the groom, and then another groomsman and a bridesmaid to the right of the bride, and so-on until the bridal partly are all accounted for.

The other standard way is to just have guests arranged boy & girl around the table.

Really though, it doesn't matter how the guests are arranged. Just arrange them however you think would work. It's more important to ensure that:

The bridal table is situated so it is in plain site of everyone at the reception.
Everyone at the bridal table is facing the rest of the reception. It is important that no-one has their backs to the reception!
There is ample room around the bridal table, so that guests can easily get to the table and congratulate the newly married couple.

The other thing to consider is the table decorations. Keep any table decorations small and to the center of the tables. Your guests want to be able to talk to each other and not around the centerpiece! This can't be stressed enough! Sure, you want nice looking decorations, but making sure that everyone can talk too each other easily is much more important!

If you want to have candles then keep them low. Try candle-float bowls and maybe a few roses (or any other flower heads) floating in the bowl. Candle wreaths also look good, especially when placed on a small candle holder.

The bridal table centerpiece should be something just a little more elaborate than the decorations of the other guests tables but along the same theme. Again, make sure it isn't too big! The guests need to be able to see the bride and groom!

In regards to the colors you use, try neutral colors like pink, cream or white, as these will match most color themes. The bridal table should have a white cloth, offset against a coloured table. Why not mix and match colours on the guests tables? This adds fun and makes things look happy and alive. Don't be afraid to use color!

A final tip: Try not to make the reception too formal. Relax, and have some fun!

Peta D'Silva is the webmaster of http://www.visionsofsilk.com, a website devoted to silk-bouquets, and other wedding-related subjects. Read more of her articles about weddings http://www.visionsofsilk.com

spring cleaning service Deerfield ..

In The News:

Analysts at Silent Push have uncovered a widespread scam that uses counterfeit retail websites to steal the credit card information of online shoppers.

Chrome users need to update their browsers immediately as Google addresses a critical vulnerability that hackers are actively exploiting. Additional security measures are recommended.

A study found teens glance at phones for dangerous two-second intervals while driving, using devices primarily for entertainment, texting and navigation despite crash risks.

Security researchers uncovered a flaw in Windows 11 that allows attackers to disable Secure Boot using Microsoft-signed tools, requiring manual updates to protect against bootkits.

Carnegie Mellon's noninvasive brain technology allows users to move robotic fingers by thinking about the motion, offering new possibilities for people with motor impairments.

Multi-factor authentication (MFA) adds an extra layer of protection to your accounts. Instead of relying only on a password, MFA requires you to verify your identity using two or more methods.

Scientists from Duke, Harvard, and the University of Otago have unveiled a game-changing tool called DunedinPACNI. It uses a single AI brain scan to reveal how fast a person is biologically aging.

A disturbing wave of fake agent phone scams is sweeping across the United States, catching people off guard and draining their savings.

Emojis aren't just playful add-ons; they're powerful tools for building stronger connections in our increasingly digital world.

Google has taken a major step toward the future of clean energy by partnering with Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS), an MIT spin-out working to build one of the world’s first commercial fusion reactors.

If you create and share art online, you might have seen messages warning that Facebook's parent company, Meta, claims the right to use or even sell anything you post, whether it's pictures, poems, or artwork.

Cybercriminals hit Qantas in a major data breach that exposed information from up to six million customers.

Having reliable, loud, and timely emergency alerts on your phone or device is important because when severe weather strikes, every second counts.

Here's how your daily brew is becoming the foundation for greener buildings.

Artificial intelligence (AI) and large language models (LLMs), such as ChatGPT, are transforming how we learn. But what does this mean for AI and learning retention?

Modern AI data centers use much more electricity than traditional cloud servers. In many cases, the existing power grid cannot keep up. One innovative solution is gaining traction: repurposed EV batteries for AI data centers.

Microsoft 365 and Outlook users are being targeted by a tactic that injects fake billing alerts directly into their calendars.

Researchers are now showing us that old smartphones as data centers could be the next big thing in sustainable tech.

Scientists have created micro-robots for sinus infection treatment that can enter the nasal cavity, eliminate bacteria directly at the source, and exit without harming surrounding tissue.

Let's examine how your data is collected in everyday life, who is buying and selling it, what happens to it afterward, and, most importantly, what you can do to protect yourself.

Researchers at the University of Sheffield in the U.K. developed small robots called "Pipebots" that can travel inside water pipes to find and potentially repair leaks, all without any excavation.

A groundbreaking new study has uncovered disturbing AI blackmail behavior that many people are unaware of yet.

Four teams of autonomous humanoid robots competed in China's first AI soccer tournament, demonstrating advanced capabilities in ball detection and independent decision-making.

The ID. Buzz autonomous van features self-driving technology with 13 cameras, nine LiDAR units and five radars after Volkswagen partnered with Hamburg and Uber for 2026 deployments.

Social Security phishing scams use urgency and impersonation to steal personal data. Learn how to spot fake SSA emails and implement 10 protective measures.

Wedding Receptions: How To Set Up The Tables

Marriage & Wedding