On-the-day Wedding Stationery: Your Complete Guide
Updated: Oct 14, 2022
You've sorted out your wedding invitations and save the dates. Now, what stationery might you need to consider on the day of your wedding?
Here's a handy checklist for items of stationery you might need:
Welcome Sign
A welcome sign is a great way to greet your guests while you're busy getting ready and let them know they're in the right place! This might be the first thing they see on the day, so it's a great chance to set the style.
If your venue is tricky to find, consider whether you need a welcome sign outside your venue to direct guests.
Order of Service
Your guests will want to know what the order of events is going to be at your wedding. Some things to consider putting in your order of events include:
- Timeline of the day
- Introduction to members of the wedding party
- What to expect during the ceremony - including hymms, readings etc
You can leave an order of service on the chairs for guests to pick up as they take a seat, or have the ushers hand them out when greeting everybody. Remember that couples are likely to share one, so you don't necessarily need one for every guest.
An order of events sign is also a useful way to keep people reminded throughout the day what to expect and make sure they don't miss any key moments. This can be moved from the ceremony to the reception.
Table Name Cards
Table name cards are key to helping your guests find their table. At Paper Adventure Co, we're big fans of creating a theme at your wedding breakfast, whether that's places you've travelled to together, your favourite gins or cocktails, your favourite books, Disney movies or more. Here's your chance to really get creative and take your guests on a journey of your favourite memories or things together!
For an even more personal touch, why not have a description on the back explaining why this particular table name is so important to you. It's a great conversation starter for your guests!
Find more creative table name ideas here.
Seating plan
Once you've decided on your table names, you'll need a seating plan to help guests know which table they are sitting on.
You could consider having a sign with all your guest details on, or assembling something more creative using individual seating plan cards.
Place name cards
Set up your place name cards at each table to help your guests find their allocated seat. Place name cards are often a great memento and if they look great, guests might even take home with them.
If you are relying on guests to remember their menu choices, assume they will have forgotten by now! You can pop on their choices to the back of their place name card as a handy reminder.
Menus
Get your guests salivating by showing them what feast they can look forward to. Menus are particularly helpful if there are alternative dishes to choose from or you need to highlight any allergy considerations.
You could choose to give each guest a menu with their place setting, or have one per table.
Favour tags
If you're sending guests home with a memento, consider using favour tags or stickers to send your thanks.
Other signs
Think about what other signs you might need dotted around your venue. Some suggestions include:
- Guest book/gifts & card sign - let your guests know where they can drop off their gifts, or encourage them to sign your guest book with a note you can remember forever
- Unplugged ceremony sign - don't want guests taking photos during the ceremony or posting photos on social media before you've had the chance to? Let them know with a polite reminder
- Dancing shoes - treating your guests to flip flops to ease their sore feet? Let them know where to pick them up from
- In memory signs - for when your loved ones can't be with you on your wedding day
- Bathroom signs - if you're leaving out any handy items for your guests to refresh themselves with in the toilets, leave a sign to make it clear that they're complimentary
- Pick a seat, not a side - to avoid confusion about where should guests should sit during the ceremony, consider a sign to remind them that you're all family here and they can sit anywhere.
How far in advance do I need to order my wedding stationery?
To avoid any last minute panics, get thinking about what you might need on the day of your wedding as soon as possible.
Some items, including the seating plan may need you to have your guest lists finalised before you can order them. You may want to hold off on ordering this in case of any changes. At Paper Adventure Co, we recommend ordering and sending across final details at least three weeks before they need to be delivered to avoid any disappointment, but always check with your vendor how far in advance to order.
For any advice on ordering your on the day wedding stationery, just get in touch and we'd be happy to help.