DIY Rustic Wedding Seating Chart

Unlike 90 percent of the pre-wedding activities, the seating chart is not something one can do well in advance.

It’s one of those annoying activities that can only be completed at a time when the stress level is at its peak – aka the last week before the big ‘I Do.’

My first thought was to throw everyone’s name in a hat, grab a bottle of wine and play a little table seating roulette. That idea was quickly vetoed.

How, might you ask, did we survive this legal form of torture?

Step one. Grab a bottle of wine, pour yourself a glass and guzzle it down.

Step two. On a sheet of paper, put together a makeshift layout of your reception hall with big circles for the tables and small circles for the chairs.

Step three. Pour yourself another glass of wine. Honey, you’ve earned it.

Step four. Ask your future hubby if he can shed some light on his family dynamics, such as who works well together and who needs to be on opposite sides of the room. Remain calm when his response is one- or two-word answers and decide that your best guess is as good as it’s going to get.

Step five. Call your mother and ask her the same line of questions about your family. After discussing the weather, what happened to you that day, what you had for breakfast, lunch and dinner, finally get the family questions answered. This may lead to a lengthy story starting out with, ‘Do you remember Cousin Patty’s wedding in 2005… well that’s why Aunt Cheryl can’t sit with Cousin Johnny. And don’t even think about putting Sarah next to Tracy…” If you start talking about what they were wearing, quickly abort the mission. That seating chart isn’t going to put itself together.

Step six. You’re likely out of wine. Do yourself a favor and pour another glass.

Step seven. Start with the head table. You need a quick win and unless you’ve been hiding under a rock for the past year, you’l likely know who is sitting next to you.

Step eight. Go for another quick win – immediate family is in the first row of tables in front of the bridal party.

Step nine. Two quick wins deserve a reward. Finish off that bottle of wine.

Step ten. Place your friends next to the bar. They’ll thank you later.

Step eleven. Group together families and friends.

Step twelve. The last remaining few? Ask future hubby to pick his favorite number. That’s the table they’ll be sitting at.

Anyone after that is on their own and will have to fend for themselves. And don’t even get us started on the people who show up without sending in their RSVP… we’ll need another bottle of wine for that one. 😉

P.s. We diy-ed our seating chart for less than $5. The barnwood was left over from the entryway plank wall and the paper was left over from the invitations; all we purchased was a box of gold nails.

All our best,

---

---