In our last post, we talked all about choosing your wedding catering style. The dinner (and tasting!) is a top priority for many of our couples, and today we thought we would take it one step further and share 5 tips for planning your decor and wedding tablescapes around your catering style. When our couples hire us for wedding design (learn more about our services here), they are often considering the more “fun” elements of wedding design: the floral chandeliers, luxury linens, whatever inspires them.
Although we would love to look at linens all day, there is a lot more to the job than that! Part of the job of a wedding designer is creating a flawless guest experience. This is the part of your wedding design that nobody notices when done well but everyone notices when done poorly. If you are planning a wedding in Upstate New York, we would love to learn more about your wedding day vision. You can book a complimentary consultation with our team here. In the meantime, let’s dive into our top 5 tips when planning your table decor!
1. Chose Your Table Size and Shape
Please don’t feel limited to round tables of 8! The truth is, there are so many different options for table sizes and shapes, and even then you can mix and match. If you browse our portfolio or real Upstate New York weddings, you can see we love to use longer rectangle tables but we also like to get creative. That being said, there are a few “rules” for table size and shape when it comes to your wedding catering style! For a family style dinner, you’ll want extra wide tables that are long (typically 8’x42″ or a nice wide farm table) to allow for room for dinner plates, platers and (of course) stunning table decor. For a buffett or plated catering style, you can be more flexible. Any table size and shape will do!
2. Choosing Your Wedding China
When you start to look for wedding inspiration, you’ll find an abundance of incredible and unique wedding tablescapes. That being said, your catering style plays a larger role in wedding china choice than you might think. For family style catering or a wedding buffet dinner, the plate becomes part of the table design. In that case, it’s always nice to choose a style, pattern or color that works with your other decor.
On the other hand, for a plated dinner, a simple white plate is always best. When you choose a plated dinner for your wedding reception, the food becomes the statement piece as it’s being served. White plates allow the food colors to pop.
3. Choose Your Wedding Glassware
Although your catering style doesn’t necessarily affect your glassware, we do have a few tips! If you are doing wine service at the table, a pretty wine glass in a nice cut glass or color water glass can add just a little bit extra to an otherwise more traditional design. Glassware can be a fun way to add in a pop of color or extra design element. Even more than adding color, we also love sourcing unique glassware (different shapes, vintage aesthetics, the list could go on and on!). Glassware is a great opportunity to add “a little something extra”.
4. Interactive Dining Style
5. Now, Add in the Decor!
Can you believe we haven’t even touched on wedding decor yet? When we start designing tablescapes, we look at menu cards, place cards, favors, linens – the list goes on and on. We know that you might want to add candles, flowers, and more to your wedding tablescapes so here are a few tips to ensure the design flows seamlessly with your wedding catering style.
For family-style dining, you want the tables to have a minimalistic design with not too many candles or flowers to move around while guests are passing dinner platters around the table. When you look at a candlestick, just one bump into them, and over they go! Alternatively, if you go with a plated dinner or buffet, you can choose more elaborate decor and fill the center of the table.
Hudson Valley Wedding Planning
What questions do you have for us about designing your wedding tablescapes around your catering style? We are going to be discussing catering and wedding food ideas over on Instagram this month so make sure to follow us there! As (we hope!) you can see, there is so much more that goes into design than deciding what looks good. If you are currently planning a wedding in the Hudson Valley, Catskills or surrounding Upstate New York areas, make sure to check out our services here or reach out and set up a complimentary consultation here.
