I’ve been working on my Thanksgiving table setting this week and I had it almost finished when I realized how much I didn’t like the way the place cards I was using looked with the autumn colors in my tablescape. The only place cards I have are some I purchased a few years ago and they are stark white.
I hopped in the car and headed over to a couple of home stores thinking I might find something in more of an off white, khaki or burlap color. No luck.
Umm, what to do? I decided to just make my own. I stopped by Michaels where I found textured cardstock in long narrow strips. Have you seen these before? I didn’t realize you could buy it in strips like this. Are you thinking what I’m thinking? 🙂
They were available in many different color groupings: Sparkly, Super bright, Pastels, etc… I picked one with some nice autumn shades. One looked just about perfect for my Thankgiving table.
I used my white place cards as a template. Since the cardstock strips are exactly 12 inches long and my current white place cards are 3 inches long, I can get 4 place cards out of each strip. With 87 strips that’s 348 place cards for just$4.99. Use a Michael’s 40% off coupon and you’ll get 348 place cards for just $2.99! That’s soooo much less than what I paid for the thin, flimsy white ones I bought years ago, and they only came 12 to the package.
I flipped through the stack of colors and chose one that looked pretty close to the color of my napkins. Just look at all those great colors for future table settings! There are three strips of each color, so you can potentially make 12 place cards in each color.
The color you see on the left was pretty much a dead match to my napkins, but I decided to go with the color on the right which was slightly lighter.
While at Michaels, I also found these cuties. They were $3.99 and came 16 to a package.
They were already pre-sticky so I just took one out and stuck him on the end of my place card. Don’t you love all the adorable little sticky thingies you find in the craft stores? They are so cute, it’s all I can do to not buy them all! It’s like a little miniature make-believe world in the “dimensional sticky” isle at Michaels. They had lots of cute Halloween and Christmas stickies, too. I barely restrained myself from buying bunches and left with just my turkeys.
Here he is, patiently waiting to see whose place he’ll be dressing up for Thanksgiving.
Want to keep your cost as low as possible? Decorate your place card with something from the garden/yard, like a pretty fall leaf or an acorn. 🙂
Looking forward to sharing these in a Thanksgiving tablescape this Thursday for Tablescape Thursday.
Pssst: The winner of the recent giveaway from Banarsi was announced on the giveaway post HERE. Thanks so much to all who entered!
Your placecards are really cute and I love that they are budget-friendly! I have the same problem in the sticker aisle… so tempting! Happy Thanksgiving!
Laurie, it’s enough to make me start scrap booking just so I have an excuse to buy all that stuff! lol I could spend hours in that isle playing with it all.
GREAT idea!!!!!!!!!! Joe usually makes me place cards on the computer with an image on them appropriate for the season/table. XO, Pinky
Pinky, you are so lucky! Any guy who’ll take time to make place cards is a keeper in my book!
I love, love, love my mat stacks! I have never purchased the strips. What a great idea!
Karen
Idaho
What a cute idea for the place cards! With the wide assortment of colors I believe you have it covered for all the holidays. Congrats to Stephanie. I hope she gets the green table runner.
Very cute, Susan! I’ve forced myself NOT to start scrapbooking, because I know I would end up with closets full of goodies, much like the fabric stash.
LOL Exactly! I would want everything I saw if I started collecting them. I’d never have time to use them all. Best to just buy them as I actually need them.
Susan – Super idea and so easy peasy !! And, yes, I too have a terrible time tearing myself away from the gorgeous and adorable stickery things in the scrapbook aisle – especially with a great coupon !! Hugs, Dorinda
Susan, this is a great idea. I like to use place cards, even with a small group. I think it sends the message that I set this spot just for them. 😉 Also, I tend to love place card holders and have assembled a nice collection of them through the years. My latest being the set of 12 Days of Christmas figures that William Sonoma is selling this season. We were out shopping on Saturday, I was admiring the table set with the beautiful French designed 12 Days of Christmas series. Designed by a French artist, the little figures remind me of French faience, even though they were produced in China. My husband bought a set of the place card holders and said they would easily fit in my Christmas stocking. 😉 He knows me well! Not that we’ll have 12 for Christmas, but I can use them on a tablescape.
Happy Thanksgiving! ~ Sarah
Sarah, those are sooo pretty! Do you have the plates, too? What a great collection! I don’t have a lot of place card holders but I’m gradually collecting a few each year. 12 is such a perfect size group for Christmas! Happy Thanksgiving to you and your sweet and very smart hubby! 🙂
Oh, and meant to say, I so agree about it making your guest feel extra special and appreciated. Who doesn’t like to see their spot especially saved with their name. 🙂
Susan, I love, love, love your blog. It is the best that I have ever seen on the Internet. Everything is beautiful. I love the fact tht you give instructions and show how to be creative on a budget.
Susan, your place cards are so cute! I had no idea that cardstock came in strips. We do not have a Michaels close by, so I usually try to hit one when we’re out of town. I cannot wait to see your Thansgiving table!
I love this idea and I’m going to use it for the Bad Hatters Tea Club this weekend, it came at the perfect time as I was trying to figure out what I was going to do. Thank you so much! Sandi
Sandi, so glad! What’s the Bad Hatters tea club…sounds fun, and mischievous!
I like using place cards. It does make people feel special….and… sometimes I write out the menu too. That’s always a hit. I like your ideas..I’ll have to look into scrap booking stickers
Have a good day
Barb from Australia
Barb , love the menu idea!
Hi Susan, this is such an easy idea that will not only look great on your table, but will let your guests know how important they are to you. Happy Thanksgiving!
Thanks again for such a super idea!!
I love these they are so cute, I am a huge acorn fan. Thanks for the great idea.
Cynthia
So clever and charming!
I think I need to revisit Michaels! I have to make myself stay away.
Susan, I read your blog all the time and love, love, it. We have the same taste and just love what you do with everything. What a great idea for the place cards. Will be looking for the strips at Michaels too.
Thanks, Irene!
Thanks for the great tip! Can’t wait to try some “natural” decorations for them, too.
So adorable – you are the Queen of Creative!!!!
Susan,
Your so creative with your ideas, it gives me inspiration.
I use name cards for a Bunco group I belong to.
Happy Wednesday.
Linda
I was just struggling with what to do for place cards. Perfect inspiration. Thank you!
Hope your day is Extraordinary!
Hi Susan…Tks for sharing another GREAT idea! I love using placecards, and can never find any ‘pretty’ enough to suit my taste without spending a small fortune! People so love handmade things, that these are sure to be a hit. I suspect there’s going to be a line-up at Michael’s later today! LOL!
I have the same problem…can never find any I like. We won’t have that problem anymore! 🙂
Oh Susan,
those turkeys with pilgrim hats are sooo cute! It seems they have flowed from your header directly to your cards! lol
I wish my husband would read this!
He is convinced I am the only one in the world who buys all that cute (and for him “unnecessary”!!!) stuff… Every time such pretty and cute stuff “jumps” into my cart (I really notice it when we already are at the cash desk! 😉 ) he asks me how old I am! lol WHAT?! (Who cares what the passport says? lol)
And this only because I have a three drawer chest and one big box filled with cute scrapbook kits (in a huge variety of pre-selected themes), scrapbook papers, tons of various stickers, buttons, ribbons, hearts, flowers, little “fat” birds, etc… and of course Angels and cherubs!!! I really don’t see his point… LOL
(Shhh… just last week I bought 24 very, very, very cute little cherubs “dimensional stickers”! Love them! 🙂 )
~Hugs to you~
Cecilia
Cecilia, let’s just agree to never grow up! 🙂 I stay a kid if you will!
I keep multiple colors of card stock on hand at all times. I have homemade templates for CorelDraw (but you could set them up in Word, I just don’t know how) for place cards. I also have a huge variety of clip art. Using Corel, I can combine or reconfigure the clip art to suit my purpose. Once I have the art I want, I select the font and put in the names. This way, you can match the place cards to the invitations or menus.
Nikki, didn’t know you could do that…great idea! I bet they turn out beautifully!
That is such a cute idea! Love the turkey.
As a crafter you can save lots of $ doing projects like this!
Great idea! I scrapbook so I have a ton of paper and stickers! Great job! I also use my Cricut so that would work, too.
Great ideas! Hugs!
Jeannie
SUCH a great idea! Thanks for sharing this money saving (and much more creative) way of having place cards.
My grandchildren are now 20, 17 and 14 years old. When the two oldest were young, they used to keep tabs on whose turn it was to spend the night at Grandmommy and Grandaddy’s. When a special holiday or occassion would come up and we were having a special dinner, I’d have them to spend the night, help me set the table and we’d make place cards out of carstock and stickers. I like your idea better. I would not only let them help with the place cards but they were being taught how to set a table properly. Hope they remember what I taught them when they start entertaining! I spent hundreds to get started into scrapbooking and found out that I was not creative ata ll and have given those supplies away but still kept somethings that I knew I could use for other things later. I haven’t been in Michael’s or A.C. Moore for about 3 months..I didn’t know they had the cardboard strips. Great ideas! Thanks for sharing!