With Pesach around the corner, I know a lot of us are starting to think about our Seder table. Especially if you’re having a big crowd (or two) with dozens of guests and multiple families, you will probably want to assign seats ahead of time.
To help make your place settings a little more special, I have a wonderful giveaway today from Invitation to Shine. Owner Jessica Rine creates beautiful customized place cards for all your special events.
I adore her matzah place cards – the front is so cute, but just look at how wonderful the back is, too.
Invitation to Shine will give one lucky Kosher on a Budget reader 100 tented place cards to use at their Seder (retail value: $125 – $175). Or you could request a custom design for an upcoming wedding, Bar/Bat Mitzvah, or other simcha.
Here are just a few more samples of her work.
If you can’t wait for the winner to be announced, Invitation to Shine is also offering an 18% discount to all KOAB readers thru April 30 when you use the coupon code kosherbudget at checkout.
Would you would like to win a set of 100 custom tented place cards to use at your seder or any other simcha?!
Simply leave a comment on this post about how you handle seating at your sederim (and other holiday meals). Do you have assigned seats? Kids tables? What do you to help with “crowd control”?
This giveaway is open to U.S. residents over the age of 18. Entries will be open until next Thursday, 3/22/12 and the winner will be notified on 3/23/12 – plenty of time to order your place cards for Pesach, if you choose.
assigned seats. not too many kids yet so not kids table.
We actually had a bit of a flub with seats two years ago. We had about 27 for the second seder, 3 families from the same side(2 brothers and 1 sister plus all of their children — big family!). We set up the table so each family was sitting kind of in a group, which really helps for things like the “sandwiches” during the seder. Seders are a family activity, we feel, so it made sense. One of the aunts came in and got very upset, saying “I want to sit next to my family, not my kids!” She meant to sit next to the fellow aunts/uncles, not her children. 🙂 Luckily, place cards are easy to move around!
Assigned seats are definitely the way to go, to get rid of confusion!
I try to assign seats, but we have cut back on the numbers of people we invite (limit to two families so usually 12-14 people. It makes it so much easier.
We tend to sit in our usual seats
No assigned seats per se, but we use prizes as incentives for good behavior…..
Everyone who helps serve sits on the side of the table next to the kitchen door. After that everyone basically chooses the same seat every year due to practicality… We have placecards for everyone so this way when we take the kiddush cups off the table for dinner, everyone knows which one is their cup.
What a wonderful giveaway, thank you! My wife and I have our set seats, and we “plan” where to put the guests – nothing as formal as a place card, mainly because we’re usually in the kitchen up until the last minute!
We ususally have assigned areas (kids, older cousins, grandparents, adults), but each chair is not officially designated.
We usually sit in whatever seat we land in in the beginning of the Seder. We usually like to switch it up the second night 🙂
we have assigned seats by family. we are usually 20+ and I make kids sit with their parents.
We sort of use placecards…we use the haggadahs and write peoples name and the year in it before chag and use that as the place card (so you have to open it up to find where you sit). As for arrangements we try to mix it up. We try to place people near people they don’t really know sitting people from opposite sides of the family near each other, etc.
We have a LONG table and we usually let everyone fend for themselves!
like rebecca we set up either a long table or two long tables in a T and it’s each man for himself….
We have assigned seating and we make sure each child is sitting near a parent/grandparent that can help them throughout the seder. These cards look great!
we let folks sit wherever they want, but placecards are nice for more formal events.
We have assigned seats. Usually I print something Pesachdik from the computer and tape it on a card with each person’s name. Mine are cute but these are so much prettier.
Kids table and we use place cards for adults
Assigned seats, a kids table if there are more than 4 kids and a lot of adults!
From the beginning we sit on couches or chairs in our living room. People spread out and relax. Once we get to the meal we move to the table. Lately our sedarim have been small so we all just sit wherever!
Definitely would use those placecards for my son’s bar mitzvah coming up in 6 weeks!
Not enough people for a separate kids table, but the kids sit on the outer edge of the table so they can easily go to play or lie down.
Seating has evolved over the years with my family as our southern traditions have lessened. Now we play seating place politics based on who is or isn’t talking to whom. Seating cards are always helpful!
Just our regular seats cuz its just my family. But we always make placemats ans seating cards as a pre yom tov activity…..
B”H
We will probably have a big seder at home, so we will prepare 3 long tables, with model seder plates as centerpieces…
We usually have small meals, so we sort of direct our guests where to sit verbally. The place cards are adorable, though!
It’s just a bunch of family, so seating is what it usually is – friendly chaos!
The head of household (wherever we are that year) and the elders at one end of the table and the youngsters and kiddos at the other. Everyone else just fills in between. Nothing so formal as placecards, but when my oldest was in day school we had them because he made them. So cute, but they have gone by the wayside. These, if we win, may be reserved for my youngest’s Bar Mitvah celebration – please 😉
assigned seats makes things easier
We sit in our usual seats. Kids and grownups at the same table.
It’s usually everyone for themselves but place cards would probably cut down on some of the confusion!
with 50+ people assigned seating for sure!
First come, first served 🙂
Placecards are a lifesaver. Menus to go with are fun, too!
We don’t assign seats, but we have a general idea of where everyone will sit. And kid’s table? Do you mean my lap?
We don’t do assigned seating- just sort of let things work out
Our tradition is to go to bobby & zaidie, and we usually sit in our usual spots. LOVE the matzo cards, awesome giveaway!
My mom sits her her regular spot, my older brother sits wherever he wants, and th rest of us jockey for position.
I verbally assigned seats but for some reason, it has too complicated for people to follow and seating usually takes at least 10 minutes (especially when we have a big crowd of 20). I always think what a good idea getting place cards would be, but I always forget and run out of time to buy them. This is such a great idea to have them ordered on-line instead of having “one more trip to the store”.
assigned seats
We do adults at the dining room table, plus a smaller kids table. Some years it’s very, very tight!
it depends on who is invited – if we have a few families with their kids, then the kids all sit together.
if it is a smaller group, then we try to sit each family with their family members
We don’t have assigned seats, per say, but I put together seats at the table that are clearly for the kids, so people tend to leave the seats next to those for the parents.
I actually buy sheets of felt, yarn, and stick-on letters and animals, so each child can make their own afikomen cover for them to find. Then each child gets a prize at the end for being good (last year it was glow in the dark bugs). Last year I also found in Target’s dollar bins “frog beanie” hats, so voila! Each child had a frog kippah!
We assign seats at our seders and intersperse the kids and adults so everyone is engaged. 🙂
We are hosting at our home for the first time this year! Our family has always been invited out, so there is a little bit of pressure this time. These cards would be a welcome addition to our seder.
My husband built wonderful, cushioned benches the year we had a large crowd for Pesach, so now we can seat 16 at our table with ease, Boruch Hashem!
Last year we assigned seats by family – but it made one side of the family feel left out. This year we’ll assign seats and mix people up. But I’m entering the contest for my upcoming wedding – these are great place cards and I’d love to use them!
certain people have assigned seats – some people near the head, some near the kitchen to help serve – and everyone else just fills in.
We create placecards and holders with crafts relating to the Seder- frogs,wine glasses,mini matzos, and pyramids. Everyone looks forward to new creations (and projects) each year.
We assign seats. It’s the easiest way to avoid the hassle of people jockeying for seats at the beginning. And as someone said – if there’s an issue, it’s pretty easy to move place cards around.
Our seder is almost always just us, so we can focus on the mitzvah of telling your children about yetziyas mitzrayim. So the table usually looks like this: lots of kids crowding around my husband.
For shabbos or yom tov meals, if we have a lot of guests we’ll have a kids’ table, in the next room since our dining room isn’t big enough.
We’ve always gone away for Pesach. At my son’s house they use place cards that look like matzo that my dil makes. When we’ve gone to a hotel with lots of family members it used to be chaotic seatingville and favoritism. Now that each family has gotten larger and gone their separate ways I have to say that the seating is easier. My son is inIsrael, one seder, no problem.