2 Simple DIY Place Cards for Thanksgiving Dinner
Clothespin and Pine Cone Place Card.
This is a very easy place card to make and can be made out of things you might already have at home.
Supplies:
Computer with printer/ink
Scissors
Card stock
Clothespins
Tiny pine cones
Glue gun with glue sticks
1. Print out all the names of your guests onto the card stock.
You can find card stock at any office supply store such as Staples. You may choose to use plain white card stock or opt for neutral colors such as light brown and tan to add a little color. You want to space the names out evenly onto the card stock so you’ll be able to cut them all into the same size rectangular shape. A great idea is to find a template for business cards and just put the names on each “business card”.
2. Cut out each card.
The size of each place card should be about the size of a business card. When you cut them out make sure the names are directly in the center of each card. All the place cards should be the same shape and size.
3. Glue one pine cone to each clothespin.
Oriental Trading has a bag of 24 pine cones for $6.25. These are small and will fit perfectly on top of the clothespins. How many guests you are having will determine how many supplies you will need. If you already have clothespins feel free to use them, if not you can easily buy a pack of 36 for just a dollar at the Dollar Tree. Glue one pine cone to each clothespin and let them all dry.
4. Assemble the place cards.
Now that the cards are printed and cut, and the clothespins are dry from the glue you can assemble the place card. Simply attach the clothespins to the cards so that the name and pine cone are both facing up on one side. To see an example look at the picture provided. This is a very easy place card to make and kids can even join in on the fun making them.
Construction Paper Place Card
If you’re handy with scissors you’ll love these place cards. The nicer supplies you buy the nicer the place cards will turn out.
Supplies:
Black, yellow, red, orange, and brown card stock
Scissors
Glue stick
Black pen
1. Make 4″ by 4″ squares out of the black card stock.
Cut out 4 inch by 4 inch squares from the black card stock. Cut out the number of place cards that you will need, which will be determined by how many guests you are having. The reason for using card stock than construction paper is because card stock is more sturdy. Amazon has a nice card stock starter kit that will work for this whole project since it has many colors to choose from.
2. Take the colored card stock and cut out rectangles.
These rectangles should be a little less than 4 inches long and a little less than 2 inches tall. This will be where you will write the names on. Try to have an equal amount of each color and feel free to pick the colors you want to use. The nicer the card stock is the nicer the place cards will turn out so if you want to make sure you have the right card stock to suit your needs I suggest going to a store like Michaels craft stores where you can actually feel the paper.
3. Fold the black squares in half and glue one of the colored card stock rectangles on each black square.
The black squares are the main base and need to be able to stand up so fold each one in half so that it can stand up. Look at the picture provided to see how the colored card stock rectangles are put onto the black folded squares. To make the place cards look more elegant make the rectangles small enough so that the black card stock will border the names. These can be assembled easily with a glue stick.
4. Write the names onto each place card.
Use a nice pen and write each name onto the place card. If you are good with calligraphy this would be the perfect place to use it.
5. Make leaves out of various colored card stock and add them to the place cards.
Lastly cut out different leaf shapes out of the colored card stock and glue them onto the place cards around, but not covering, the names. Mix the colors up so each card stock displays different colored card stock instead of having just one color throughout the whole place card.
