Wedding Blog
… or lack thereof.
All along, my personal Bridezilla limit was getting all worked up making sure the napkins matched everything else. Now, don’t get me wrong, I admire and respect the use of napkins to continue a color scheme or theme throughout a room, but I’m at peace with the fact that I’m neither inclined nor capable of doing that without angst.
And yet, twice now I’ve found myself stressing over what color napkins go best with yellow or light gray or poppy colored linens. TWICE. I’ve debated making them myself (all you need is a Serger, and I’ve wanted one for years), buying them on eBay, or having them embroidered with our monogram (sweet, right?). I find myself driving and thinking, “Maybe light blue on gray? Wait, that might be too boring.”
This is crazy.
Therefore, I am making an executive decision. We will be using regular disposable paper napkins. And they might not even be color-coordinated.
There, I said it. There comes a time in a bride’s life when she just has to put her foot down and decide that she is not going to spend another minute worrying about it. I’ll spend that time working on our ceremony or hugging my husband-to-be or petting my cats. Heck, I might even train a dog to do a trick.
Are you horrified?
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Wait, wait, wait! May I make a suggestion? 
If you’re going with paper napkins, you can get them personalized pretty cheaply. I can’t remember which company we used, but a ton of options come up if you Google it. They were great!
But yes, I generally support not getting worked up over these silly details that NO ONE will notice. So kudos for you.
No, no, no don’t give in! Personalizing your paper napkins is no different than personalizing cloth ones. 
I don’t think I ever even asked what the napkins would be at my wedding, and I don’t remember either. Maybe they were white cloth? We used whatever came with the venue.
I am the last thing from horrified, I am delighted! Good for you
We’re debating this right now. We can get 1000 chocolate brown cocktail napkins, plain, for $40, or we can get customized ones for $200. Not exactly a comparable cost!
Don’t sweat the small stuff!
I have been shopping around for napkins myself and found at OrientalTrading they have colored napkins that can be personalized for a decent price — I am not sure of the quality but, it wouldn’t hurt to check it out!
Napkins are napkins. No one will care what they look like! So you do what feels best for you, and don’t stress about it! I really would have liked black or dark red napkins, but my venue only provided white or ivory. If I wanted black it would have COST me. A bunch of money that would be better spent on anything else. So I had (yawn) white.
Ha, I thought about this, too.. then I was at Ikea and they have some great quality napkins with a selection of cute prints or solids, and BAM– 400 napkins in my cart, decision over. I don’t think anyone will notice or care that your napkins aren’t “special” enough, as long as they get crud off of their hands and faces
@hollienoel: exactamundo! Plus I really hope the napkins aren’t what we remember about our weddings
Paper napkins are really readily available in many colors, and can be personalized pretty inexpensively. We used ForYourParty. We also had colored cloth napkins to go with our tablecloths - I had a hard time deciding between two colors, so had them alternate around the table. Which turned out to look fantastic, as we did all the favors in the same two colors, so alternated them as well. I don’t think you have to drive yourself crazy, or make your own napkins. Rental of the colored napkins turned out to cost no more than the white or black ones our venue normally provides - as long as we went with a color available from the same linen supply company. So the only limitation I gave myself was that I had to choose which of they colors actually available looked best. Much easier than deciding which color (out of all the possible colors in the wold) looks best.
You’re brilliant! Let it go. It’s just something to wipe someone else off with. I say you’re right to just make a decision and let it go. It’s just a napkin right?
Go with what you want. Thats my motto fo rthe weeding!! On the other hand - Has anybody got any cheap personalised napkin vendor websites out there? I would love to put some meaningful quotes down but most are restricted to names and dates…..
Paper napkins come in every color and pattern. If you decide you want personalized later on, just buy a rubber stamp and use ink that won’t rub off:).
Who cares about napkins - it’s your wedding.
Join me on the bandwagon, skip it. I’ve never judged the greatness of a wedding based on the napkins. Or lack thereof.
I agree with your attitude, I refuse to get caught up in every little detail…
I cry for the trees though…at least use recycled paper napkins?
http://www.ecoproducts.com/food_services/napkins/food_service_napkins_order.htm
We’re using ForYourParty.com too, and I think they’re pretty reasonable! Check them out if you want
Good for you! No one will care what the napkins look like…not even you
I’m so over napkins as well! I have been on the hunt for an inexpensive ivory guest towel, and only find white, or expensive ivory.
Smart woman! Wish I could let it go! My mom has offered to sew them, but she’s NOTORIOUS for being about 2 weeks to a month behind on projects (meaning, they’d probably be 1/2 done, the night before the wedding), and I found a site where I can get all $160 for about $140 with shipping included.
I’ve also toyed with the idea of using those terry bar-type towels as napkins, but alas, no decision yet.
Thank you for letting go. I realized the other day that I had been worrying WAY too much about using white in our decorations since my dress is ivory.
And then I realized that that was ridiculous. Why in the world am I expected to match the room? When would that ever happen in real life?
@Julie: Hi, Julie! I actually had this thought when looking at linens, “I like the yellow, but I look terrible in yellow.” Um, hello? Am I going to wear a tablecloth, or otherwise pose in some way that it matters that I look terrible in yellow? I feel ya.
Have you tried Weddzilla.com? You can post exactly what kind of napkins you are looking for and your budget and then the vendors can respond to the post in your area, so hopefully you can find exactly what you need! Good luck!
I would just like to say I am not horrified and totally understand
I’m one of those people who notices such details. However, I’m also one of those people that understand budget. I have never said, “gee, it’d be the perfect [wedding, table, event, dinner] if only the napkins were personalized.” I notice if they are, but don’t miss them if they’re not. So long as you’re not running a linen-table cloth and three-course dinner, go right ahead and use whatever napkins cause you the least stress and help you conserve cash. Your sanity and fiance are much more important.
Although I know paper napkins are not enviro friendly I’m kind of leaning towards those. I completely understand where you’re coming from Miss Cheese!
No, not horrified at all. We agreed early on in the planning that we won’t stress about everything matching. We’re trying to make this process as stress free as possible. You seem to be on the right track
Isn’t it amazing that we can be so calm about so many wedding details…”the girls can choose whatever style dress they want” “I am fine with an uneven wedding party” “Beef, Chicken whatever the chef wants” but we can get stuck on something as silly as a napkin!! hahaha I think we all find ourselves in THAT moment at least once!
In the grand scheme of things, no one will notice, and no one will care. They will just be happy to participate in their wedding… If they judge you, why the heck are they there to support the wedding?
good for you, don’t sweat the small stuff.
At first I wanted personalized napkins in burgundy and orange for our reception but when I got so overwhelmed with everything else I said screw it and got burgundy napkins from a party store. Don’t get yourself all worked up over something that’s going to get covered with food and thrown away. I did however get 100 burgundy and white bev napkins personalized for the cake table, which turned out cute in my opinion. Also, we returned any unopened napkin packages and got a little money back. So don’t sweat it.
I decided (with a heavy heart) to go with paper napkins as well. Ikea has some cute designs and great prices. I don’t have time to worry about personalizing/monograming/whatever…puh-leeze, as if we all don’t have enough stuff to stress over! I also don’t want to spend a single penny extra on recycled paper for people to wipe their faces with. How am I consoling myself for my crime agains the earth?; by providing a recycle bin.
Good for you for not giving into things so mi-nute that only we, as brides, would notice.
Kudos to you! There are so many other pressing wedding details to think of than napkins…
hahaha. i love this.
WOO HOO to you, for moving past the napkins. we understand, cheese, we understand!
My parents had paper plates and paper napkins (yet, a live band?) at their reception, and the marriage still worked. Prioritize the way you want, and to heck with dissent!
I’m loving your comment about the yellow, and worrying about how it looks on you, even though it’s for your table cloth. I look bad in cool purples, pinks and blues but I love the palette, especially in relation to our setting. Every once in a while I freak out that my pinkish skin and dark hair calls for saturated colours, even though I’m not going to be wearing the hanging parasols, pomanders or floral arrangements!
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Mrs. Cheese, Knoxville
Age and Occupation: 29, Engineering Manager
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 27, CAD Designer
Engagement Date: July 31, 2008
Wedding Date: May, 2009
Blogging Since: October 16, 2008
Venue: Our home and the two acres it sits on
About Me: I’m an emotional girl who loves sentimental things, parenthetical asides, and trying to do things herself. I can cook, sew, am a whiz at planning, terrible at delegating, and totally in love with my fiancé (who will be my second husband but first love of the rest of my life). For our home/ garden/ DIY wedding, we’ll be moonlighting as interior designers, home improvers, and gardeners with the help of our fabulous friends and neighbors. We can’t wait to be married, and are learning how fun getting married can be.
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