I really want to make my own place cards, but don't know where to begin. I bought cardstock, velum, ribbon and a paper cutter....but where do I begin on the computer? Any advice would be appreciated!
Well, first I'd figure out how big you want the placecards to be, i.e. 4 inches by 4 inches? 3 inches by 4 inches, whatever. Then, figure out how many will fit on one piece of cardstock. If it's 8 1/2 by 11, then you can probably do 4 1/4 (across) by 2 3/4 (down) and get 8 per page.
I would then print really faint lines on the page to separate it into 'boxes' for each placecard. Use gray ink and you'll barely see it- enough so you can see where to cut, but you wouldn't see it on the finished product.
In each of the 'boxes' print the table #.
When you're done printing the table #'s, you can use the same template to print the names on the vellum. Using the 'boxes' from before, take out the table #'s, and type in the guest names wherever you want them centered over the numbers. Then print all of the velum.
***A WARNING ABOUT PRINTING ON VELUM!!! When you print on velum, you need to change your printer settings. Change the 'print quality' to be 'fast draft'. You'll have more luck with the ink sticking to the velum.
It will probably be easier to type all of the cardstock, and then all of the vellum.
When you're all done, cut it all out and punch 2 holes in each sheet. Run the ribbon through both holes.
