Do it Yourself Place Card Holders

Make your own place-card holders for your next event easily with a little imagination and a few craft supplies. Your do-it-yourself place-card holders can double as party favors or conversation starters; you can make these simple craft projects for a wedding or your next party at home.

Wedding

You can easily make place card holders for a wedding with small wooden hearts and 20-gauge craft wire. One side of the heart is flat so it will stand on the table, and the wire is swirled and inserted into the top of the heart. You can cut out the wood yourself with a rotary tool or a band saw. Heart templates are available online for a variety of do-it-yourself projects. Make one full heart, slice off a portion of the bottom of one side so it will stand and then create your own template for the other card holders. You'll also need to drill a small hole in the top as the heart rests on the table so you can insert the wire holder. Cut 10-inch lengths of wire and make a spiral on one end to hold the place cards. You can spray paint both the hearts and the wire to match in a pearlescent white or silver to coordinate with the wedding dcor.

Dinner Party

Make place-card holders that double as conversation starters for your next dinner party, using small blocks of painted wood with a slit in the top to hold the cards. Write provocative words such as "Diva," "Type A" and "Black Sheep" on one side of the painted block. The words on the place card can fit your guests or not, but they are likely to foster interesting conversations. Alternatively, you can write inspirational words or verses on the side of the wooden blocks that will face your guests.

Children's Party

Make ladybug place-card holders for your child's next party. You can personalize each one and give them as party favors or make slits to hold place cards for more than one party. You'll need a half round of Styrofoam, black fabric or spray paint and red craft foam to make the body and the wings. You'll also need black pipe cleaners and a black permanent marker to complete each place-card holder. To make the lady bug, spray paint the half-round black or cut black fabric to fit around the foam. You can quickly attach the fabric beneath the lady bug with a hot glue gun or a strip of duct tape you can also paint to match. Cut two wings from red craft foam. You can find a template online or make your own half circle. Make black dots all over the wings and attach them on top of the Styrofoam with a black-headed straight pin at the top of each one so they can move. Cut two 4-to-6-inch pipecleaner strips, curl them on one end and insert the other into the half-round for antenna. A slit in the Styrofoam between the wings will hold the place cards. You can adjust this project slightly to make spiders, beetles or any other round bodied insect.