Party Perfect Manners

Do not “play” with table favors or table decorations unless they are meant to be touched or played with.

Manners for Place Cards, Seating Arrangements, & other Party Topics

Hosts and Hostesses work hard to make sure their parties, special celebrations, weddings and wedding receptions are fun for everyone involved. In order not to ruin a special event or party there are rules that must be followed. Here are the most important:

• If there is a seating chart or seating arrangement, you must not complain about where you are asked to sit.
• You must be polite to everyone, not just your own friends and family.
• You must never move or switch place cards. People spend a lot of time planning where they would like their guests to sit. You may not know why someone has placed you in a particular seat. Do not ask why you are being asked to sit there. It is possible someone's feelings will get hurt if the host or hostess explains their reasons to you.
• Do not “play” with table favors or table decorations unless they are meant to be touched or played with.
• Do not grab at balloons or anything else decorative that might interest you. Balloons are for the enjoyment of everyone attending, not just you.
• Do not pick at the food before it is meant to be served. This is especially important for wedding cakes. Usually, the Bride and Groom are photographed cutting their cake. The photos would not look very nice if young guests have already had their fingers in the frosting.
• Try not to be an “attention hog.” Let the “Guest of Honor,” be the center of attention.
• If you happen to be the Guest of Honor, be gracious and make an effort to talk with each person at your party or celebration. It is impolite to exclude others when they have been invited to celebrate you.

Contributor Maura Graber has been teaching etiquette to children, teens and adults, and training new etiquette instructors, since 1990, as founder and director of The RSVP Institute of Etiquette.  She is also a writer, has been featured in countless newspapers, magazines and television shows and was an on-air contributor to PBS in Southern California for 15 years. Along with teaching and giving talks on old flatware, she was an etiquette consultant for the first 2 seasons of the HBO – Julian Fellowes’ series, “The Gilded Age”

🍽Etiquette Enthusiast, Maura J. Graber, is the Site Editor for the Etiquipedia© Etiquette Encyclopedia