A personalized wooden fan is the only guest favor that does three jobs at once: place card on the table, decoration, and a very handy gadget on a hot day. For a summer wedding or a venue without air conditioning, it's the smartest choice.
Why choose personalized fans for your wedding?
Because one item does the work of three. Placed on the plate with the guest's name on it, the fan works as a place card, dresses the table, and keeps your guests cool during the ceremony and the evening.
It's also a favor people keep: unlike a single-use item, the fan is put away and comes out again every summer. In my Paris workshop, I personalize each fan — usually wooden — with the guest's name, the wedding date and a design that matches your theme. It becomes both practical and consistent with your decor.
A fan as a place card: how does it work?
I add each guest's name to their fan, and you place it on the plate or tie it to the napkin. It replaces the paper place card while also being a gift.
This trick saves you a whole line of stationery: no need to order separate place cards. It works especially well for rustic, boho or Mediterranean weddings. If you'd rather keep separate place cards, match them to the rest of your table stationery — see my guide on paper or canvas wedding menus.
Which fan style for which wedding?
Light wood and fine-line designs suit boho and rustic weddings; bolder colors and calligraphy dress up chic or Mediterranean weddings.
The most frequent requests: wooden fan + calligraphy name + date for a natural style; a floral design matching the bouquet; the couple's monogram for an elegant touch. Consistency is what matters: a fan whose design echoes your invitations and menus creates a harmonious, “thought-through” table.
How many fans should you plan for?
Plan one fan per guest if it doubles as a place card, with a 10 to 15% margin. If you keep it for an outdoor ceremony, one per person is still the rule.
Order your personalized fans
At Memerle, each fan is personalized and prepared by hand in Paris. You choose the fan, the design, the text (names, date) and the quantity; I send you a proof before production, then ship after 1 to 5 business days of production. Shipping to France and worldwide.
See my wooden wedding fan tags, my 7 guest favor ideas, and my comparison of paper or canvas wedding menus.
For a quote based on your number of guests, email me at hello.memerle@gmail.com.