The Prettiest Place Settings from Real Celebrations

September 11, 2017
Elizabeth Messina Photography

Get inspired by beautiful tableware, from dinner plates to chargers.

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Elizabeth Messina Photography
Get the Best of Wedding Décor and Details

Wedding table settings can vary greatly, but a few main elements can generally be expected: Every guest will need utensils, a napkin, drinkware, and dishes to eat off of. While each piece of the puzzle is important, plates are often the first thing guests will notice, considering that they take up the most space, and are what place cards and menu cards typically sit on. So, although plain-white options are readily available, you may want your dishes to pop a little more. If you're hoping to capitalize on your table's design potential, your plates are a great place to start.

To help you get inspired for your own celebration, we've rounded up some of the prettiest place settings we've seen at weddings and related events. Formal, casual, classic, nontraditional, bright, muted, pattered, solid—whatever you consider the style of your dreams, you'll find it in this list. For seamless, cohesive tablescapes, choose one look to copy for your own special day. Or, for a more eclectic affair, you can mix and match your favorites.

If you have other details—like your centerpieces—picked out, click through for ideas that'll complement them. Alternatively, use the dishes that catch your eye as a launching point for the rest of your décor search! If you're not sure how to incorporate plates into the broader scheme of your party, show a planner the ones that tickle your fancy and create a game plan together. Then, once the wedding's all done, consider keeping a set for you and your spouse—dishes this lovely deserve to be repurposed.

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Alternating Dishes

Ashley Sawtelle

This wedding's place settings featured alternating middle and bottom dishes.

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Floral Plates

Abby Jiu Photography

Floral plates were especially seasonal at this springtime wedding.

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Blue China

Joseba Sandoval Photography
Learn How to Put Your Wedding China to Good Use

Classic china is always a timeless option—this wedding's dishes were no exception.

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Intricate Plates

Love, The Nelsons
Go Inside This Fall Wedding

This bride wore a patterned wedding dress, and selected dinnerware that would match. "I wanted a design that would playfully tie into the vibrant colors of the gown," she shared.

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Purple Chargers

Ben Yew

These gorgeous purple chargers looked lovely beneath floral plates.

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Textured Dishes

Ashley Sawtelle
Go Inside This Outdoorsy Wedding

Textured white plates dressed up this reception's wooden tables.

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Complementary Plates

Corbin Gurkin
Go Inside Abby Elliott's Wedding to Bill Kennedy

Odd Mom Out's Abby Elliott chose a selection of mismatched vintage china for her reception, which reflected the day's lighthearted mood.

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Gold-Leaf Dishes

Lacie Hansen Photography
See More from This Casual Wedding

These patterned plates were beautifully refined.

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Muted Plates

Caroline Tran Photography

Floral plates sat atop uniquely-rimmed chargers at this wedding. How dreamy and romantic!

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Festive Dishes

Jenny Haas

These fun, festive plates were from Target! Who knew gorgeous dinnerware could be so affordable?

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Pink-Rimmed Plates

L. Hewitt Photography

The peachy-pink plates at this reception went well with the napkins and centerpieces.

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Leaf Plates

Corbin Gurkin Photography

Nature-inspired patterns are always eye-catching, as these botanical plates went to show.  

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Elegant Dishes

Kayla Barker

Ornate dishes, like this textural set, always look perfectly polished.

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Wooden Chargers

Tec Petaja
See More from This Bohemian Wedding

We love how these gold-rimmed dishes contrasted with wooden chargers.

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Mismatched Plates

Lydia Jane Photography

This eclectic tablescape featured a range of unique dishes, from translucent pink plates to floral ones.

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Speckled Plates

Lexia Frank Photography
Go Inside This Summer Camp-Inspired Wedding

Classic Party Rentals provided these blue splattered plates, which went with the wedding's campy enamelware mugs.

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Green-Leaf Plates

Bryan from For the Love of It
See More from This Backyard Wedding

These "Emerald Vine" Lomoges plates were from The Ark.

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Detailed Plates

Magnus Bogucki
Get the Best of Whimsical Weddings

The place settings—from the figurines to the plates—were wonderfully whimsical at this wedding planned by Italia Celebrations.

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Navy Blue China

Laura Dart
Go Inside This DIY Wedding

This bride collected "Blue Willow" china for her reception.

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Flower-Rimmed Plates

Marta Guenzi

Supremely-sweet blooms patterned these pretty plates, which were chosen with the help of planner Sara Carboni.

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Butterfly Plates

Sally Pinera
Go Inside Steven Yeun's Wedding to Joana Pak

At Steven Yeun of The Walking Dead's wedding, guests dined off of one-of-a-kind dishes, including butterfly-patterned plates and bold, blue chargers.  

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Green-Blue Plates

Michael + Anna Costa

These seafoam-hued plates sat pretty atop clear, gold-rimmed chargers.

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Leaf-Rimmed Chargers

Corbin Gurkin
Go Inside This Family-Focused Wedding

These The Ark chargers, which were rimmed with golden vines, were absolutely ethereal.    

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Light-Blue Dishes

Samantha Kirk Photography

These matching plates and chargers were colored a soft, hazy blue.     

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Cement Chargers

Lavender and Twine
Go Inside This Courthouse Wedding

At this reception, china from the venue rested on industrial-chic cement chargers from Buena Tile + Stone.

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Red-and-Pink Plates

Sandra Åberg Photography

Pink and red are gorgeously romantic—they combined beautifully on these warm-hued plates. The table settings were planned by Brenda Babcock.

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Patterned Plates

Belathée Photography
Go Inside This Colorful Wedding

Gold is such a celebratory color—it was used creatively in these place settings.

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Gold-Rimmed Dishes

Michael Radford

These gold-rimmed dishes were exquisitely simple.

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Mixed Plates