Your seat, madam (Part II)

There I was stressing about the silliest thing to be stressed about. Thinking, "OMIGOSH this escort card table will be the defining detail of our whole wedding! If it's not perfect, everyone will think I'm a failure as a bride...no one will like me, our families will be shunned, we'll fall off the party circuit, they'll be posters out for our arrest in design schools everywhere, they'll never find a cure for aids, there will never be world peace..." I had lost my mind. I realized that at 4:30 one morning, adding yet again more pictures to the ever billowing "escord cards" file.

So I let it go. I figured that I could just wait to see what my mom's friends came up with (they're all AMAZINGLY talented interior designers and decorators, if not by trade than for fun) and I. Just. Couldn't. Take. It. Any. More.

One night, before I went to bed, I started thinking about where Mr. KM and I met and what it meant to us. We met working at a bookstore. It's not as glamorous or fun as it seems, mostly we shill off romance novels to empty-nester housewives, but I love books (I find lots of things to read regardless of popular reading trends).

And therefore, our escort card "table"... is actually going to be a bookcase. Like so (except maybe not quite so full since we're not inviting the whole planet):

(source)

With the books looking a little something like this (wrapped in kraft paper):

(source)

Except we'll be writing the guest's name on the spine and the table they're assigned to on the front:

(personal, uh, drawing)

Day after day, week after week, I help people find books. I help them find books that are funny, sweet, heartbreaking and sometimes lame. And these people read these books, and it leaves a little mark on their heart, much like everyone who is invited to our wedding has left a mark on our lives. They've written whole volumes on our story so far!

So everyone gets their own book, even the little kids. I wish we could buy a book meaningful to us for every single guest, but even with my discount, the cost would be insane! Instead, we're hoping guests don't unwrap their books because this is what they would find:

(this is a photo booth picture from my Mac, couldn't find my camera)

I've got a head start on them, but we still have many more to find. If worst comes to worst, we'll just wrap up blocks of wood but that just isn't authentic enough for me. I am so in love with this idea, but there's a flaw. The books that I've started stock piling are the books left over from our clearance sale- otherwise known as the books that absolutely no one wants.

What if people think that these are their favors?! These books were headed towards the discard pile, so I rescued them because they were free and I need lots of books. Should I include some kind of disclaimer and/ or return basket? Hope people won't unwrap the books? Ditch the idea completely and just wrap up wood blocks? I'm really going with the hoping no one unwraps them plan right now.