Napkin Rings
Beautiful Table Setting
For whatever reason, I think napkin rings are an important part of dressing a table along with cloth napkins. Cloth napkins in my mind add a touch of elegance to a table. This most definitely goes back to the days of me growing up as a daughter of a Country Club Manager because the tables at the club in the main dining room ALWAYS had cloth napkins! The napkin rings in turn finish off the setting and allow for a level of creativity. In the past, I’ve made colorful napkin rings out of glass and metal beads that I purchased from Hobby Lobby and or Michaels (our local crafts store).
Earlier this year I had a new idea for a set of napkin rings that involved a trip (or two or three) to one of our local antique stores in downtown Denver. Sadly, the name of the store is escaping me, I just remember how to get there from home. The next time I venture down to the store I will get the name and amend this post to include it. For these rings, I was in search of vintage silver ware, specifically forks and spoons of different patterns. The flatware is sliver plated verse sterling silver, so they are dishware safe and more affordable. I was able to find several pieces which has allowed me to create a limited edition. After consulting with my friend Kim Harrell khsilvesmith.com), who is a local artist and jewelry designer and goldsmith, how to best manipulate the metal to form them into a ring I set to work pounding, bending, and finessing my vintage flatware into beautiful and unique napkin rings!
Vintage Napkin Rings Set of Two
Of course, once these are made, I discovered I needed to create something to hold or store them in, so it was over to the sewing machine, my studio is set up in such a way that I have different areas designated for different media. Using cream colored muslin, I set to work making a little bag that would hold two napkin rings each, which works perfectly as I am selling them in sets of two. I finished the carrying bags off with a warm chocolate brown satin ribbon, so the presentation is complete from napkin ring to storage container. All in all, it was an enjoyable project and wonderful addition to the Palisade Posh inventory. It will be fun and interesting to see how this product line changes or evolves as I discover and purchase more and different patterns of spoons and forks. Ideally, I think it would be fun to have a table setting of six to eight with each place having a different and unique pattern in the spoon or fork thus giving the overall table a touch of creative elegance to be enjoyed by all!
