The holiday season gives us the chance to spend quality time with friends and family, especially during holiday dinners. Setting a formal table for Thanksgiving or Christmas is a nice way to make the meals special. If you are unfamiliar with the traditional customs for setting a table, you may feel unsure where to start. However, setting the table for a holiday meal is not as difficult as it may sound.

First, decide what sort of decorative elements you want to include with your table setting. If your table has room for a centerpiece, you can choose a floral arrangement or something in line with the season, such as a bowl of apples or squashes. The next step is to pick a tablecloth. Although a crisp white tablecloth is very formal and classy, you can also make seasonal color choices like autumn red or chocolate brown (these are also more forgiving to stains than white).

A trend for formal table settings that is making a comeback is including a charger at each place setting. A charger is a large plate that sits at the center of each place setting. For the early courses, the soup bowl and/or salad plate is place on top of the charger. When it is time for the main entrée, the charger is replaced with the entrée plate. A charger is not a necessity for a nice table setting. You can simply place the entrée plate at the center of each place setting if you do not wish to use the extra dishes.

An easy rule of thumb to remember when setting utensils is the utensils should be set outwards in to proceed with the courses. So the utensil that will be used first (usually the salad fork) will be the furthest from the plate and the entrée fork will be the closest to the plate. Forks are set on the left side of the charger/center plate. Spoons and knives are set on the right side of the plate, with knives are always turned towards the plate. You can place glasses at the top right of the place setting, with the same rule as the utensils: first is furthest. So the water glass is usually the furthest out, followed by the wine glass if wine is served.

At a holiday table setting, one other very important element is the napkin. A cloth napkin is a nice touch that lends your holiday feast a touch of sophistication while you enjoy the company and delicious food. Before the start of the meal, place the napkin inside a napkin ring on the center plate. The holiday table setting is a simple and inexpensive way to celebrate special time with loved ones. Silver Mine Gifts has a variety of pewter and sterling silver napkin rings that will match whatever type of table you decide to set for Thanksgiving and the entire holiday season.

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Basket Weave Silver Napkin Ring

Napkin or serviette rings were originally used to categorize napkins between their weekly washes. Normal everyday use napkins rings were simple and made of skewers. In America, napkin rings generally had figures on them. These figural rings became a specialty of theirs. Napkin rings were invented by the middle class in Europe and they made their first appearance in the 1800s in France. The custom of using these rings soon spread to all the western countries. Most of the napkin rings that date back to the 19th century were either made from silver or were silver plated. However other materials like pearl embroidery, wood, bone, glass and porcelain were also used. The 20th century brought with it the use of newer materials like Bakelite. Today napkin rings have become collector items.
An excellent gift for a special occasion
Silver napkin rings make excellent gifts. Besides being elegant additions to the dining table they can be personalized making them excellent gift choices for occasions like weddings and christenings. You can choose from a wide variety of silver napkin rings. Because they have now become a collector’s item, you will find plenty of choices online. You will have a choice of both plain and fancy napkin rings. However you must remember to choose your napkin ring depending on whether or not you want to engrave it. Engraving might not be possible on all designs. If you choose to gift silver napkin rings as a set, then it is usually done in fours, sixes, eights, tens or twelve. This article will give you an idea of some of the basic types of silver napkin rings that are available.
The basket weave silver napkin ring
Basket weave napkin rings are usually made out of solid sterling silver. This design is a reproduction of the original collectible and is widely available. Its delicate weave sets it apart from all other silver napkins ring and is a sure shot way to add that extra charm to your table layout. These silver basket weave napkin rings cannot be engraved. However you can still gift them as a set.
The standard silver napkin ring
The most common of the silver napkin rings that you will find in the market or even online are the standard napkin rings. These rings are generally of a plain finish and can be made completely out of sterling silver or they can even be silver plated. You will find these napkin rings available in the basic geometric shapes like circular, square, rectangular, oval, octagonal etc. Some of these silver napkin rings even come with a bit of design on the edges like a rope design for example. If you are planning on getting the napkin rings that you buy engraved, then these kinds of rings would make an ideal choice.
Repousse silver napkin rings
Repousse silver napkin rings make great gifts. If you have seen one, then you will know why. These silver napkin rings are made out of solid sterling silver and weigh between 20 and 25 grams. The Repousse design whether it is only on the edge or on the entire napkin ring gives it an ornate look. If you are looking for a gift for a special occasion then this would be a great choice. You can even get these napkin rings personalized by engraving them.

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