How To Set a Casual Table

Use This Table to Have Fun and Show-Off Your Style

A formal table is beautiful in its representation of tradition, but a casual table is a wonderful opportunity for the hostess to express her own style and taste. A casual table allows the hostess to have fun with a theme, such as Mardi Gras, or show off her own eclectic sense of design. Since the rules are few, the possibilities are endless.

First consider your table covering. Instead of a traditional table cloth, you can use large swatches of fabric brought home from your travels or left over from a decorating project. Placemats are perfectly acceptable as well. Layering fabrics or placemats over fabric will create a luxurious mood for your feast. Mix and match assorted napkins or make your own from leftover fabric swatches. You don't even need to sew the edges if you cut them using pinking shears.

Dinnerware, glassware, and flatware can be matching or mixed too. Just be sure the overall impression when you're done is harmonious. Since fewer courses are on the menu, you will need fewer pieces per person than with a formal place setting.

Start by placing a dinner plate on the table or placemat in front of where each guest will sit. Put a salad plate on the left of the dinner plate in the 10:00 position. A bread and butter plate is optional, but if you choose to use one, it can be placed above the salad plate.

Put a salad fork to the left of the dinner plate, and a dinner fork next to it. The dinner knife is placed to the right side of the dinner plate, with a teaspoon placed by its side. A dessert fork and spoon are optional, but if you're using them, the dessert spoon should be placed, in a horizontal position, just above the dinner plate with the handle facing right. The dessert fork sits below the spoon, facing in the opposite direction.

You will only need one or two glasses, depending on whether you will serve wine. The water glass should be placed above the dinner knife and slightly toward the right. If serving wine, put the wine glass to the right of the water glass.

Finally, the napkin can be placed to the left of the forks or on the dinner plate, after folding in whichever style you find most attractive for your table. Pull out your napkin rings and feel free to mix and match them to suit the mood of your occasion. Even if you don't have napkin rings, there are many fun alternatives. You can use ribbons; raffia; decorative hair elastics; long, pliable leaves; licorice rope; nautical rope; or anything else that can be tied!

Finish off with a few decorative touches for your table. This might be a line of candles down the center; a tiny arrangement of flowers above each guest's place; colorful glass beads scattered all over the table; or, sea shells picked up on your last trip to the shore. Use your imagination, show off your interests, and get ready for the compliments.