Setting the table for a meal, after you have made those scrumptious dishes, and got your best tableware and cutlery out, is not complete without arranging the napkins attractively.
A napkin ring is a simple, effective and beautiful way to do this – a real time saver. It saves you the trouble of folding the napkins into intricate patterns each time you have guests coming over. The decorative element of your DIY napkin ring will be enough to impress them.
Here are some simple ways to make napkin rings, other than those store-bought ones, in metal, wood, and what-have-you.
Related posts : How to make cloth napkins – 7 ways ; How to sew mitered corners.
How to make Napkin rings
Simple fabric napkin rings
This is a very simple method of making napkin rings.
Cut out a fabric piece and a stiff interfacing piece of this dimension – 5 1/2 inches by 2 inches.
Adhere the interfacing to the back of your fabric.
Embellish the fabric the way you want – whatever you do, ensure that there are some stitches or some trim along the long edges of your fabric.
Here I have made some decorative scallop stitches on the edge – with the decorative stitch option on my sewing machine. Most sewing machines have them – but we seldom use them. Now is your time.
Related post : Sewing machine stitches.
Do this for both the edges. Fold the fabric by half right sides together and join the short edges together to form your napkin ring. Turn it right side out. Cut off any stray thread.
Another option is to hand stitch the edges for a different handmade look.
I have made buttonhole stitches on the edge.
The buttonhole stitch is a variation of the blanket stitch – but with a small knot at the edge. Follow the steps given below or this buttonhole stitch tutorial for learning how to do this.
Check out this post for many other ideas for handsewing edges with decorative finishes – 8 stitches ; 50+ ways to embellish fabric; 11 variations of blanket stitches ; overcast stitches.
Macrame napkin ring
Macrame is all about tying simple knots with threads and it is very easy to make a napkin ring with macramé. You will need a wooden ring and some cotton macramé cord, that is all. And some time
In this project we will use 4 mm single cord and a 5 mm diameter wooden ring.
This napkin ring can be made out of the most basic knots of macrame – Lark’s head stitch, Square knot and Double half hitch knots. If you do not know how to make these knots, go and learn at these pages.
Materials required for making one such napkin ring:
- Wooden ring
- 4 mm thick single macrame cord Р5 Nos. in 70cm length (You can make it with twisted or three ply macram̩ cord also).
- Scissors
- Measuring Tape
- Comb
Step 1 : First step is to fold each thread or cord into half and attach them to the wooden ring using Lark’s head knot.
Step 2 : Leave the two end cords and tie two square knot with remaining 8 cords.
Step 3 :Leave three cords each on both ends. Take the four cords in the middle and tie a square knot.
This is your alternate square knot.
Step 4 :Next step is making diagonal half hitch knots from both sides to make a V shape.
Divide the cords into sets of five. From the left hand five cords, take the left extreme end cord and place it diagonally over the remaining four cords.
Step 5 :Repeat the double half hitch knots till you complete the fourth cord on the left side.
Step 6 :Now let us make double half hitches with the cords on the right hand side doing the same steps. This makes a V shape.
Step 7 :Let us repeat one more set of double half hitches to make a second V.
Step 8 :Now, trim the ends to make all cords equal in length.
Step 9 :Now that our knots are complete and ends are trimmed , it is time to fringe the ends. Use a comb to separate the strands. Be careful not to comb the knots above.
Once they are fringed, give it a final trim with the scissors if necessary.
Your napkin ring is ready.
If you want your napkin ring to be bigger increase the rows of double hitch knots – you will have to take longer cords for this.
Related posts : How to make 10 basic knots ; Household linen dimensions.; Best cords for macrame
