By Lorraine Shoemaker

You’ve just spent the better part of Thanksgiving day in the kitchen while family and friends enjoy themselves in the other room. You can’t help feeling just a wee bit left out, and you still have to fret over setting the table properly. How was it that Great Aunt Edna used to set the table?  Oh yes!

  • Use your Thanksgiving (or nicest) tablecloth.
  • Get out the linen napkins (please no paper! What would Aunt Edna think?).
  • Set out the appropriate number of service plates.
  • Now set the dinner plates on top of the service plates, the dessert plates on dinner plates.
  • On the left of the plate will go the forks; next to the plate goes the dinner fork, then the salad fork.
  • On the right side of the plate will go the spoons; soup spoon next to the plate, teaspoon  next to the soup spoon.
  • Place the butter knife on the top rim of the diner plate.
  • Above the plate, place the cake fork facing right and above that the dessert spoon facing left.
  • Place your nicely folded napkin on the top plate.
  • On the right side of the plate above the spoons  go the glasses; the wine glass closest to the plate, the water glass above and slightly to the left of the wine glass.

Knowing the proper way to set your table saves  time and energy. It doesn’t take fancy china or silverware to make a pleasing dinner presentation; be as casual or formal as you desire. If you don’t have enough of one pattern or style of dishes, be creative and have fun mixing and matching what you have. It’s the small touches such as real cloth napkins and service plates that make your table setting look great and your family and guests feel special. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

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