Thanksgiving Preview

Today is preparation day. Not only for Thanksgiving, but also for conference! I thought I would give a quick glimpse of what it is going to look like around here tomorrow.

Table centerpiece.

Mantel

Hand made napkin rings.

Napkin Ring Tutorial:

1) Drive past Michael's on your way to Costco when you are in a rush. Let mouth fall open as you gaze at the 90% signs.
2) Park, get out, buy bunches of small 2-3" silk flowers as needed.
3)Purchase package of 18 gage floral cloth wire. If you don't have wire cutters, straw or strong glue (I did) buy those also.
4) Finish shopping as needed, rush home.
5) Cut 6" pieces of wire as needed with wire cutters, shape into circles using a tea light candle.
6) Twist ends around circle, leaving ends sticking out. Those ends are where the flowers will be placed.
7) Use pliers to make the bottom of the circle flat, so the napkin rings sit well. Your circles should now be a D shape with the twisted ends on the round part of the D.
8) Tie a straw bow around center of twisted ends.
9) Pluck off a bud and a leaf from any stem. Place drops of glue into their holes. I used wood glue and let it dry over night and it worked great. Regular white glue is not strong enough. Add glue to the wire ends too if you like. Place flower and leaf onto ends of wire.
10) Let dry overnight. Check in morning- one of mine had to be re-glued.
11) Fill with cloth or white paper napkins. With paper napkins, it looks nice if you open them up, and then pull them through the ring.

I made 21 napkin rings for under $4. Guests can take them home as favors if they want. I think these would also work well for wedding showers or little girls birthday parties.