Oh, the napkin. My mother loves them, those little packages of printed goodness that have seasonal themes. I give them to her for Thanksgiving, for Christmas, for her birthday, and for all sorts of other occasions, all printed with themes that suit the season.
Me, I’m not so keen on disposable items. However, with a small child some sort of face-wiping fabric is necessary, and I’ve come to the conclusion that it is time to get some class. We’ve been using tea towels and hand towels as napkins. Now, I pause for a moment of shame.
We’re going to stop using tea towels and get ourselves some real, grownup fabric napkins. Ones that match our decor too. I’m thrilled. Did I mention that it’s the little things that make a home seem coordinated and beautiful? This year, I’m aiming for flowers in the house and reusable napkins. These little things don’t make life easier, but they definitely make it more beautiful, and that is ease in itself.
Why use reusable napkins? Well, using something once and throwing it away never seemed to make sense to me. Toilet paper, sure. We use recycled paper for that. But napkins? We can easily wash those with the rest of the laundry and use them again. When they are finished their useful life as napkins and full of stains, we can use them as rags or craft them into something else.
We have an odd color scheme in our combined dining room and living room, so I’m getting and making napkins that match our accent colors. Now, I am sure that no one is going to notice except me, but I don’t mind. I’ll notice, and I’ll notice that we’re not using tea towels any more either.
What are the little decorating items that you can’t do without?