We fold paper napkins for the festive table

Refined and stylish table setting is an indispensable attribute of any feast or celebration. One of the key moments in creating a festive atmosphere is decorating the table with napkins. With their help, you can not only effectively decorate the table and dishes, but also set the color scheme and the very mood of the event. In order to fold simple shapes, no special equipment and special skills are required. In addition, in addition to aesthetic properties, napkins have a purely utilitarian practical application.

For serving, two types of napkins are used: paper and fabric.

1. Fabric products intended for individual use, they are laid out near or on top of the plate of each guest, so that it is convenient for him to unfold and put a napkin on his knees at the beginning of the meal.
2. Paper models should be arranged so that the guests sitting next to them, if necessary, can easily reach them.

The main advantage of paper napkins is their availability and richness of colors and textures, which allows them to serve the table in any situation. Napkins can simply be laid out in napkin holders, improvise with shapes and twist simple cute shapes, or even lay out something enchanting. The choice depends only on personal skills, wishes and preferences.

Serving napkins correctly is an art that requires taking into account a number of points. The color, shape and general creative concept should correspond to the theme and style of the event, to be in harmony with the tablecloth and the dishes on the table. Also, an important point is the ease of addition.

Folding paper napkins into beautiful and unusual shapes is not as difficult as it seems. Of course, as in any other business, in order to achieve mastery, it is recommended to go in stages - from a simple option to a complex one. But the charm of origami allows you to create true masterpieces even with a minimum of effort. Even children can fold simple jewelry, this process develops fine motor skills, increases intelligence and allows you to turn the chores before the arrival of guests into a real family holiday.

To make napkin decorations, it's best to use the ready-made instructions. - diagrams that outline the stages of work step by step and various methods of folding. Often, beginners are lost, not knowing how to read such diagrams, but in reality everything is quite simple: the dotted line indicates the folds, the straight line indicates the cuts, and the arrows indicate the direction of the paper fold. A semicircular arrow represents a fold in the indicated direction, a zigzag arrow represents a z-fold known as an accordion, and an arrow curling in the middle into a ring indicates the need to flip the product.

There are two main ways to decorate a table with paper napkins: put on each plate an individual figure for each guest or put several pieces in a napkin holder.

Napkin holders come in different shapes, but the main one is the classic semicircle. However, a scattering of napkins can be placed in any utensils at hand: glasses, glasses, small flowerpots or even a simple plate.

• The most common and well-known figure is single or double fan... To create it, each napkin should be bent in half, getting a triangle, and, superimposing the resulting triangles on top of each other with a shift of the outer corner by about one centimeter, form a fan. A single fan folds from the central triangle to the edges, and a double fan is formed in two rows directed towards each other. The method of folding "accordion" also looks interesting. The napkin is collected in an accordion with a step of one or two centimeters, folded in half and inserted into the napkin holder.

• You can simply put the napkin in the glass using method of folding into a tube. In this case, the napkin is folded in half, positioned with the base down and folded neatly, starting from the right corner. For convenience, it is recommended that you first wrap the napkin around your fingers. The upper third of the resulting tube is folded back, after which the product is placed in a glass.
• An interesting and unusual way of arranging paper napkins in a napkin holder is "bird"... At a square napkin, opposite corners are bent by several centimeters, after which the part is bent in half with bent corners inward, and a trapezoid is formed. From several nested and slightly extended trapezoids, a bird's tail is formed. The head is made from a napkin rolled into a tube, the tip of which is slightly bent to one side. Such a model will look especially advantageous if you use napkins of different colors for the tail.

• If you use an ordinary wide cup as a napkin holder, then you can make an original and bright "Two-way waterfall"... In this case, the napkins are unfolded so that a rectangle is obtained from the original square, which, depending on the size of the dishes, can be folded along one or two more times. The rectangles are stacked on top of each other, leveled and folded in the middle. The middle is recessed in the cup, after which it remains only to straighten the hanging sheets. Origami figures mounted on a plate can be roughly divided into two types. One includes directly figures - flowers, animals, leaves, while the other type combines napkins-pockets in which you can wrap or put cutlery, fresh flowers or branches.

• Napkins are very popular among children and young people. in the form of rabbits... The napkin is folded twice in half with the edges upward, resulting in a long, narrow strip. The edges of the strip are gripped and at the same time folded down so that an angle is formed at the upper midpoint of the strip. The next step, one by one, the lower edges are bent towards the center, and then also fold in half, forming the ears. Then the central upper triangle is bent back, and one of the ears is tucked into the pocket of the other, after which it remains only to turn over and smooth the rabbit.

• Another interesting way is fan folding... The napkin unfolds and folds in half so that the front side is outside. Further, by about three quarters of the length, a not very large accordion is made. In the next step, origami is bent in half, the tail not folded like an accordion is bent inward, and the figure is set on the surface.

• To make envelope, it is advisable to take larger and thicker napkins. The napkin is laid with a rhombus so that the corner with single layers looks to the right, then it folds in half twice and unfolds back to a rhombus. After that, the topmost layer of the napkin on the right is taken and folded in half three times so that as a result it passes over the middle line of the figure. The next layer is folded twice in a similar way, reaching the midline, after which the figure is turned inside out and turned to a square. The sides of the square are bent to the middle, the figure is turned over the other side for the last time, and an envelope with two pockets is formed.

Table decor experts believe that the color scheme and the way the napkins are folded should match the theme of the event. And if for a friendly party or a feast in a narrow circle, it is enough just to serve paper napkins in a napkin holder or glass, then the table for a festive event and reception of guests should be served with more sophisticated figures.

An important point is the color scheme:

1. For a children's party or a youth party, bright plain napkins or products decorated with an interesting gradient, cheerful print or pattern will be a good option.
2. The family celebration will be decorated with restrained pastel and beige colors.
3. For an official event, it is preferable to choose monochrome models or napkins with a minimal strict print.

Thematic colors do not lose their relevance. Red-green and burgundy-gold gamut looks safe on New Year's, traditional spring colors are shades of pink, light green and blue, and autumn is associated with crimson, sunny yellow and ocher. For a romantic dinner, it's best to stick to classic white, red and pink tones. However, even atypical combinations can become the highlight of the evening, the main thing is not to overdo it with experiments.

You should practice in advance and twist a few napkins the day before in order to memorize folding methods and features of creating a shape. In extreme cases, if there was no opportunity to practice, the planned form does not work out, or there is simply no time left, the simplest possible way is to lay out the napkins in a pile on a plate.

For greater aesthetics, you can lay each subsequent product with a slight shiftto form a multi-pointed asterisk.

Despite the fact that there are a number of traditional patterns and options that are customarily used for table setting, if desired and properly prepared, almost any figure from the huge arsenal of origami can be folded from paper napkins. Of course, you will have to invest a lot of time and effort, because such work can only be done by a person who already has experience in creating origami.

For example, a whole lotus can be folded from light yellow and green napkins. This design option looks bright and atypical. Due to the high cost of material and painstaking work, it hardly makes sense to put such a figure on the plate of every guest. This shape is meant to be purely decorative, not practical. We decorate the table with several lotuses that will guarantee an unforgettable evening.

A more modest, but no less technically difficult option is to make a complex rose, for example, the Kawasaki rose. Several green leaves are placed under the flower, collected by a simple zigzag wrinkle method. Depending on the situation, the rose itself can be of different colors, but it is better to give preference to natural colors: white, cream, pink, red.

Other options for natural origami will also look original.

Combinations of paper leaves, for example, a mini-bouquet fastened in the middle with a ring or ribbon, also look win-win. Its lower half shrinks, forming a cylinder - a trunk, and carved leaves fluff up at the top. The combination of three corrugated sheets, fastened in the lower quarter with an elastic band with a decorative ornament, is simple in execution, but very effective. Interesting color combinations will add special charm to such a composition.

Even the idea of ​​serving a napkin in a napkin holder can be very creative - use not even the cup itself as a napkin holder, but its handle. The napkin stuck into the hole is not only easy to insert and remove, but also gives the feast a festive atmosphere due to the contrasting color and unusual shape.

You will learn more about how to fold paper napkins for a festive table in the following video.