Accessories enrich your dining experience
 | | Nancy Lindemeyer was a groundbreaking editor for over twenty years with home magazines Better Homes & Gardens and Victoria. Today she is a consultant for leading home products companies, and is gifted with unique insight into the home-related aspirations of women of all ages. |
NAPKINS
Linen or paper, plain or printed, large or small - there are great options in napkins, from country checks to formal white damask. But the news is patterns and textures to coordinate with tableware and casual dining or formal dining tables..
 | | Milbridge round table |
Create a mood in an instant with a special napkin. Set our Milbridge round table for a Sunday brunch in the French countryside by using napkins with the charm of Provence.
Napkin sets come in all sizes from huge lap covers to the dainty cocktail type. The largest can repose under plates on beautiful dining tables like Fennel Glen, with its black finish and gold handpainted touches.
 | | Casablanca |
 | | Fennel Glen table |
Decorative uses abound. A pretty florist's pin can attach a napkin to the back of an upholstered chair like those in our Casablanca collection. It's the ideal spot for a place card, too. Be imaginative with how you use and place napkins - there are no rules.
Napkin folds are ever-popular, aren't difficult to do, and get raves from guests. A book from the library or a quick web search should give you some ideas.
Why not napkin rings? In addition to a wealth of retail choices, from colored beads to rattan rings, flea markets and thrift shops have offerings from days past.  | | Preston Ridge shaped buffet |
An array of "odd" rings helps make an interesting table - and a nice little collection to build on as the years go by. Display them in the shaped buffet from our Preston Ridge collection, and they can't help but get noticed.
CANDLES
Candles are now being made and used for more than just a little romantic table lighting. If there is a candle you can dream up, it's being made - from turkeys to apples to little houses. These little art pieces add decorative touches to your dining furniture even when unlit.  | | Sutton Court double pedestal |
Candles set the stage - formal or fun, there is a great choice for you.
White tapers in silver candlesticks connote the best china and sumptuous roasts, on tables like the double-pedestal model from Sutton Court.
 | | Wynterhall buffet |
Themed candles, like pumpkins in a variety of sizes, make perfect decorations for a post-game party. Add turkey candles when it's time for savory after-Thanksgiving leftovers, set out on the beautifully traditional three-shelved Wynterhall buffet.
 | | Cross Creek refectory table |
Really big candles are dramatic accessories - and some candlesticks now are being made worthy of castles. Cross Creek's refectory table, graced with rosewood and camphor burl veneers and extending to 126 inches, can take on such candles readily.
Hurricanes, too, are becoming a type of art glass, beautiful in themselves for displays of fruits, dried botanicals, and all manner of appealing things.
Scented candles have grown out of their cinnamon-and-vanilla days. Many more sophisticated scents can now be found to set a mood and enliven a room.
PLACE CARDS
 | | Beacon Square pedestal table |
Place cards are back in a big way - and an event doesn't need to be formal to leave that little remembrance of a happy time.
Any occasion has a place card to match it. The more formal the dinner, the nicer it is to draw up a seating arrangement. Place cards make it very easy to get the right mix at the table. Round dining tables - like Beacon Square's 46-inch pedestal table - are always great for conversation.
Tender sentiments - perhaps, "I love you, Dad" - are the message for a very personal place card for an intimate meal in the den around our game table.  | | Game table |
It's one that Dad will tuck in his book of memories, or the family scrapbook.
Handmade place cards delight family and friends. The youngest scribe in the family can print names on colored paper cut to size with pinking shears. Be as artistic as you care to.
Holders add prominence. Once you start shopping, you'll be amazed how the selections have blossomed. Along with the card, they're ideal party favors.
BOTANICALS
 | | Vineyard table |
Natural table themes have never been more appreciated. You'll find fall-kissed leaves, acorns, branches, pine cones, and all manner of things on a walk in the woods. Or do your gathering at the mall - faux apples, berries, pomegranates, gourds and vines flourish in craft and home stores.
Decorate your table furniture with bowls or vases brimming with the season's bounty. Lady apples, entwined with leaves or berries in a clear glass vessel, make a delightful and easy decoration. Gather bowls and vases for a really dramatic centerpiece - put a different item in each. They're perfect accessories for the Vineyard collection, with its hand painted touches.
 | | High waisted sideboard |
Create a setting for a plate or charger by making a surround of nuts, berries, and vines. A punch bowl or soup tureen on a high-waisted sideboard is even more impressive with a natural wreath around the base.
 | | Brigano baker's rack |
Garland the shelves of a hutch with swags you create yourself or get from your favorite catalog. The metal shelves of the Brigano baker's rack are an ideal background.
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