We’re a pretty casual family. We hang out in our pajamas, leave the house without getting dressed up (I’ve been known to let my kids go into the donut shop on a Saturday morning in their pjs and tennis shoes), and we don’t get our panties in a wad if things aren’t just so.
Which brings me to the subject of placemats, and I suppose, cloth napkins.
We received a set of placemats for our wedding and a set of four as a housewarming gift for our first home and then, because they were on sale and I thought they were cute, I bought Christmas and 4th of July ones.
But I never remembered we had them until it was too late and we were using the snowman ones at Easter and the 4th of July ones in October.
But lately, when we eat dinner at the table, we’ve been using the placemats. But, not always. And by not always, I mean both we don’t always use the placemats and we don’t always eat at the table. Sometimes we all cram onto a sofa, balancing plates on pillows and armrests while Stephen and I relive the days when we didn’t have a dining table. Or a coffee table or end tables.
And so, I wonder, do we really need 4 sets of placemats and two additional ones that I simply find pretty?
I decided we didn’t. I kept the floral set because they match the 4 cloth napkins. I put all the rest in the donate closet (we have designated an entire closet as the landing station for all things to be donated or for textile recycling). I’ve started trying to make a habit of using the cloth napkins instead of paper towels or paper napkins, because environment.
So there you go. Do you use placemats? If so, how many do you have?
I have never used place mats except at my moms house.
I always thought of them as something really formal, even if they were a casual pattern or whatever.
Almost always use a placemat because I don’t like the feel/sound of plates on the bare table…if we are eating at the table and not on our lap in front of the TV! Always, always use cloth napkins. LOVE them! So much nicer than a paper napkin or a scruffy piece of paper towel.
We have that front set of placemats too! They were a wedding gift. My husband likes placemats, so ours have gotten a fair amount of use. I am planning on going through our table linens again soon. Thanks for the inspiration.
I always use placemats or a tablecloth, especially on our antique mahogany Duncan Fyfe dining table that just cost a small fortune to refinish. My parents bought it as an antique when I was just a kid and now I am an antique! We have always used cloth napkins as well.
I gave away a ton of linens – table and otherwise – when last we moved and now I am on the lookout for new placemats – we need at least eight to accommodate our family. The ones on the kitchen table are scruffy but we still always use them. Refinishing tables costs a fortune. Placemats are cheap!
We use dish towels as placemats on our glass-topped table so it doesn’t get scratched. I used to use real placemats, but after washing them one time they look awful. Dish towels are much easier to wash and continue to look good.
I have some woven placemats from Mexico that I like to use when we use the outside table. Otherwise, I don’t typically use them. I do use cloth napkins regularly but they are then relegated to the rag pile if they are badly stained or start to get holes. I used to keep a roll of paper towels on hand because i have pets, now I just use a sheet of newspaper and a rag if I need to clean up.
We use bowls and nothing else right now. But, on the boat, we used a tablecloth and placemats, because the table was hideous, and they really pulled everything together. I guess it depends on your aestetic. If placemats are always out and make things look prettier, than they aren’t causing any burden. But if they stay in storage and get used occasionally, they probably can go.
I like reusable napkins, but I’ve found that washcloths work much better than cloth napkins, if you’re going for function.
We have two sets of placemats and napkins that we use, one my mother made me and one my mother-in-law made me. The homemade ones wash up perfectly and the patterns look good together for when we have extra guests. I used to have store bought ones and hated them, they never washed well.
Got rid of all placemats except for the woven ones that can be wiped down. Have used cloth napkins exclusively for many years now and it’s time to purge more of those … feels like they accumulate!
We have a set of four placemats but I only use them with hot food. We use coasters pretty solidly though, mostly because the table is mahogany – never bothered with either when the table was veneer.
We only eat dinner at the table a few times a week anyway, it’s covered in my drawing stuff now, has been for days!
We have a glass tabletop so we use placemats. The ones we have are bamboo & are universal for family dinners & they can take a beating. Also we use generic white bar rags as cloth napkins. Also very universal & can take a beating as well as a good bleaching with little to no harm.
That’s a great idea on the bar rags!
We eat of my grandfather’s table. Every day I seem to wash table cloth after table cloth!
I stopped using cloth placemats when my boys were little. We never got through a meal without a stain on them. It just added to the laundry pile. I found a bare table was our answer as it was easy to wipe clean. Cloth napkins, that’s another story I much prefer them to paper any day and don’t have paper towels/napkins in my home.
We use placemats. Our wooden table gets stained easily from hot plates or cold glasses. I mean…the table was free, but hey! Who’s going to ever give us another free table? We decided to look after this one instead. I tried to buy cloth napkins from op shops for Little Fearse’s first birthday and could not find any ANY WHERE. I think they are a much better idea. Because, environment. (Can I borrow that for any time I’m forced to explain something obvious that is better for the environment?)
I just giggled. Yes, you can borrow it. 🙂 I don’t know how to sew, but I can’t imagine a SQUARE would be that hard to figure out. Perhaps I could repurpose some. Of course, I don’t have a sewing machine, but that’s another issue entirely.
I have a sewing machine…I might give it a whirl. One day… (I said might)
i don’t but I sure wish we did! we have a tablecloth and after every meal my husband’s space is spotless and I have drips, smudges, and crumbs all over my place. very embarassing!
Oh yes, my mother loves the placemats – we have endless at home. But I decided when I moved out I was NOT having them – they are just clutter. I do have fabric napkins, but that’s my limit. I also am lucky enough to have a stainless steel table, so there’s no fear of damaging things. Oh and I found my fabric napkins in a second hand store, and my mother also gifted me some white ones (yay). But they aren’t that common, that’s for sure.
We only have 2 sets of placemats and we use them on occasions but not very often. We don’t use cloth napkins I don’t like them at all.
I don’t use placemats, mostly because our table is small and there would be lots of unattractive overlapping. But we do use cloth napkins. I’m not really sure why, except that I absolutely hate buying paper napkins. It just seems like a waste of money, and then they have to go somewhere, and they end up in the trash when they get dusty or bent or wet… Anyway, I got beautiful white napkins for a buck a piece at a flea market and I just leave them out on the table in a basket. We tend to use 2 each meal just to wipe down the toddler. After each meal, I dump them in the washer (which happens to be right next to the table in my small house) and they get washed with the next load, whatever it may be.
I’ve tried using placemats but the table isn’t wide enough to have one on each side plus food down the middle so I’ve giving up. If we’re not eating on the couch (usually) we use a table cloth. Now you’ve got me wondering if I still have sets of 4, where they are and why I still have them.
don’t do fabric napkins, I don’t like to do laundry that much.