My youngest son has a growing but young family. Both he and his wife work and by the end of the day they know there is not one thing more they want to do that isn’t absolutely necessary. I can’t say as I blame them. Between spending time with the children, the dogs, and all that goes with keeping the hearth and home going there is not much left to work with. I guess we have all been there, done that, and bought the tee shirt.

Never the less, Liz, my son’s wife, would like to keep a gracious table as a way to start teaching her children the worth of family time, minding manners, and respecting traditions. She wants to set a nice table. However she doesn’t look forward to washing and ironing tablecloths. She feels placemats are fine for breakfast and lunch but she really wants a nice table for dinner. Naturally, I believe her to be a very wise woman and really appreciate her conundrum. What to do?

We began looking at what was available in the shops and found there was a very limited offering of plastic coated tablecloths and they were not very attractive. With further effort we did manage to find some imported cloths that met her exacting criteria. This is what we discovered.

First, we found cloths that were really cloth. The tablecloth had first been woven and depending on the manufacturer, some were prints and some were a jacquard weave. All had a very nice drape and texture which helped to disguise the fact that all that was needed at the end of a meal was a simple wipe of a damp cloth for clean up. It was not any more difficult than wiping clean the top of a table.

Second, there was either a good coating of Teflon or acrylic to provide the necessary protection, and in some cases before the final coating, the threads in the cloth were individually coated prior to weaving giving a double layer of protection. This did not in any way give the appearance of a plastic cloth.

Finally, the manufacturers were as careful in choosing their designs for the coated cloths as in choosing the designs for their non-coated cloths. In many cases we could choose whether we wanted a particular design and color in coated or non-coated fabric. This gave the further option of matching napkins.

And talk about easy care!! As Liz discovered, a simple wipe with a damp cloth was all that was necessary. Most manufacturers discourage using any detergent or soap when wiping the cloth unless something really, really greasy is spilled. If after a while, the cloth is looking dingy it is possible to machine wash on cool temperature using only half the detergent normally used. Give a very short spin and then line dry. If ironing seems necessary use a cool iron on the wrong side.

So as Liz discovered, it was possible to be gracious and at the same time not have to spend a lot of time caring for cloth. And a bonus is that the children can do their art projects without causing any harm to either the cloth or the table. The best of all possible worlds.

We carry coated and stain resistant linens from Beauville, Garnier-Thiebaut, and Vent du Sud.

To see and buy them click here

- The Tablecloth Lady

My friend invited me over to her new house to see the new dining room furniture she had just purchased. The whole arrangement was just absolutely beautiful with matching woods and carvings. The chairs were very comfortable so that people would be willing to sit and chat as the evening meal lingered on. I told her how much I admired the entire effect and was looking forward to being invited over for one of her wonderful dinners.

She smiled and then said there was a problem. Apparently, when she chose the suite she didn’t take measurements of the table. Her dining room was quite large so a large table was not a problem. Well, not quite. She had begun to think about tablecloths and had begun to look for exactly the right thing. And that is where the problem began. Her table was 60” wide and about 70” long before adding the two expansion leaves…larger than most tables and table coverings. We could take care of the length even with the additional leaves, but the width was a problem. She definitely wanted a cloth, both for the appearance and also for the added protection, but the widest cloth she could find was about 74” wide and a 7” drape was totally inadequate for that table. She asked for some help developing ideas.

We had to get creative. The first thing that came to mind was a combination of table runners and placemats. With a table runner down the middle of the table, the surface would be protected from scratches caused by moving centerpiece, candle holders and serving dishes, while still showing off the attractive wood finish. Matching or coordinating runners could be placed running across the table at meals to serve as place markers and protect the table from spills and scratches. For casual dinners, placemats, again matching or coordinating, would do very nicely.

She agreed that those ideas were possibilities, but asked if there something else that could be done. I suggested that she use multiple square tablecloths. By placing them so that they were on the diagonal, which is with the points hanging over the sides not the corners, the table would be adequately covered and the effect would be very interesting. When the table was fully opened three squares would fit very nicely and two would fit with only one leaf. One would probably do when no leaves were used.

A series of round tablecloths would also be possible, particularly for an oval table. Oval table cloths are not readily available, and overlapping rounds could suffice. Like diagonal squares, rounds could be also used on a rectangular table.

Multiple matching or coordinating rectangular cloths can be placed across the width of the table…perhaps blue, white and red for a French dinner, or red, white and green for Italian? Another alternative would be to use a square table cloth and then augment the length when needed with cross runners or placemats to take up the extra area.

We also discussed the possibility of using napkins as placemats. A 22” square napkin placed on the diagonal with some draping makes a very interesting placemat.

She agreed that we had come up with some interesting ideas, but would the table be adequately protected? Apparently the table is used just as so many are. When the family members come into the house they put what ever it is in their hands down on the table and soon it is piled high with all the families possessions. The cloth used for dinner would most likely be inadequate for that. I pointed out that there were several kinds of coated cloths that had sufficient body to protect from scratches and had the extra benefit of protecting the table from moisture from wet mittens, spilled water from bottles, spilled water color or paint, or all the other things that get carried in and get left. That kind of covering would be very flexible because, she could also use the covering in her kitchen if she wanted to.

These ideas show that a large or odd shaped table can still be covered in a variety of ways to provide the basis for attractive and functional tablescapes. Just use your imagination and remember…there are no tablescape police!

Perhaps you have some ideas?

- Kathryn -

We started our business four years ago, selling table coverings online, and that business has continued to grow nicely.  We subsequently opened a store “The European Table” in Saint Paul, MN two years ago and have built a small but loyal following. Unlike in France or other areas of Europe, small specialty shops or boutiques like ours are somewhat rare.  In France, for example, almost every town has shops that feature traditional linens and housewares.  In the US, folks in small towns are increasingly limited to the big box stores and Wal Marts which do not carry high quality specialty items.  The internet and paper catalogs increasingly are the shopping source for these buyers.

Sometimes it seems that nobody knows you are in business and what products that you carry.  Recently, however, we participated in a temporary market, showing our wares along with several other small specialty retailers.  I was somewhat surprised when people I had never seen before exclaimed “Oh, you’re the tablecloth lady from over on St Peter Street!” or something similar.  So, I guess I’ve gotten a reputation…I think probably a good one.  I hope its not in the vain of “look out for the tablecloth lady…she’ll talk your ear off about table linens!

In any case, I’ll lay claim to the title of “The Tablecloth Lady” and hope that I can encourage others to appreciate the beauty and functionality of table linens of all types.

If you have a tablescaping idea and pictures you would be willing for us to use on our site or in a newsletter, please contact us on the contact form or directly to kathryn@gallictraditions.com. We would be pleased to send you a gift certificate for any stories we use.

Thank you,

-The Tablecloth Lady

Plastic bags—They are eating me out of house and home!  Where to put them?  They are not attractive so I can’t leave them out for people to look at.  They leak frequently so most times they are inadequate for bagging garbage.  What are the alternatives? 

Having lived in Europe I remembered the shopping baskets that were carried to hold purchases.  One could walk down the street and see bread or flowers peeking above the rim of a basket.  How lovely! Those, and the string bags which fit so neatly in purse or pocket until used were certainly handy things to have around. 

But what about garbage?   Line your garbage pail with brown paper bags and put newspaper on the bottom to absorb moisture and odors.  Roll up the paper bag at the end of the day and you have just disposed of trash in an environmentally effective way.

Paper towels—Oh my!  So handy and yet so hard to really scrub with.  The white flour sacking sold in packages of 6 – 12 for minimal cost work better.  They really shine windows and mirrors, dry dishes, sop up messes on the floor, serve as strainers for yogurt, citrus fruit juices and so forth.  Just toss them in the wash and they are ready to go.  Don’t want to iron them?  Don’t.  They do get stained but if you put them in the wash at the end of the day and use something like OxiClean in the laundry, the stains do come out. 

Worried about germs?  Those towel rolls left out on the counter aren’t really as germ free as we would like to think.  You want something more attractive?  There are all sorts of towels with very interesting prints or woven patterns and if you select some with linen in them they really make dishes and glassware shine.

Paper napkins—Small bits of tissue paper that disintegrate as soon as you use them for the first wipe.  And, if you are eating something that really is juicy you need a whole stack of them.  Give me a good cotton napkin any time. 

There is nothing that equals cotton for getting sauce, grease or other things off the fingers like cotton.  But what about all that washing and ironing?   We use napkin rings to distinguish one napkin from another so we get more than one use from a napkin, something you can not do with paper.  Or we use different color napkins for each person. This reduces the amount of washing.  As for ironing, well for those napkins we use daily, we don’t always iron them.  By the way, ironing the napkins not only makes them more attractive it is an effective way to eliminate any germs that may not have been washed away in the laundry.  The same applies to towels.

Heating and air conditioning—Did you know that tablecloths not only make a table look more appealing but in the winter can make you feel warmer while sitting around the table eating and chatting?  If you have a sufficient drape in the cloth your lap is coverd and draft is reduced.  So if you are wearing sweaters during the cool time of the year, think about also using a tablecloth to maintain comfort while being inactive around the table.

Catalogs—Autumn is the time I become inundated with them.  What in the world to do with them all?  Into the trash with them!  Yes they can be recycled but why have them at all?  In this day of internet, we can find whatever we need with the touch of a button and the amount of paper used is greatly reduced.  Is it as reliable as a catalog?  I think so.  If I have any questions I can call and ask, and most on line merchants will accept returns if something is inadequate.

Books—If you are an avid reader and you buy books frequently you have the same problem I had.  What to do with them after you have finished with them?  Give them away?  Throw them out?  Line the walls of your basement and attic with them for insulation?  If we all donated either the books or just half the money we spend on them to the public library our libraries would be improved greatly and our homes would have much more space to be used for other things.  And please just think of the trees we are saving.

Disposable cups and glasses—I know that some of the alternatives can be fragile but just think of how much cleaner our streets would be without all that stuff from the various coffee shops and all would be if we had a standard insulated container we could reuse.  I know they have to be washed but it really is not a big chore.  Besides the reusable containers do not flavor beverages the way paper or plastic does.

Well, all the alternatives I have thought of are attractive, easily found, and easily used.  I am certain you can think of more—send us your thoughts and maybe we can get a trend going.

 - “The Tablecloth Lady”