Decorating your summer table

Just because your China comes from Chinet, that doesn't mean your summer parties have to lack style.

There are plenty of easy ways to primp a table for all these summer holidays and happy days outside.

The best place to focus your decorating efforts is on items your guests will use and focus on: napkin rings, placemats and centerpieces.

The easiest way to take the chintzy out of your Chinet is to make a stylish napkin ring to hold your tableware together.

Cut a length of narrow ribbon 16 inches long. Pick out some contrasting or complimenting buttons and start the ribbon through. Thread the ribbon until the buttons are in the center of your length of ribbon.

Gather your napkin and utensils and tie the ribbon on, making a loose bow or knot that your guests can easily untie.

To make your poverty-induced place settings pop, create a placemat that accentuates the beauty of the day.

Choose two types of ribbon for this project: one wide (1 to 2 inches) and one narrow (1/2 to 3/4 inches). Buy enough of the wide ribbon to cut lengths that will run the width of your table plus 2 feet. Center the ribbon as best you can on the table and then weave the lengths together in the middle of the table.

You will need about 14 lengths of the narrow ribbon cut to 18 inches to finish each placemat. Simply weave the narrow ribbon through the wide ribbon at each place setting.

The weave should hold the "mats" in place, but you could tack the strips of ribbon to each other using school glue for added stability.

For your centerpiece, head to your recycling bin for some cans. If you don't recycle (shame on you!) a week's worth of canned vegetables and sauces should get you plenty to work with. Pick about six cans of various sizes. Make sure they've been scrubbed well and are dry.

Use a metal punch (or ice pick or old Phillip's head screwdriver) to punch holes around some of the cans. You're going to drop votives in these cans and let their light shine through the holes.

Partially fill the other cans with dirt or sand to sit larger candles in. It's all the better if your candles are lemongrass or rosemary scented to help chase away the summer no-see-ums that like to crash parties.

Cheap? Yes. Chintzy? Not on my table.

~Vanessa Cook is a former Southeast Missourian copy editor who dabbles in decorating.