A beautiful table setting is the finishing touch to a wonderful Thanksgiving meal.  By collecting a few simple things from around the house, and maybe a trip to the craft or fabric store, you have the makings of a festive table.  Standard placemats start with a rectangle of construction paper, or fabric, in fall colors or white and come in endless varieties, limited only by your imagination.

Handy Turkey Placemats  – Trace around a hand, with fingers spread, to create a turkey. The palm is the body, the thumb is the head, and the other fingers are the tail feathers.  Each child can make their own. It can turn into a game, to try to find their handprint at dinnertime, to see who sits where.

Fall Foliage Placemats – Collect colorful fall leaves from your own yard to make a lovely, natural placemat.  You can also use artificial leaves from the craft store, if you prefer.  Cut two rectangle pieces of contact paper the size you need. Arrange the leaves neatly on the first piece. Carefully place the second piece on top, pealing part of the paper backing off a little at a time, and press in place. Give the placemat a boarder by gluing strips of construction paper about an inch wide along the edges. 

Pilgrims and Indians – Draw or find a pattern for simple silhouettes of Pilgrims and Indians. Place one of each on either side of the placemat.  Decorate them, or leave them as simple silhouettes.  Craft feathers could be added for details around the edges.

Burlap Placemats – If you want to go with a more rustic look, cut rectangles of burlap.  If you have a sewing machine, stitch around the outside edge about an inch in, with a zigzag stitch, to keep it from raveling too far. Decorated the placemat with ribbon or yarn.

Fabric Placemats – There are many lovely fall prints available that could be made into placemats.  They could be bordered with a nice ribbon (make sure it’s washable) for a simple placemat. The ribbon could be attached with fabric glue or double stick tape. Just be sure to use the permanent kind, if you want to wash them.  Alternatively, you could make a quilted placemat and finish it off with binding, for a very elegant looking table.

Placeholders or place cards, can also be a nice touch at the dinner table. These help to eliminate the arguments of who sits where at dinner.  They can be made by taking a piece of card stock, or heavy paper, about four inches square, folded in half.  Print the name on both sides. If someone knows how to do calligraphy, that can add a nice touch.  With all the interesting fonts available, it is easy to print out nice ones, and even add small graphics that fit the theme of the season right at your home computer.

Taking the time to create an attractive table adds a bit of color and fun to the festivities that will be enjoyed by everyone.