
I love to host an autumn dinner party, whether it be Thanksgiving, a
wedding rehearsal dinner, or an intimate gathering before the Christmas
rush sets in. I am able to share my home with friends and family, as
well as enjoy the bounty from my backyard garden. Even in the midst of
such a formal affair, my DIY place holders are at home, adding a further
elegance to the seasonal harvests.
Apple Honey Jar Place Card
By this time of year, I have preserved the season's apples into pints
of sauces, quart-jars of pie filling, and small amounts of apple honey.
The honey is rich to a savory degree, so it is shelved in
Ball 4 ounce Quilted Crystal
jelly jars. The size is wonderful for gift giving, and perfect for a
personalized place card holder the guest can bring home to help remember
the evening.

Using the small jar as a base, I wrap the lid with
holiday-themed
cocktail napkins found in my dining room sideboard. The napkin is fastened with a decorative bow, and any excess is cut away. A cut-to-size
bamboo skewer from Target
slipped through the ribbon in the back of the jar acts as the actual
card holder. With a razor blade, I split the top of the skewer about a
half an inch to allow the personalized place card to be held snugly. The
place cards are made from
cardstock, enhanced with a
rubber stamp
impression and the guest's name ornately written beside the image.
If
Aunt Martha enjoy acorns, then by golly, she's going to have a stamped
acorn image on her place card. For added panache, I make a gift of the
stamp used on each guest's card for them to take home with their honey.
Autumn Flowers and Dried Herb Place Card
Though the chill of a hinting winter is creeping ominously across my backyard garden,
a few of my flowers and herbs continue to hold steady against the
frost. Choosing from these plants to make a place card holder could be
my last opportunity to putter around the garden until Spring. When
brought inside, the warm air in the house releases marvelous scents from
the fresh-cut bundles, adding another layer of ambiance to an already
fragrant Autumn feast.

This year, I was able to cut a handful of
copper-flamed
Sedums, a selection of
Lemon Balm,
and a long-forgotten variation of small-leafed oregano. After trimming
the plants to length, I went just shy of 12", I bound them mid-stalk
with a twist-tie to stave off a jumbled mess. Once under control, the
stalks were wound with a fabric ribbon, and a black bow added as a
momento mori
- a reminder that life, though it appears lost forever, continues
beneath the coming snows. The bundle is laid across the top of a place
setting along with a stamped place card, personalized for each guest.
Once everyone is seated, the feast can begin. Salut.
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