How to Set a Table
How to Set a Formal Table
- Cover your table with a linen of your choice.
- Place the dinner plate in the center of the setting.
- Place the salad plate on top of the dinner plate.
- Place the dinner fork to the left of the dinner plate.
- Place the salad fork to the left of the dinner fork.
- Place the dinner knife to the right of the dinner plate.
- Place the dinner spoon to the right of the dinner knife.
- The dessert silverware should be placed horizontally above the dinner plate.
- The bread plate goes to the upper left of the dinner plate.
- The wine, champagne, and water glasses should go to the upper right of the dinner plate.
- The napkin should be neatly folded or inserted into a napkin ring and placed on the salad plate.
How to Set a Casual Table
- Lay out a placemat.
- Place the dinner plate in the center of the placemat.
- Place the salad plate on top of the dinner plate.
- The dinner fork should go to the left of the dinner plate.
- The salad fork should go to the left of the dinner fork.
- The dinner knife should go to the right of the dinner plate.
- The dinner spoon should go to the right of the dinner knife.
- The water and wine glasses should be placed to the upper right of the dinner plate.
- The napkin can be neatly folded and placed on top of the salad plate, inserted in a napkin ring and placed to the right of the silverware or folded and placed under the forks.
Other tips for setting your table:
- Salt and pepper shakers should be placed in the middle of the table unless your table is long and rectangular, then they should be placed in the center of each end.
- Add some fun to your place setting by mixing and matching your china. If you don’t have an assortment of your own, you can rent some like this vintage floral pattern and this gold rimmed white china.
- Use colored glassware to add some interest to your table. You can rent this vintage blue goblet.
- Use fancy napkins. You can rent napkins made from cotton, satin, suede, crinkle, velvet, pin tuck and much more. Some of the patterns available are stripe, check, floral, bandana, toile, plaid and damask.
Here are a couple of other blogs that you might find helpful:
How much does it cost to rent table place settings?
Types of Rental Chairs and Average Prices
What Size Linen Fits My Table?
Table Sizes – How Many People will Fit?


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