There was certainly a point in my life where I had no interest in cloth napkins, but I started to buy them in 2020 or maybe a little before that. My grandmother collected napkins, and she would have these really beautiful dinner parties, and I remember being little and seeing her set everything up. She’s not alive anymore, but she would keep drawers of pressed cloth napkins and embroidered napkins, and in the summer, when she had our family over, she would use these gingham napkins. They became kind of nostalgic to me. She passed away during the pandemic, and since then I’ve started doing all of these things that she did, and it’s become really meaningful to me — collecting napkins is one of those things.
I joke with my husband about them — he’s like, “Do we really need all of these napkins?” But they kind of make me feel like the world is going to be okay. They’re a strange way that I can feel control in a world that feels slightly unhinged at times. So I just started collecting them with no rhyme or reason. They make my house feel homey. I have napkins that I use for breakfast that are smaller and then napkins for other meals. I always tumble-dry my napkins, and I don’t press them. Those are my rules. I’m not fussy with them at all.
I really like the color mustard as an alternative to white for napkins because everyone is afraid of using a white napkin. My house has a kind of English French cottage feel, and I just think of these as a neutral. They look great on a placemat. They’re not huge, and I just use them all the time. They wear really well, too. They’re great for wash and tumble-dry, don’t show many stains, and are just easy in a way that a white napkin is not.
These feel very vintage, but they don’t feel old vintage. They just feel like they’re from an era or a moment in time. They remind me of a series of napkins my grandmother had. The ones that I have like these I’ve actually never used because they’re more sentimental to me, so I’m waiting for the right dinner party or moment to use them. They make me think I’m going to start having friends over for tea. The thing about L.A., where I live, is that you spend a lot more time in people’s homes than in New York, so you’re entertaining more. I’ve been saving these for when I have my friends over for tea, which I keep telling everyone is going to be this summer.
I think these are the quintessential entertaining napkin — I like the black trim, I think it’s chic. It feels a little European, or maybe it’s very Ralph Lauren and very American. I can’t decide. But the detail is what makes them different from other white napkins. On a table, they pop. I have a very long picnic table in my backyard, and these come out for a summer dinner party. I have multiple sets of these types of napkins because if I’m going to have a party, I would use these the first time when they’re pressed and perfect. I rarely dry-clean — if ever, these are the only ones I’ve dry-cleaned. A white napkin, unfortunately, doesn’t last very long, so eventually they get demoted from being a dinner party napkin to a breakfast napkin.
These are very classic and a little bit not me, in a sense. They don’t necessarily fit what I would normally use, and I think that’s why I like them. These feel extremely feminine to me, and I’ll usually bring them out for breakfast. Most of my napkins that are printed — either gingham or these napkins — I’ll bring out for breakfast or brunch. But then the napkins that I use in the evening tend to be a little more straightforward with less going on.
I just think these are so fun and they feel like summer to me. They feel like a good time and something you just throw down on an outside table and have a great conversation with someone. The napkin at some point is probably lying on the floor beneath you as you’re leaving, and it doesn’t matter. I think that’s the thing I keep coming back to. My house is not a fussy house. I want people to live in their jewelry, live in their clothes, use the napkin, ruin the napkin. It’s just no stress. If you spill something on these, it’s not a big deal. They feel kid friendly, too. I’ll mix a table of all printed napkins, or I’ll mix in the mustard napkins with beige napkins. I just love this idea that people are coming over, and everything’s not perfectly pulled together. That’s what always feels best. I think it puts people at ease.
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