etiquette tip

Etiquette is a set of rules that can only be observed, not enforced.  Because of this, it's one of the easiest ways to be fancy.  I'll share some of the rules I try to observe, just to spread the fanciness.

If you're the closest to the bread basket, take a piece and put it on your bread plate.  Then offer a piece to the person on your left.  After that person has taken (or declined) the bread, pass it to the person on your right.  If there's a communal butter dish, take some from the dish and put it on your bread plate and use this as your own little butter stash.  Don't butter your entire roll.  Tear off and butter each piece of bread before you eat it.

place setting placemats

Placemats make meals a little bit more fancy, but if you're not in the mood to put out the nice linen (or, if you're like me and you don't have any linen), you can fake the fancy with these adorable paper placemats from Paper Source.  They would be darling at a girls' lunch, dinner party, or even at the weeknight dinner table for a family with small children since you can draw on them and then throw them away.  You get 50 placemats for $21.95.  Crayons not included.