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Get The Look for Less Fancy Schmancy Napkin Rings

Napkin rings you make yourself for pennies that look like the $8 kind you see in department and decor stores? Yep!

In fact, they are so easy to make, you can have your children do it.

I made a set of these napkin rings that are big and chunky -- perfect for staging a tabletop when your home is for sale. When home staging, the idea is to go big with what goes into a place setting. Big plates. Big glasses. Big bowls. Big ole napkins.

What You Need

To make six napkin rings, gather these things.

Six 5-ounce cans, the squat kind
Aluminum foil, 3 feet off a 12-inch wide roll
Black craft paint
Small paint brush
Clean cotton rag
Clear glossy spray paint

How to Do

I use the cans from evaporated milk, or canned mushrooms, or green chilis. Make sure all the ones you choose are the same  -- same food, same brand -- so they all match exactly.

Its important that you go around both top and bottom edges a few times with a can opener. Make sure there are no sharp burrs. After this point, the project is kid-friendly.

Remove the label and both ends of the can, and wash it well.

Using scissors, cut the 3-foot piece of foil into three 1-foot lengths. Then cut each in half.

Place a prepared can at the center of one edge of a piece of foil, and roll it so its covered.

Where the foil overlaps, run a small line of white glue, and press to hold the edge flat.

Tuck the edges inside the can and flatten them with fingers. Finger press the top and bottom edges.

Before the paint dries completely, rub off most of it with your rag. Let it dry for an hour.

Once you spray on a few light coats of clear gloss, it will look like old metal.

You can decorate your napkin rings with beads. This one wasnt antiqued with black paint.

I painted this version with red and brown craft paints to look like old leather.

An even easier version: just cover the can with a strip of scrapbook paper.

Another easy treatment is to wrap the can with a some decorative duct tape.

Although I designed these napkin tings for place settings in a staged home, theyre sturdy enough to hold up to ordinary use. I hope you have fun inventing your own style napkin rings from upcycled tin cans.

Is your home ready for market? Is it staged to sell? My eBook, DIY Home Staging Tips to Sell Your Home Fast and For Top Dollar, simplifies your work. Whether its cleaning, decluttering, arranging furniture, or accessorizing rooms, I give you the insider tips and techniques that professional stagers reply on to sell homes.





Get The Look for Less Fancy Schmancy Napkin Rings

Staging the Dining Room Table DIY Napkin Rings

While men typically focus on where the television will go in a home they are shopping for, women tend to picture their family or friends around the dining table as a litmus test for how well they like any particular home.
How is your dining table looking for real estate showings?

With Thanksgiving on the near horizon for Americans, its the perfect time to give some attention to your dining room. If your home is for sale, you might want to reevaluate how your dining table looks when buyers AND guests come for the holidays ahead.

Tabletops need pizazz 

Wherever you have meals, make that area a place that charms buyers. Make it a spot where they want to celebrate Thanksgiving and other occasions. It neednt be fancy. Most of us dont live that way. The secret is in having just enough details on the table to make it inviting and interesting, without it taking over the entire room visually. Ive already blogged here about what place settings should look like in the staged home.

If your dining table is the default spot for craft supplies, bills, or homework projects, theres no better time than pre-holidays for staging the area.

Since complicated table settings would only be a bother -- especially if you use the table for daily dining  -- simple settings are the answer. Placemats, plates, glassware, and napkins might be all you need. And napkin rings give the finishing touch!

I like to DIY napkin rings from common materials like ribbon, cheap bracelets, curtain rings, beads, wire, buttons, or cardboard. Making your own is the frugal way to go, and who isnt on a budget when its time to sell a home? Heres a gallery of ideas for inspiration.

These rings, were handmade by Ashley at Little Miss Momma. She credits KoJo Designs for teaching her how. I like that even though each one is a little bit different -- which happens when you use upcycled materials like buttons and brooches --  the twine wrap makes them all similar enough.

Who would know that these colorful napkin rings began life as toilet paper rolls? Karin at her Swedish blog, Pysselbolaget, shows you how. These are the handiwork of her 8-year old daughter, and I think they are definitely stage-worthy.

Have some fabric scraps you love too much to discard? Heres another design that began with a cardboard tube, this time the core from a role of Saran. The tutorial at Merriment Design shows you exactly how to.

On the left is a sample of Michelles work, from Sweet Something Designs. She used dollar store napkin rings and covered them with fabric and a button, for a handsome "buttoned-up" look that I love.

Napkin rings in the staged home shouldnt be so precious that anyone is tempted to walk  off with them.

I would keep the vintage jewelry and anything else with either sentimental or monetary worth hidden away.

You also dont want napkin rings to stand out so much that buyers are distracted from what makes your home valuable -- the size of the rooms, the view, the condition of the floors and walls -- or whatever your homes selling points are.

Over at Fidgety Fingers DIY (cute name!) you can learn how to make napkin rings this striking-looking by weaving strips of magazine pages. What could be more economical?

Selling a coastal home? How about wooden drapery rings as a start for napkin rings that imitate little life preservers? Cathe, at her blog, Just Something I Made, will show you how. Just follow the link!

Another beachy rendition comes from The BB Craft Sisters, featured on Design Sponge, where youll find the tutorial. Using rope and collected shells, the look is crisp and clean, and ... well...coastal!

The quickest way to add some height and style to a plain napkin is to wrap it in a second napkin. I liked the combination of this gingham napkin with an embroidered linen one. You can go cute and country with this method, or edgey and urban, depending on the fabrics you choose.

I made this napkin ring from bracelet memory wire you can buy in the jewelry-making section of any craft store. Its a sturdy wire that has a natural curve to it. You need to use heavy duty wire cutters (n0t your usual jewelry wire snippers) to cut it, and needle nose pliers to curl one end. Then just string on some beads, and curl the other end.  

Do you recognize the material I used to make this bow napkin ring? Its the latex waffle pad that keeps rugs in place on the floor, and protects dishes on the shelves. It has the appeal of a natural fiber, but the clean lines of something more contemporary. Great texture, but your only color choice is white.  

Finally, this unfussy treatment uses wired ribbon to tie up folded napkins for a touch of drama on your table. Its economical and easy. I used sheer ribbon, but any wired ribbon works well, with the exception of glittery ribbon, which I find makes a mess on the table if youre repeatedly removing and replacing your place settings.

Are You Getting Ideas? 

The finishing touches are what will make your home look interesting and polished. So, dont ignore the razzle-dazzle detail that things like napkin rings bring to the table.

Need more tips to get your home market-ready? Just download my $4.99 eBook, DIY Home Staging Tips to Sell Your Home Fast and for Top Dollar, and youll be on your way to making your home the one that impresses buyers.

Top photo: Better Homes and Gardens. DIY instructions here.


Staging the Dining Room Table DIY Napkin Rings