"I opened the doors and windows of America, and let in the air and sunshine." - Elsie de Wolfe, First lady of American Decorating and author of "Entertaining is Fun!" (1865-1950)
After her book, "Decorating Can be Fun," Dorothy Draper wrote, "Entertaining is fun!" Although she was from a patrician family, Draper loved to break the rules of decorating, entertaining and the like. She devoted herself to making things beautiful, not precious. She famously painted her mother's wood heirloom furniture white if it did not suit her. There were no paper placemats during her day but we think she would have loved the idea of disposable placemats, because they add fun to table decor with in a no fuss way. Table mats can be uplifting table decor. Table settings can change the mood of a meal.
One of the fun things about using paper placemats for table settings can be the color as well as the print. Dorothy Draper was fearless when it came to decorating with color. She gave American housewives courage. She would say things like, "Go ahead, and paint the door green!" We think she might have said, "Go ahead, use paper placemats!"
One of Draper's most famous decorating projects was The Greenbrier Hotel. You can see her use of color in this restored Historic Landmark. Striped walls are a decorating delight. Because Draper wrote for Good Housekeeping Magazine, they celebrated the restoration's decorating ideas in their magazine. https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/home/decorating-ideas/a24165/dorothy-draper-style-still-seen-at-historic-hotel/
Dorothy Draper's book, "Entertaining Is Fun, How to Be a Popular Hostess" was written in 1941! But it was reissued in 2004 and definitely shows Draper's flair for color and pattern. The cover shows black and white table decor surrounded by pink and white polka dots. That was her! She used a lot of bright colors when decorating. In fact, Carlton Varney, Dorothy Draper's protege wrote a wonderful book about her called, "In the Pink, America's Most Fabulous Decorator."
Colorful table mats can set the mood for a party. Red placemats say one thing. They make us think of clambakes, 4th of July party decorations, Christmas table decorations....Blue placemats are great for beach decor, everyday dinner place mats.... We think of black and white placemats for farmhouse kitchen decor and modern decor.
You can use paper placemats with paper plates and napkins or your fanciest dishes. Disposable placemats are great for working mothers, busy executives, hostesses with the mostest....Everyone can use a little more time! Table decor that saves time makes entertaining fun! At Decorative Things, we consider paper placemats the ultimate modern table decor.