Fresh Ways to Dress Up a Table

Wrap Place Settings in Parchment Paper

Parchment paper does double duty at the table: It makes an elegant place-setting wrap (who doesn’t love paper packages tied up with string?) that unfurls to become a no-muss, no-fuss place mat. Tear off a 16-inch piece and lay it down against the curl, so when it’s untied it won’t roll up over the chicken piccata. When dinner’s done, crumple the paper and toss.