Fun on the Table

Place cards have a very poor reputation-they're the sort of things you see at stuffy little tea parties or dreary dinner parties. I haven't looked back on any of my experiences and said, "You know what would've made Eunice's party so much better? Place cards! That, and not getting my hair caught on fire in the centerpiece."

But if you are a fun individual (and you are if you're reading this), you can make place cards work to your advantage. Start with these fantastic Animal Placecard Holders from west elm (1330 Chestnut St). You probably should buy about four sets at LEAST, since little silver giraffes have a way of going missing. Besides, having lots of placecard holders can be good karma--the more you have, the more fun little gatherings you'll want to have. If everyone had animal-shaped placecard holders, perhaps there would be no such thing as hermits.

Anyway, what can you do after you buy the holders? You can either dutifuly fill cards out with everyone's name, then waste three whole evenings trying to find the right place for your guests. OR you can fill out the cards with the names of splashy/tawdry historical figures, literary characters ("No, I get to be Moll Flanders!") or fun made-up names.

Photo from westelm.com

Every once in a while, there is something worth buying at Starbucks. I'm not saying this in a snobby way. It's just that usually, the items (cups, plates, etc) available would only be bought by someone seriously brainwashed by Starbucks. For example, take this "To-Go" style oversized mug at left, still available at your local Starbucks. Why would any free-thinking individual want this? Does it magically transform your Taster's Choice in to a super strong brew? I especially like the way there are those "customization" boxes on the side.

Anyway. So this Halloween, Starbucks is promoting whimsical items that may or may not be based on the Ugly Dolls. They even have mugs based on these designs, and this is what I approve of. I figure, if you can't have a fine china mug in the morning, at least have something exquisitely cheerful.

You can't get the mugs online--except for on eBay, where the photos came from--but you can usually get them at your local Starbucks outpost.