Dinner Setting Placecards & Menu
Hard to believe that it’s November, but that means Thanksgiving is coming right up! I love celebrating the holiday with our family and spend the weeks before planning and shopping. I’m a big fan of using bright and slightly unconventional colors to add decorative touches to our table, so this year I thought I’d try my hand at painting and lettering a menu and placecards. It takes a little bit of practice, but it will look so pretty for the holiday dinner — give it a try!
p.s. this is a fake Thanksgiving dinner menu, so no luck to family members trying to get a sneak peak!
You’ll need:
– OOLY watercolors — I used the Chroma Blends Watercolor Brush Markers (these are amazing!) and Pearlescent Watercolor Paint Set
– scissors
Steps:
1. Trim paper
— cut a piece of watercolor paper into two 8 X 5″ pieces. That will be your menu size. To create the placecards, cut one 8 X 5 piece into two, 4 X 5″ pieces. You’ll fold those in half to create the placard tents after they are painted.
2. Paint paper
— use the watercolor brush markers to create whatever background you’d like. I’m obsessed with stripes, so I created a variety of thicknesses and colors. The most amazing part of the markers is how they blend together, so make sure to try it. I also used the pearlescent set to add a little stripe of gold at the top and bottom of the menu and placecards — just keep in mind that it is hard to write over the pearlescent paint, so limit it to an accent color.
3. Letter menu + placecards
— I actually have awful handwriting but I’ve wanted to learn calligraphy for a long time. I sort of cheated here by trying a very simplified version of handlettering. OOLY has great tutorials for both ends of their calligraphy markers, so check those out first. I basically used the chisel tip end held at an angle and wrote my letters in a thin line. Then I went back and thickened the downstrokes of each letter. Not perfect — but I’ve got time to practice!
