There are so many beautiful, fall fruits and vegetables! You might have a pretty bowlful of apples, pears or mini gourds in your home right now. There are apples of all colors and sizes (ex: tiny Lady apples); pears; Clementine mandarin oranges; miniature, decorative gourds (including the ones that look like adorable, little pumpkins); and small, sugar pumpkins. Thinking of them is a natural for fall tabletop decor!
Besides being pretty and seasonal, though, fruits and vegetables can be party-functional, too, and not just in cooking! Small fruits and vegetables can transform into ready-made BASES for your place card holders. Use them at place settings, for food dishes on a buffet table, or to identify a party station’s purpose or give guests instructions.
So, how does an ordinary fruit or vegetable transform into a place card holder? Well, here are a few ideas to get you started!
- A card stake/pick inserted into the very center of each fruit or vegetable (as in image), card could be attached to the stick like a traditional sign from below, or like a flag from the side in a rectangular or triangular shape.
- A handmade tag tied or looped over the stem of each fruit or vegetable. Play with the string that attaches tag, such as: varying widths of narrow, satin ribbon; cotton string in white, striped or natural; twine; raffia; metallic string, cording or ribbon.
- A decorated clothespin clipped to each stem, holding a tag (as in image), see DIY tutorial link below.
- A mini, natural, wood clothespin clipped to each stem, holding a tag (available in craft stores and Paper Source stores).
- Jewelry wire formed into a straight 3-4 inch stake on one end and then curled into a spiral on the other end to hold a place card.
Note: Purchase fresh fruit only a day or two before your event so that they will be perfect and bruise-free on the day of your party. The fruit should still be perfectly edible after the party, as well.
To make a version with mini card stakes, you’ll need:
Chosen fresh fall fruits or vegetables for place card bases (purchase close to the date of your party)
Natural skewers (cut to desired height) or use short, 4 inch skewers; toothpicks, or popsicle sticks
Printed mini cards (could mat them on decorative paper) or flags with names of guests, names of food dishes, etc.
White glue or hot glue
1) Make up all your mini cards. Mat them on scrap booking paper that coordinates with your party colors, if desired. Write on cards, if not already printed.
2) Cut skewers to desired height, if necessary. Glue blunt end of stick to the back of each mini card, so that pointed end can be inserted into the fruit or vegetable (but don’t do so yet).
3) On the day of the party, insert each mini card ‘stake’ into each fruit or vegetable. Adjust height of the stakes so that they are all of a similar height.
If you’re interested in making the Decorated Clothespin Clip in the above image, there are several posts under DIY Tutorials for various versions of them, but the basic idea is presented in “Decorated Clothespin Clips – You can’t make OR use just one!”.
