I took a chance and contacted the same Etsy vendor, PicnicBasketCrafts, who made our much-loved red checked set. Tiffany and Joan were up for the project and even let me select my own fabric (which they then purchased).

I decided to go with green since most of our parties are in spring and summer. The flannel fabric is a muted brown and cream plaid pattern which is nice because plain napkins show stains, FYI. Also, I could not find a floral pattern I really liked so plaid it was (the selection of good flannel options is depressingly limited). The upside is that these will work well for picnics and tailgate parties.

They are a great size, too. Five inches by eight inches. Easy enough to tuck under our three-inch ceramic party plates. So here we are, one step closer to the ultimate eco-friendly party!

P.S. If you want to find Tiffany and Joan on Etsy, go to: http://www.etsy.com/shop/picnicbasketcrafts

I was folding these red-checked napkins last night and was struck by how well they’ve held up. I had to check my Etsy account this morning to see how old they are because they look the same, wash after wash (and they get laundered at least 52 times a year). These beauties are from June 2009 and look as if they’ll last for many years to come. They get daily use at our house (fruit, chocolate, berry shakes, etc.) and still look great. Of course, this is because I always launder them in cold water so as not to set any stains (I learned this the hard way with some beautiful, white Williams-Sonoma napkins).

I’m planning to order more soon (note that fabric choices always vary with Etsy vendors) and thought I’d share my source in case you are interested:

http://www.etsy.com/listing/62975306/unbleached-organic-cotton-flannel

FYI, patterns are usually better choices than solids – you can reuse them once or twice without noticing the food stains…

Happy Eco Journey!

*Note that it is very difficult to be completely green so we’ve settled for what’s manageable and practical.