Linen Napkins Gift Guide: Dinner and Cocktail Napkins
A bottle of wine gets opened once. Napkins come back out at every dinner after that, which is why they work as a host gift. There are two kinds to choose from: cloth dinner napkins, which sit on the lap through a meal, and small cocktail napkins, which go under a glass or a canapé at a party.
Below are linen dinner napkins from Coral & Tusk and cotton cocktail napkin rolls from MY DRAP, how many to give, how each maker says to wash them, and a price table. For other gifts to bring to a dinner, see the pantry host gift.
Dinner napkins or cocktail napkins
A dinner napkin is the large one. The Coral & Tusk napkins below are 20 by 20 inches unfolded and 10 by 10 inches folded. A cocktail napkin is much smaller: the MY DRAP napkins are 4.5 by 4.5 inches, sized for a drink or a bite held in one hand.
Choose by how the host entertains. Someone who hosts sit-down dinners will use dinner napkins. Someone who hosts drinks, open houses or a holiday party will go through cocktail napkins faster.
Linen dinner napkins from Coral & Tusk
Coral & Tusk says nearly all of its products are embroidered on 100% unbleached and undyed linen, and that all of its linen fiber is Oeko-Tex Standard 100 certified. The maker says its linen begins as flax grown in Lithuania, is spun into yarn and woven in India, and is machine embroidered in India by an embroidery partner of more than ten years.
Each napkin carries one embroidered design. Autumn Blossoms shows mums, African daisies, black-eyed Susans and sunflowers (shop Autumn Blossoms dinner napkin, $58.00). Pressed Leaves shows beech, maple, oak and ginkgo leaves with a trio of acorns and two quail feathers (shop Pressed Leaves dinner napkin, $58.00). Winter Vine shows persimmons, holly berries, acorns and a pinecone (shop Winter Vine dinner napkin, $54.00).
Cotton cocktail napkins from MY DRAP
MY DRAP makes cloth napkins on a roll. The maker lists its cocktail napkins as 100% cotton fabric, 50 to a roll, made in Barcelona. The listing says the napkins tear off the roll one at a time, and MY DRAP says the napkins can be used once or washed up to six times.
Pick a color to suit the host's table: Petrol Blue (shop MY DRAP Petrol Blue, $16.00), Caribbean Green (shop MY DRAP Caribbean Green, $16.00), English Green (shop MY DRAP English Green, $16.00) or Natural Linen (shop MY DRAP Natural Linen, $22.00).
How many to give
Dinner napkins are used one per guest, so give them in pairs or in fours. A pair suits a couple who host two at a time, and four covers a table for four. The designs do not need to match. Cocktail napkins come 50 to a roll, so one or two rolls in different colors cover a party.
How to wash them
The two makers give different instructions, so tuck the right one in with the gift.
- Coral & Tusk linen: the maker recommends dry cleaning for crisp linens. To wash at home, it says to hand wash in cool to warm water or machine wash on a gentle cold cycle, without bleach, then line dry or lay flat rather than tumble dry, and iron on a steam setting while still damp.
- MY DRAP cotton: the maker says to machine wash at no more than 40 °C (104 °F), at the lowest temperature possible to limit shrinking, with no bleach, and to iron after washing. It does not recommend tumble drying.
For a candle wax drip on linen, Coral & Tusk says to scrape off the wax with a dull knife, place kraft paper above and below the spot and iron on low heat until the paper draws up the wax.
Linen napkins gift sets, by price
| Gift | What goes in | Total at listed prices |
|---|---|---|
| Party pair | MY DRAP Petrol Blue and Caribbean Green cocktail napkin rolls | $32.00 |
| Party pair with Natural Linen | MY DRAP Natural Linen and English Green cocktail napkin rolls | $38.00 |
| Dinner for two | Coral & Tusk Autumn Blossoms and Pressed Leaves dinner napkins | $116.00 |
| Table for four | Two Coral & Tusk Winter Vine and two Autumn Blossoms dinner napkins | $224.00 |
Prices follow the listed price on each product page. Products ship across the continental U.S. from theambrosianpantry.com.
Short answers
Are linen napkins a good host gift? They are a gift the host uses again at every dinner. Give dinner napkins to someone who hosts sit-down meals and cocktail napkins to someone who hosts parties.
How many linen napkins should I give? Two or four dinner napkins, one per place setting; for cocktail napkins, one or two rolls of 50.
How do you wash embroidered linen napkins? Coral & Tusk recommends dry cleaning, or a gentle cold machine cycle without bleach, drying flat or on a line, and ironing while damp.
The shop is at 263 Josephine Street in Cherry Creek, Denver.
