My Napkin Collection

It's been days since I had an idea in my mind, which has grown and developed more and more every day, till last night, when I took out my bunch of napkins, to select a couple I need for my project. But when I saw how many I have, came the idea of posting about it.

I knew Hive account@mipiano has a community focusing on collections, which is kinda new to me as I've never posted here, but it's never too late, so here I am, showing you my napkin collection. It's my first post in this community, I hope I won't be kicked out for it 😜

When I was a little girl, times were tough, you couldn't buy anything, stores were mostly empty, but I still had a huge collection of napkins, one more beautiful than the other. Whenever we visited someone and saw a nice napkin on the table, we either took it with us, or asked a piece or two.

Back then we didn't have video games, drawing tablets and whatever toys and gadgets kids have these days, but we had our games and treasures, among which most girls had their napkin collection. I remember we used to get together, show off our collections and even swap what we had an extra piece of, to grow and diversify our collections. I think I had around 3kg of napkins of all kinds.

That collection stayed with me for decades, till one day, when I gifted it to a little boy. Yes, you read it right, it was a little boy, no matter how unbelievable it seems, he liked napkins. It was a difficult decision to give it away, but the joy of the little boy meant more to me than my napkins. I had my time to enjoy them, it was time to make the boy happy, especially that those were already vintage, that you could not buy anywhere anymore.

How come I have a collection now, you may ask. Have I missed them? No, I can't say I have, not like I regret giving it away. The reason I have a new collection is another.

In 2013 I think it was, when I started a culinary blog, to post my recipes online and also started collecting napkins to have for the photo shoots. I like colorful, nicely designed napkins and whenever I go somewhere and see them, I "steal" a couple 😂. I guess old habits die hard, but I'm not ashamed of it. Others steal glasses, I steal napkins 😎.

The truth is, you can do quite a lot with napkins, if you have or develop some skills. There's a guy, he's participating in every fair we have in the city, with items made of recycled paper and napkins. He has plates, coasters, magnets, you name it. I'm not sure how many are buying his items, but that's a different matter.

Now let's see what I have brought for you today.

Christmas and Easter are both occasions to show off with some lovely napkins, plus if you gift someone something fragile, some people are wrapping these items in napkins. This is how I got the lower left one this year (the one with the Christmas sock, heart and reindeer hanging), with a beautiful Christmas mug. I love that napkin and obviously my first reaction was to straiten it and put it away. The one next to it came the same way, but can't remember how and when. It's simple, minimalist, absolutely fantastic and I love it! The Santa green ones are mine, still have half of the pack of both, but the rest have been stolen from here and there.

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Here, the lower left one was a gift from Hungary, a whole pack of them. Years ago, I won't a cooking blog competition and the prize was a nice wooden box, upcycled with a nice napkin and a pack of these napkins. It was a very nice gift. I gave the wooden box to my niece as she was looking for a keepsake box, so I made her happy too. The rest has been lifted from somewhere :)

Easter is another event when a nice napkin looks good on the table. The two on the right I know I've gotten them from my aunt, but the rest ... I have no idea.

These are more for everyday use, 2 layer napkins, one has a stain I see. I suppose I took these out of nostalgia. Back when I was a kid, these were the common ones.

Here, the top two are mine, the striped one is new, a bought it during Autumn, when visiting my aunt. Can you imagine the fool of me, buying a pack of 100 napkins and traveling with them? Like there aren't plenty here in grocery shops and supermarkets, where I live. For my salvation, I haven't seen any of this design, so it was a good decision. The one next to it, the lovely fairy tale design was love at first sight, so I bought a pack, but the pack is empty now, I only have a few pieces, put aside for my collection. The two below are from my aunt (yes, she knows I need them, so I either take some when visiting, or she puts a few aside for me). The one on the right I can't remember where it is from.

The navy blue one is mine, but God, what an ugly piece, how could I buy such ugly napkins? Anyway, this is the last one, so no worries. The flogs and the roosters are from my aunt and the rest, God knows. The frog and roosters are really cute, I love them.

This, I think was lifted by my dad from a restaurant in Germany, when he visited some friends. Yes, he's been corrupted too, he's working for me and he's not the only one 😆

This is very unconventional and how can you not love it? It's funny, unique and would make any customer smile.

Look at these drawings. Like made by a kindergarten kid, or a very good caricaturist. It is a brave decision in any case.

So this is it for today. I hope I'm not the only crazy napkin fan here :) Let me know which one is your favorite.

If you're a newbie, you may want to check out these guides: