Better Homes and Gardens (Australia)
Everything you need to know to get set to entertain
Treat your guests to summer setting ideas that are fun and simple to make
WATERMELON PLACE CARDS Gather your supplies
• White watercolour paper • Compass and pencil
• Scissors
• Watercolour paints in pink and green • Paintbrush
• Black marker pen
Here’s how
STEP 1 On white paper, use a compass and pencil to draw a circle to suit your desired size of place card. Lightly draw 2 more concentric circles within the outer circle, allowing for a 2cm outer border (for green skin) and a 1cm inner border (for white rind).
STEP 2 Following the marked line of the large circle, cut the card. Fold circle in half to make a wedge shape, then open out again.
STEP 3 Using watercolours, paint inner circle pink. When dry, paint outer border green and let dry. Leave inner border white.
STEP 4 Working just in from edge of pink circle, pencil-mark the seeds, then go over marks with black marker. Re-fold circle in half, then write the name of a guest on 1 side of the wedge. Repeat to make as many place cards as you need.
WATERMELON LIDS OR COASTERS Gather your supplies
• Hama beads in green, white, pale pink, deep pink or red, and black
• Round plastic pegboards • Greaseproof or wax paper • Iron
Here’s how
STEP 1 Arrange a round of green beads in a circle on the outer edge of the pegboard. Working in rounds toward the centre, arrange a round of white beads, then a round of pale pink beads.
STEP 2 Continuing to work in rounds until you reach the centre, arrange deep pink or red beads, randomly adding a black bead here and there to represent watermelon seeds. Note: if making drink lids, leave a round hole in the design for the straw. STEP 3 Cover the beaded pegboard with greaseproof paper then, using an iron on medium heat, iron the beads to fuse them together. To strengthen the lid cover/coaster, flip it over and, with greaseproof paper on top and bottom, iron as before.
ON THE FRINGE COCKTAIL UMBRELLAS Gather your supplies
• Tissue paper packs in hot pink (green, gold or other colours optional) • Sharp scissors
• Cocktail umbrellas • Double-sided tape
Here’s how
STEP 1 Cut off a 15mm-wide strip across 1 end of a folded pack of pink tissue paper.
STEP 2 While still folded, make 10mmdeep snips across the strip, each about 3mm apart, to create a fringed effect. Open out the snipped tissue strip. Optional: if covering the umbrellas completely using multiple layers of fringing, repeat Steps 1 and 2.
STEP 3 Open cocktail umbrella. Working on the right side of the umbrella, stick double-sided tape on top of each umbrella arm from the edge towards the centre, to the desired depth of the fringing.
STEP 4 Starting at the bottom edge and working inwards, attach 2 to
3 rows of pink fringing around the umbrella. You may wish to cut the fringing into sections so it sits flat
on the umbrella. Use your fingers to fluff the fringing. Optional: Repeat this step if adding extra layers of fringing, using multiple colours or covering the umbrella completely.
WATERMELON PLACEMATS Gather your supplies
• Large sheets of watercolour paper • Compass and pencil • Scissors
• Paintbrushes • Watercolour paints in pink, green, and yellow or lime • Black marker pen
Here’s how
STEP 1 On a sheet of paper, use a compass and pencil to lightly draw 3 concentric circles (having a common centre point), the first about 20cm in diameter, the second about 23cm in diameter and the last about 30cm in diameter. Following the 30cm circle’s marked outline, cut out the circle. STEP 2 Brush pink watercolour paint in the placemat’s centre circle and let dry. Using a clean paintbrush, apply green watercolour around the placemat’s outer border. While still wet and using a clean paintbrush, apply yellow or lime watercolour paint within the inner border. It’s OK if the watercolour paint bleeds between the outer and inner borders as this blurs the hard outline. STEP 3 Following a circular pattern, lightly mark seed positions on 2 circles (one slightly smaller than the other) within the pink section of placemat. Go over the marks with the black marker.
WATERMELON CROCHET BOWL Gather your supplies
• 12 ply yarn or chunky yarn in dark pink or red, white, green and black • Crochet hook (use the size recommended for your yarn type) • Yarn needle (for sewing in ends) • Scissors
Abbreviations
Beg = beginning; ch = chain; htr = half treble; sl st = slip stitch; st/sts = stitch/stitches
NOTES: 1 You can use any thick yarn, including T-shirt yarn, to make a bowl similar to the main picture. Depending on yarn, there will be a difference to the finished size, which you can control by working more (or less) rounds for the base and for the sides. 2 The watermelon seeds can be hand-stitched on the bowl when it is complete. Or, you can crochet them randomly around the bowl as you go, simply by changing the yarn colour.
Here’s how
Base
STEP 1 Using pink or red yarn, make a magic ring. To do this, make a loop (not a slip knot) with your yarn, leaving a 10cm tail at bottom of loop. Insert hook from front to back. Wrap working yarn around hook anticlockwise, pull yarn through loop. Make a turning chain, 1ch then make 8htr into the ring. Pull the yarn tail taut to draw up the ring. Close round with a sl st.
Summer wouldn’t be summer without juicy slice a of watermelon
Round 1: 1ch, then work 8htr into ring. Pull ring closed and join round with a sl st in top of ch at beg. You now have 8sts. Round 2: 2ch (counts as 1 st throughout), work 1htr in same st, then work 2htr in each st to end of round. Join with a sl st to top of 2ch at beg. (16sts) Round 3: 2ch (counts as 1 st), increase by working 2htr into the next st, then *1htr, inc* into the next 2 sts. Repeat from * to * to end of round. Join with sl st to top ch of beginning 2ch. (24sts)
MONSTERA LEAF PLACEMATS Gather your supplies
• Monstera leaf • Black marker • Green felt • Sharp scissors
Here’s how
STEP 1 Trace the outline and cut-outs of a monstera leaf onto the felt.
STEP 2 Working just inside the marked outlines, cut out the felt monstera leaf. Repeat to make as many placemats as you need.
Round 4: 2ch, 1htr in next st, 2htr in next st, * 1htr in each of next
2 sts, 2htr in next st, rep from * to end of round. Join with a sl st to top of 2ch at beg. (32sts)
Round 5: 2ch, 1htr in each of next 2 sts, 2htr in next st, * 1htr in each of next 3 sts, 2htr in next st, rep from * to end of round. Join with a sl st to top of 2ch at beg. (40sts)
Round 6: 2ch, 1htr in each of next 3 sts, 2htr in next st, * 1htr in each of next 4 sts, 2htr in next st, rep from * to end of round. Join with a sl st to top of 2ch at beg. (48sts)
Round 7: 2ch, then work 1htr in each stitch to end of round, working through back loops only to create a ridge in your work. Join with a sl st to top of 2ch at beg.
Side
Rounds 8, 9, 10, 11, 12: 2ch, then work 1htr in each stitch to end of round. Join with a sl st to top of 2ch at beg.
Round 13: 2ch, then work 1htr in each stitch to end of round. Join with a sl st, as before, but this time change your yarn colour by pulling through white yarn instead of pink or red. Leaving a tail, snip off pink/red yarn.
Round 14: 2ch, then work 1htr in each stitch to end of round. Join with a sl st to top of 2ch at beg.
Round 15: 2ch, then work 1htr in each stitch to end of round. Changing yarn colour to green, join with a sl st to top of 2ch at beg.
Rounds 16 and 17: 2ch, then work 1htr in each stitch to end of round. Join with a sl st to top of 2ch at beg. Finishing
Leaving a tail, snip yarn and use the yarn needle to neatly conceal yarn tails inside the bowl. Using a backstitch, hand-stitch black watermelon seeds around the bowl, here and there.
FRAYED NAPKINS
Makes 6 napkins
Gather your supplies
• 1.5m cotton fabric, colour to suit • Sharp scissors
• Orchids and pink jute string (optional)
Here’s how
STEP 1 Make snips into fabric every 50cm along selvedge.
STEP 2 Using 2 hands, hold fabric either side of a snip, then rip from selvedge to selvedge. Repeat twice more. You now have 3 fabric pieces. STEP 3 Make snips every 50cm across 1 long side of each fabric piece. Rip fabric from selvedge to selvedge at each snip. Any remnants can go into your fabric stash. You now have 6 frayed-edge napkins, each measuring about 50 x 50cm. Pull away any loose threads. When setting your table, fold napkins around cutlery, add an orchid and tie with string (if using).
HULA HOOP PENDANT Gather your supplies
• Hot-glue gun and hot-glue sticks • 10cm-wide strips of muslin (sufficient length to wrap around hoop) • Hula hoop