melissel Posted March 3, 2010 Share Posted March 3, 2010 A tablecloth? Place mats? Nothing? Our table would look very nice if it didn't have a nice big swollen spot in the middle from an unspotted and melting popsicle :glare: Plus, it's highly visible in our main living area, and it just looks unfinished when there's nothing on it. But the tablecloth makes it hard to write and DD4 is always pulling it askew, either accidentally or intentionally, while the placemats seem to always have goop on them and such a pain to wash (if I try to wash and dry normally, they come out all bunched up and shrunken. Gah! Does anyone have some "outside the box" solutions here? TIA! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted March 3, 2010 Share Posted March 3, 2010 Take the table cloth off for school, and put it on for evenings and weekends. It would be a great job for the kids to do each day at clean up time after school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scubamama Posted March 3, 2010 Share Posted March 3, 2010 Crumbs and schoolwork!!!! Ha ha ha I crack myself up :lol: Michele Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LauraGB Posted March 3, 2010 Share Posted March 3, 2010 I just keep a vase of flowers in the middle and hope it draws eyes more so than the ever present piles of books cluttering it. But you know, a table cloth before and after school hours sounds like a pretty good idea. I had never really considered it before. I like it. That way all the books would actually have to find a home. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KristineinKS Posted March 3, 2010 Share Posted March 3, 2010 Very seldom is our table covered, it makes school work much too difficult! I usually have a plant or flowers in the center of the table, perhaps something like that would work to disguise the spot? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catalinakel Posted March 3, 2010 Share Posted March 3, 2010 Crumbs and schoolwork!!!! Ha ha ha I crack myself up :lol: Michele And books and paper and pencils and markers and the laptop, and cloth napkins and whatever else happens to be part of our day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suzanne in ABQ Posted March 3, 2010 Share Posted March 3, 2010 I have a tablecloth, but I have it covered with clear plastic, which is smooth to write on, and easy to clean. I have the plastic held taut with bungee cords underneath. To attach the bungees, I rolled the edges of the plastic around a piece of bamboo skewer, and clipped with 1-inch metal clip (for paper), then I hooked the bungee hooks into the wire loops on opposite clips. I have pictures. If you'd like to see them, PM me with your e-mail addy, and I'll send them to you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK_Mom4 Posted March 3, 2010 Share Posted March 3, 2010 When we use a table cloth, it's usually one of those flannel-backed, vinyl ones that wipe clean easily. I got tired of sliding table cloths and I duct table my table cloths to the underside of the table for a tight fit. No one sees the duct table except for DD8 who rolls around under the table alot still. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjzimmer1 Posted March 3, 2010 Share Posted March 3, 2010 We just got an Amish made table about 2 months ago. I didn't want a cloth tablecloth because I wanted to see my table but it had to be protected because I want to keep it nice. I started looking into vinyl tablecloths and my mom found a place where I could buy clear vinyl by the yard. I bought a lightweight (12 gauge) intending to use it as a tablecloth and some 30 gauge that I wanted for special projects if I was worried about spills (think high school chemistry). It turns out the 30 gauge worked beautifully so we use it for everything. It's easy to clean, I can see the table, and the kids can easily do their homework on it. (I mention the gauge in case anyone is interested because although stores may sell these most are somewhere between 3.5 and 8 gauge so they are pretty flimsy) It's the perfect solution for us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Girls' Mom Posted March 3, 2010 Share Posted March 3, 2010 Our table is beat up and well used. It too looks better with a tablecloth, but it rarely sees one. I just got tired of constantly washing it, and trying to keep spills off of it. So we just go bare until we are expecting company..lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jujsky Posted March 3, 2010 Share Posted March 3, 2010 We use cheap, felt-backed vinyl tableclothes from Christmas Tree Shop. They're not pretty, but our table is new and I don't want it destroyed like the last one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2jjka Posted March 3, 2010 Share Posted March 3, 2010 we just buy cheap vinyl tablecloths - they clean up well if we are doing messy stuff, and we can get them cheap enough at Wal-mart so we change them with the seasons when they get worn out. If company is coming over - I do have some nicer cloth tablecloths that I will put on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcconnellboys Posted March 4, 2010 Share Posted March 4, 2010 We don't work at our kitchen table exclusively, but I got a heavy piece of glass cut for it so that we could wipe it down easily (it's wood and an antique, so I didn't want my boybarians ruining it with their food messes, anyway, LOL). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted March 4, 2010 Share Posted March 4, 2010 I would love to offer a suggestion but for the most part we never clean off the books, we just shove them to the middle so we have room to eat. We're moving to a larger house with plenty of room for a library that I'll have the school room in, though, and I still plan on having it so covered with books that no one sees the table. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted March 4, 2010 Share Posted March 4, 2010 And books and paper and pencils and markers and the laptop, and cloth napkins and whatever else happens to be part of our day. and a cat or two. :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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