Miss Peregrine Posted July 19, 2013 Share Posted July 19, 2013 What is their purpose? I don't understand them. :huh: :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aprilleigh Posted July 19, 2013 Share Posted July 19, 2013 Depends on who's being served at the table and what kind of placemats you're using. For kids and plastic placemats, they can make cleaning up the occasional mess a little easier, but with adults or cloth (or bamboo, or whatever) placemats, they just add some visual appeal to the table. You would only use them for casual dining, however. Placemats would look out-of-place at a formal table. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aprilleigh Posted July 19, 2013 Share Posted July 19, 2013 For example, I have a set of plastic placemats I use when I have other kids at the house (other than my son, that is) because sometimes they make messes and it makes things easier to clean up. I also have several sets of nicer placemats I use for holidays or when we have guests when I want to dress up the table a little bit, but not go all our with the good china and formal place settings (for those I use a tablecloth instead of placemats). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flowing Brook Posted July 19, 2013 Share Posted July 19, 2013 I do not like place mats either. To me they make more work. Even with a place mat you still have to clean the table. To clean the table you have to remove the place mat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmoira Posted July 19, 2013 Share Posted July 19, 2013 We have a nice table, unfinished cherry. If there's no tablecloth (and there usually isn't), we use placemats. They protect the table from water rings and let you not rest all your utensils on your plate. Ours nice and thick, made of pencil thick strands of light coloured cotton that can be thrown in the washing machine in any load without worry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted July 19, 2013 Share Posted July 19, 2013 The purpose of place mats and table clothes is to protect the table surface from water and food damage. Also to some slight extent heat damage. The decorative aspect is secondary. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lailasmum Posted July 19, 2013 Share Posted July 19, 2013 My understanding is that they protect the table from heat damage from plates and things like jugs containing hot sauces. We always use them with a hot meal but never with a cold meal. They also protect the finish of the table if it's delicate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LostSurprise Posted July 19, 2013 Share Posted July 19, 2013 A tablecloth can be easily pulled off-center (either accidentally or on purpose). Sometimes kids are messy, yet old enough where you can't convince them to wear a bib. I have a 10 year old who is a terrible rice eater. Hoo-boy. He doesn't really make a wet mess. Its more crumby mess. I pull out the placemats when I don't trust them to keep the tablecloth centered and I know it might be a crumby mess. I can flip the food into the sink and wash them. Easy clean up. I also enjoy the contrasting color on the table. They give a pop of color to everything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rebecca VA Posted July 20, 2013 Share Posted July 20, 2013 It's hard to find nice fabric placemats in stores these days. Most of them look like they would be destroyed in the washer/dryer. If a placemat isn't extremely sturdy and easily washable, I won't buy it. I use wipe-off laminated placemats for breakfast and lunch (I bought adorable Peter Cottontail placemats at the Thornton Burgess gift shop in Massachusetts years ago, and we still have them), and quilted placemats from Williams-Sonoma ( http://www.williams-sonoma.com/products/vine-floral-boutis-place-mats/?pkey=ctable-linen-place-mat& ) for dinner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Peregrine Posted July 20, 2013 Author Share Posted July 20, 2013 Thanks for all the answers.:) They just seem like more work but I can see how they probably would have made the finish on my table last longer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted July 20, 2013 Share Posted July 20, 2013 The purpose is to protect the table from water rings (as a coaster would), heat damage, spills. They also look nice. I have several sets of fabric placemats that simply go in the washing machine; I do not see why this would be much work. Water rings from glasses damage a wooden surface really quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tita Gidge Posted July 20, 2013 Share Posted July 20, 2013 I love placemats. We use them atop a table cloth, even. We have an assortment of cloth placemats, plus a few "decorative" ones my daughter made and laminated for the younger kids. I always thought placemats made it EASIER to clean the table :lol: Funny how different we all are! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomtoCandJ Posted July 20, 2013 Share Posted July 20, 2013 I use plastic ones for dd, especially with a table cloth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mergath Posted July 20, 2013 Share Posted July 20, 2013 I love the look of placemats for casual dinners, but I can't bring myself to use them anymore. My dd and dh are such messy eaters I have to wash them after each and every meal, and it's so much easier just to wipe down the table. Plus, dd seems to spill her water twice as much with them. I'm not sure why. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TammyinTN Posted July 20, 2013 Share Posted July 20, 2013 I have them to prevent hot food from making a white mark on my table from the heat. Cups of ice tea will do the same as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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