How to Set a Table for Casual, Formal, and Everyday Dining Posted by The Ichcha Team on 31st Aug 2025 Table of Contents How to Set a Table for Basic/Everyday Dining How to Set a Table for Casual Dinners How to Set a Table for a Formal Dinner What Side Do the Fork and Napkin Go? What is the Five-Course Table Setting? What Are the 7 Essentials to Table Setting? Elevate Your Dinner with Block Print Table Linens The way your dinner table looks has a great impact on the tone and atmosphere of any gathering; it's almost magical. That’s why getting your table setting right matters so much; one small misstep can throw off the mood. From everyday dining to casual and formal dinners, each occasion has its own placement rules. And when it comes to formal dining, you want to ensure you follow every rule strictly, as there are usually dignified guests who pay great attention to even the tiniest details. Whether you’re hosting your friends to an outdoor picnic, planning a business party, or just looking to make your family dinners more special, here's how to set a table for any occasion. This includes what kind of tablecloths to use, where to place the fork and napkins, and everything in between. Come along. How to Set a Table for Basic/Everyday Dining Table setting for everyday dining does not follow any tight set of rules, so it's an opportunity to play with different textures, colors, and patterns. After all, it's just you and your family. What could go wrong? But if you want to make even basic dining more elegant and special, here's what to do. Table setting for everyday dining usually starts with a patterned tablecloth. Think colorful block prints and florals. Lay a dinner plate at each setting. The fork goes to the left of the plate, the knife goes right. Spoon (if needed) sits outside the knife. Glass sits above the knife. You can fold the napkin on the plate or underneath the fork. Use dinner napkins from the same set to tie the look. If you don't yet have that, check out this everyday blue napkin set. How to set a table for basic dining For everyday dining, cotton napkins and tablecloths are the best bet. Keep linen for more formal occasions. Placemats are not really necessary, either. Pro tip: Although everyday dinners do not follow any tight guidelines, there are some fundamental rules you want to always keep at the back of your mind, no matter the kind of dinner you're hosting. Firstly, only place utensils that guests will actually use. No soup? Then no soup spoon. Secondly, place utensils in order of use, from the outside in. And thirdly, forks go to the left of the plate, the knife (blade facing the plate) goes to the right. How to Set a Table for Casual Dinners What's a casual dinner? Think about a holiday setting, a friend coming over for Friday night, weekend brunch, or a picnic on the lawn. A casual dinner is mostly with loved ones, but calls for a little "extra" to make the dinner a little more special. Just think of it as a step above everyday table settings. There's often wine and dessert in casual settings, so you want to know where to place these. To properly set the table for a casual dinner, lay a cotton or linen tablecloth (or placemats if you have), place the dinner plate in the center, with the fork to the left and the knife to the right, blade facing in. Set the dessert plate (with bread knife on it) above the fork, while glasses go above the knife on the right. The wine glass sits to the right of the water glass. Finally, lie the desert spoon and fork horizontally above the dinner plate. How to set a table for casual dinners Casual table settings are usually regarded as semi-formal. So if you want to take things up a notch, feel free to style your table with charger plates. This will go under the dinner plate. It's not necessary but it definitely adds elegance. For a casual table setting, tablecloths can be white cotton, linen, or block-printed if you want to add color and fun. A tablecloth with earthy tones or block-printed floral is a great idea for summer brunches. If you want to skip the tablecloth altogether, a set of placemats in jute or bamboo works just fine. Napkins? Cloth napkins are always better than paper for special occasions. When setting napkins for casual and formal settings, you want to be very considerate of your guests. While napkin under fork is a well-known technique, some people do not like the idea of disturbing the napkin before getting to the fork because a basic table setting etiquette is to place items in order of use. For this one, you have to decide for yourself what works best in the moment. If there's enough room, placing napkins to the left of the forks is always a safe bet. How to Set a Table for a Formal Dinner How to set a table for formal dining These are your weddings, galas, milestone anniversaries, and black-tie charity dinners. Everything has its place, and there’s a quiet elegance in the precision. Here, you want to follow rules like your life — or career — depends on it. For formal dinners, linen is the best material for napkins and tablecloths. Solid colors (white preferably), avoid prints. Always ensure napkins match or coordinate — same fabric, same elegance — and can be folded into a refined shape. Check out these wedding napkin folds. The formal dinner place setting follows a strict order. The dinner plate sits in the center, with a charger underneath. To the plate's left: the salad fork on the outside, the dinner fork closer in. To the right: the dinner knife, then the fish knife and/or soup spoon. A bread plate with a butter knife sits above the forks. Above the knives, arrange three glasses: water goblet directly above the knife, white wine glass to its right and slightly downward, red wine glass above that. Dessert utensils lie horizontally above the plate. Read how to layer tablecloths, napkins, and chargers. Decorative pieces are typical in formal settings. Just ensure centerpieces are low enough for guests to see each other across the table. And if you're using place cards, feel free to set them on the seats or on the napkin. What Side Do the Fork and Napkin Go? The fork always goes to the left of the plate, the knife to the right (with the blade facing in). Napkins traditionally go to the left of the forks or directly on the plate, though in casual settings you can also place them under the fork or even tuck them into a glass. What is the Five-Course Table Setting? A five-course setting is designed for a meal that unfolds slowly: soup, salad, fish, main course, dessert. So the place setting expands accordingly: more forks to the left (salad fork, fish fork, dinner fork), more knives and spoons to the right (soup spoon, fish knife, dinner knife). Glasses multiply too, so you have water, white wine, red wine, and sometimes champagne. Everything is placed in the order it will be used, working from the outside in. Obviously, this is more common in formal settings. What Are the 7 Essentials to Table Setting? While styles and occasions vary, there are seven basics you’ll find in almost any proper table setting: Dinner plate Fork Knife Spoon (if soup or dessert is served) Glass (for water, wine, or both) Napkin Table covering (cloth, runner, or placemat) Most events you'll host in your lifetime will fall into any of the three categories above. And now that you know how to set just about any table, you have one less thing to sweat over when planning your next dinner prep. What’s more, table setting is an art, and being skilled at it just feels great! Elevate Your Dinner with Block Print Table Linens Looking to host some friends at your house? Planning a holiday dinner? Or just want to make your everyday dining feel more special? Check out these beautiful sets of block-printed table linens. They're colorful and spirited, just what you need to create a fun and unforgettable dining experience at home.
