Eyecatching Napkin Fold

Originally from a vintage napkin-folding book, the “Lily” has become my signature napkin fold. Many people who see it on our table ask me how it has been folded! I like how it fills a plate—and I also like the contrast of the square presentation, and its height and several diagonal angles, on a common round plate.

When my husband and I have eaten at a restaurant that uses cloth napkins, I like to leave the napkins folded this way on the table as a small, polite way to leave a compliment to the service. All over Europe, Canada, and the United States, I’ve left a wake of folded “Lilies” after delicious meals. :)

Here are instructions to make your own. The fold works best with a cotton napkin in the range of 17” or 18” square.

First, lay out your napkin in a square in front of you on a clean surface, with the seams facing upward (wrong side up).

Then, fold each of the four corners into the middle, making triangle shapes in a diamond-shaped orientation in front of you. Then, for a second round, fold each new corner into the middle again. It’s best to let the corners meet or very slightly overlap, for each fold, in order for the design to stay secure.

Then {pictured below}, with your fingers, hold the four corners in the middle of the napkin in place against the back of the napkin, as you flip it completely over and orient it as a square in front of you. This is the step shown here. There are two layers of folds under the surface you see, and now you will do the same thing again. Fold each corner to the middle of the napkin.

The picture below shows three out of four corners being held in the middle {on the second side} while each corner is folded inward as described above.

Once all four corners are being held in the middle, lift UNDERNEATH of each new corner, and lift the flap halfway up from each corner, as seen below. {Continue to hold the napkin in the middle, pressing it against the table with a couple of fingers.}

As seen below, once the flap underneath each corner has been allowed to bloom around the edges of the napkin, then, lift under the MIDDLE of each side to find the very first initial corner that had been folded inward at the beginning. These portray little leaf points between the flower petals.

In completion, you should have four flower-type of corners and four leaf-type of points on the napkin. Adjust the fabric as necessary to fine-tune the “Lily”, and arrange symmetrically or asymmetrically on a large round plate. Voila! Now you know a simple way to welcome your guests or thank your restaurant server in style.