Make

For my table this year, I've created a simple yet elegant set of wreaths and place cards made of metallic paper and gold-colored wire. The table is set with Charlotta Gold by Noritake, a beautifully classic collection in white porcelain, featuring the modern addition of microwave-safe gold.

Paper marigolds are not hard to make, as paper flowers go. The marigold is iconic, with its ruffled, dense, orange and yellow heads, so even when made with just a tuft of orange tissue paper atop a crude green stem, a paper marigold is unmistakable.

Paper-flower maven and author Tiffanie Turner shares her gift for turning paper into vibrant flowers and foliage that will last all year long. These leaves use a wonderful technique, and it is one of my favorite tricks in my book. Using the dye from one crepe paper to stain another makes for very convincing and natural shades of brown. These shiny, burnished leaves are gorgeous on a table, a mantle, tied to a package, or just tossed in a bowl.