Your Homemade Drinks Deserve Cute Cocktail Picks

Drinks don’t require any jewelry, but I still love cocktail picks. A martini olive feels more special when it’s threaded on a gleaming brass pin; a Gibson onion makes more of a statement when stabbed with a silver beaded spear. Use a golden snake to hold a couple of Manhattan cherries, and the cocktail hour feels sophisticated, even if it’s the millionth cocktail hour you’ve had in your slippers and sweats on your same drab couch.

My household has been slightly obsessed with cocktail picks for perhaps longer than is appropriate. Though my husband’s grandparents didn’t drink hard liquor, they kept a set of tiny, ornate cocktail swords in a gleaming enameled holder. A quick bit of research suggests that these toothpick-sized swords were produced in Toledo, Spain in the 1960s and ‘70s, in honor of the city’s famed swordmaking industry, which dates back to 500 BCE. The miniature swords were meant for elegantly stabbing appetizers or cocktail garnishes, but my husband grins when you mention them: “There was widespread agreement among me and my cousins that the swords were awesome,” he says, a gleam in his eye some three decades later. The teeny battles that ensued would probably not be recommended by child safety experts. Luckily, no one lost an eye.

In addition to holding the garnish so you never need to dig your finger into your glass to fish out a cherry or an olive, each sword in the set looked a bit different, so you could keep track of your cocktail if you set it down. As I dream of future dinner parties, I’m determined to amass a varied collection of cocktail picks, so each guest can choose the drink decor that speaks to them. Perhaps I’ll keep the shiny assortment in a treasure chest. I cannot promise that friendly swordfights won’t ensue.

Animals

Simple gold, brass, and copper

Silver and simple

Swords, new and old

Vintage items sell out fast; try searching “Toledo swords” or “cocktail swords” on Etsy to find more.