Stitching for the Kitchen

My first sewing finish for the new year! A pair of linen tea towels, cut from some yardage, that I jazzed up with a band of colourful scraps, a ruffle and sweet striped binding.  Guaranteed to add some cheer to the task of drying dishes. ;o)
 
 
My plan was to use up odd shaped and tiny pieces from my scrap collection to make a colourful band across the width of my tea towels. The task of piecing was made easier by stitching the scraps onto a strip of cash register paper (cut about an inch longer than the width of my linen, to allow for ease and trimming).  This method works really well for creating a narrow band of patchwork comprised of random sized scraps (such as for the borders on this mini wall hanging I made previously).


A tea towel will receive a fair amount of laundering and I wanted to be sure that my patchwork would withstand it, so after sewing it onto the linen, I secured it with a few rows of wavy stitching.  Continuing to use leftovers from my stash, I added a simple ruffle made from a strip cut WOF and another leftover strip as a decorative bit of binding (to cover the top raw edge of the patchwork sewn to the linen).  Finally, the raw edges of the linen were finished with some self made double fold binding in a perky red + white stripe.  I couldn't resist cutting the binding on the bias to get that candy cane stripe look. ;o)  A very fun finish!


There's some more kitchen stitching happening, as I continue to  work to thin out some scraps from my stash.  More on those projects soon.  Here's hoping your first week of the new year has been a great one!

I'm linking up my latest finish with Amanda Jean and friends over at Crazy Mom Quilts for Finish it up Friday!

Comments

  1. Really sweet. I seldom think about doing such small projects. But I love when others do them.

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  2. These are truly sweet! I love handmade accessories to brighten a kitchen. Yours are just lovely!!!

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  3. Oh how cute! I love the darker shade of linen with your pinks, reds, and aquas! Way to dress up your kitchen chore duties :)

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  4. Those are just too pretty to use! I'd just have to use them for display in my kitchen and tell people to keep their hands off!

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  5. HAha I'm with Jeanie - on display, and a shaking finger to say ... No touchee touchee!!!!!!!! :D

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  6. Aren't these just delightful Katherine! Love those candy stripes! I agree with the others, they are far too pretty to be used!

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  7. How fun it is to dry dishes with these beauties! I love the impact of the Reds. Very cheerful to look at while they rest between dish drying.

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  8. I agree with everyone else, these are just way too pretty to be used as dish towels!!! They are just awesome and must brighten up the kitchen! Thank you so much for sharing your process too.

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  9. Just the sweetest dish towels! The scraps of fabric that you used look prefect with the linen fabric. Great job.

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  10. Love these! Small projects give such a sense of immediate satisfaction - and the towels will look pretty in your kitchen!

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  11. Wonderful towels. The candy cane binding really makes them festive.

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  12. Your new tea towels are so graceful! Lovely sewing in the new year! Great start :) Jola

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  13. Geez, my kitchen towels are so yucky-looking yours puts me to shame! Seriously, these are fabulous. I love the gray and the pretty scrap strip with the ruffle. Perfect!

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  14. How Charming! I never ever would have thought of using a receipt! Brilliant!

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  15. These are just too adorable! And your staging of the photographs create such eye candy!

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