Thursday, January 21, 2010

Handmade Kitchen Towels

Tomorrow night I'm having dinner with the family of an old basketball coach.  We recently reconnected via Facebook, and I'm so excited to get to know his wife and kiddos better.

Well, tonight I started planning for a hostess gift.  I have already planned out most of the gifts I'm giving over the year, but these here and there gifts I'm not quite prepared for.  I delved into my crafting craziness of an office and came up with these.



These are super easy!  I'm not the best sewer, and I haven't sewn in quite a while.  So, here you go..

Step 1:  Cut 4 inch strips of your main color fabric (I used t-shirts).



Step 2:  Cut 1 inch strips of a coordinating color fabric.



Step 3:  Using a straight stitch (with the longest stitch length possible on your machine), pass the smaller 1 inch strips through your machine.  



Step 4:  Pull the bobbin thread to create ruffles.  Pull the thread halfway on one side of the fabric, and then switch to the other end and pull the fabric on that end.  This will keep the bobbin thread from pulling all the way out.

Step 5:  Sew the larger four inch fabric rectangles onto the dishtowels.  I used a zigzag stitch to make it look more decorative.



Step 6:  Sew the ruffled one inch pieces across one end of the four inch rectangles.  I continued using a zigzag stitch, but this is your choice.  Also, go really slowly, so you can straighten the ruffled fabric and even it out as you sew.



Step 7:  Sew the ric rac at the top of the ruffled fabric.  This will cover up the ugliness of the stitches.




Step 8:  Fray check, trim ends/threads, and admire your handiwork!  



If you decide to make these, link up a picture!  I'd love to see them.
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