I wanted to make a little gift for someone, and I needed it the same day so I decided to fancy up a couple plain white cotton dish towels, which I had on hand, with a printed fabric border.
Just in case you are interested, here's what I did:
My dish towel measured 17.5"w x 36"l. For the border I cut a piece of printed cotton that measured 19.5" x 6" ~ {this piece needs to be about 2 inches longer than the width of your towel} This leaves an extra inch on each side, which gets folded in so the border is the same length as the end of the towel
I placed the border fabric {with the ends folded in} right-side down on the back of the towel and pinned the long edge together.
I sewed along that edge with a 1/2" seam allowance.
I opened out the border, turning the towel to the right side, and pressed the seam allowance toward the border.
Then I pressed the raw edge of the border under by 1/2".
I folded 2.5 inches of the border strip up {wrong sides together} to the right-side edge of the towel...
...and stitched along close to the edge of the border as well as the two ends of the border strip.
When finished, the border will completely enclose the end of the towel and will look the same on both sides.
A great way to use up some odds and ends of fabric...you could even make the border a patchwork of different prints.
Happy Sewing.
What a great idea! :-)
ReplyDeleteLovely, I needed to see this, have some towels to revamp, perfect!!
ReplyDeleteHow super nifty difty!
ReplyDeleteBeautifully done. :o)
ReplyDeleteI posted a little sewing of my own today as well as a give a way that will be coming to a close on Friday.
I'd love to have you drop by. :o)
Sincerely-Trish
Cute idea and super easy! Thanks for sharing it.
ReplyDeleteYou have such a wonderful way of making everything look so pretty! I love all of your little touches!
ReplyDeleteNicely done! Thanks for the idea.
ReplyDeleteHearth Cricket
love your fabric choice. Thanks for the tutorial.
ReplyDeleteSimple and lovely! Someone is very lucky to have such a thoughtful friend give then a practical, cute gift.
ReplyDeleteDebbie
Darling , I think I'll do the same!
ReplyDeletewhat a sweet gift!!!
ReplyDeleteThese are so cute Deb! What a great idea. Are the cotton towels just flour sack towels?
ReplyDelete~Sharon
Love them! Thanks so much for the great instructions and inspiration.
ReplyDeleteSharon, yes, those are flour sack towels. ~Deb
ReplyDeleteA beautiful job. I love the fabric you've selected.
ReplyDeleteSuch a simple idea but so effective.
ReplyDeleteSuch a wonderful idea and thoughtful gift!
ReplyDeleteSuch a lovely gift for a special friend! I haven't been here lately - I just discovered that several of my blog friends 'fell out' of my blog reader. Yours was one of them so I've fixed the situation and will be back often. I have some catching up to do.
ReplyDelete~Adrienne~
Looks lovely, tea towels make a great gift. Thanks for sharing :)
ReplyDeleteThose are sooooo sweet Deb, would love to be on the receiving end of this gift:-)
ReplyDeleteSuch a pretty way to personalise a practical gift. I love the fabric print.
ReplyDeleteVery creative. Quick and easy. Love it.
ReplyDeleteThese are fantastic! I'll have to try some! Jamie V in MT
ReplyDeletehttp://rem-nants.blogspot.com
amzanioli@yahoo.com
I am so in love with this project. Thanks for the inspiration.
ReplyDeleteOff to look through my fabric scraps.
What a sweet idea! I really need to learn how to sew. ;)
ReplyDeleteWhat a sweet idea! I really need to learn how to sew. ;)
ReplyDeleteOh I think I can do that, thank you xoxoxo Clarice
ReplyDeleteThose are sooooo sweet Deb, would love to be on the receiving end of this gift:-)
ReplyDeleteSuch a lovely gift for a special friend! I haven't been here lately - I just discovered that several of my blog friends 'fell out' of my blog reader. Yours was one of them so I've fixed the situation and will be back often. I have some catching up to do.
ReplyDelete~Adrienne~
Love them! Thanks so much for the great instructions and inspiration.
ReplyDeletewhat a sweet gift!!!
ReplyDeletelove your fabric choice. Thanks for the tutorial.
ReplyDeleteYou have such a wonderful way of making everything look so pretty! I love all of your little touches!
ReplyDeleteBeautifully done. :o)
ReplyDeleteI posted a little sewing of my own today as well as a give a way that will be coming to a close on Friday.
I'd love to have you drop by. :o)
Sincerely-Trish
How super nifty difty!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea! :-)
ReplyDeleteHello..Thanks for sharing so many wonderful ideas.. My question is where did you find plain white dish towels to embellish? They are sweet and would make a nice gift.
ReplyDeleteMarybeth, I think I found those flour sack towels at Walmart or Target-it's been awhile so I'm not sure. They can also be found online with a google search.
ReplyDelete.
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Thank you Debbie I love this idea. I'm wanting to do the same on a baby bath towel. Just wondering does the fabric sit flush with the bottom of the towel or sit down from the bottom of the towel as the finished product? Thanks Emily
ReplyDeleteThanks Emily! The border extends out from the bottom of the towel--in my example the border adds another 2.5 inches to the towel. Hope this helps, Deb
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