Film in the Fridge » Napkins

patchwork napkins!

admin — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 16:13:56 +0000

Well that was a quick break, right?

Actually, this is just a quick post to let you know that I have a new tutorial for patchwork napkins available. It’s posted today on Sew Mama Sew, so if you haven’t already been over there, head on over and take a look! Be sure to check out all the other wonderful scrap projects as well!

And now, back to my break!

(a huge thank you to everyone who commented on yesterday’s post – I really appreciate the support!)

napkins…check

admin — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 16:42:50 +0000

I talked about these napkins quite often during the last several weeks, so thought it was only right to show you the completed stack. It was close, but I did manage to finish hemming them all, right before the loaner sewing machine had to go back. (Many thanks to June at my favorite local fabric shop for providing the loaner and for hemming my wedding dress at the very last moment!)

I coudn’t pick a favorite fabric or favorite colors, so instead opted for polka dots. They’re fun, and I already had lots of polka dotted fabric, so it seemed perfect. I had hoped to hem each with this decorative stitch to echo the polka dots, but when my machine had to go to the shop, the loaner didn’t have the same stitch. I moved to these loops, then finally ended up with a zig zag when I was trying to finish them quickly before we left. I don’t think anyone will notice the hem of the napkin anyway!

A finished quilt (and some napkins too!)

admin — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 15:31:52 +0000

You all wanted to see this one quilted, right? I couldn’t decide if I should branch out and try some other type of quilting, but ultimately went with the free motion stippling. There’s a lot going on on the front, so I didn’t want the quilting to be distracting. I think the all over stippling worked well because it’s nice and crinkly without taking anything away from the pattern.

I went for a very simple look for the back. I had this one piece of black and white Marimekko fabric in my stash and it just happened to be the exact size (and I mean exact… no room for error here!). Since it was the perfect size, I opted to use just that piece for the entire backing.

I used the solid green for the binding, and I think it really works to complete the pattern, plus, it looks nice with the black and white print on the back! Final measurement is 37″ x 45″.

And lest you think that I failed on my mission to make some napkins this weekend, here’s a completed stack. You’d think these would be fast to sew, but of course I decided to go with a decorative stitch for the hem, and it definitely takes longer than I expected! I have about a week left, so if I do a couple more each day, I should be good!

Too many projects

admin — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 15:17:15 +0000

and too little time, or at least that’s how it feels. I have quite a long list of sewing projects to complete, and the upcoming wedding date as a deadline for a few of them. It seems as though when I have a number of projects I have a hard time focusing on any one of them. I looked a bit like a crazy person this weekend, going from project to project – I’d cut strips for one quilt, hem a napkin, make triangles for a zig zag quilt, pull out scraps for kitchen towels – and I never really got anything finished. Regardless, I do feel like I made some progress, so that’s good.

And on the wedding front, someone to marry us… check. Slowly but surely we’re getting things in place!

Make your table pretty! A Reversible Rick Rack Napkin Tutorial

admin — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 15:09:07 +0000

Thanks for all the comments on my giveaway post! It sounds like there are some great homemade/handmade gifts in the works for this year. I don’t think anyone mentioned napkins, so I thought I’d provide you with another gift idea. These napkins make great gifts, or are also perfect as hostess gifts, or work quite well to add some color to your table! (Plus, you can make them with two different fabrics, so they can be reversible – two napkins in one!)

I fully intended to write up this tutorial months ago, but apparently time got away from me. I was reminded of it yesterday by a fellow blogger and I thought this might be a perfect time to share it.

I like square napkins, but you could certainly cut your fabric any size or shape you’d like. For this napkin, I selected two Heather Bailey fabrics – the lovely Pop Daisy in red and the complimentary red Zig Zag. I cut each to 13 1/2″ square. I use this size so that I can cut three out of the width of your standard 42/44″ wide fabric. (I pre-wash my fabric when making napkins)

I selected red rick rack for the trim. I’m partial to the vintage cotton rick rack if you can find it, but any would work here. If you are using vintage cotton, you may want to pre-wash the rick rack.

The rick rack will be sewn to the right side of one of the fabric squares (I usually sew it to the fabric that will be the top). This next photo shows how you’ll turn the rick rack at the corners

I’m lazy, so I don’t bother pinning it, but if you’d like, you could pin the rick rack in place along the edge. I trim a bit off the end of the rick rack so I have a clean edge. You’ll want to make sure that you start with the cut edge facing the outer edge of your fabric, as seen below. This way the cut edge will end up hidden when it’s sewn together. I start in the middle of one edge of the fabric and sew a straight line down the middle of the rick rack. I position it so that the outer bumps of the rick rack are lined up with the edge of the fabric.

When you reach a corner, leave the needle in the down position and turn. You’ll turn the rick rack as well so that it lines up with the next edge.

Overlap the rick rack where you started and backstitch to secure.

When completed, it will look like this

Next you’ll put the second square on top of this one, right sides together

You sew around the perimeter again, leaving an opening about 4″ long so you can turn it right side out. I try to sew along the same line I just made when attaching the rick rack. (As an alternative, if you want to skip a step, you could certainly skip sewing the rick rack to the front, and simply pin it securely and sew everything together in this step. I like to do it separately to make sure the rick rack is attached correctly.)

Clip the corners, turn right side out, and iron the edges flat. You may need to pull on some of the rick rack points as you iron – this can help to make sure you get a clean edge. Make sure to iron in the unsewn section – this opening will be sewn shut in the next step.

This is the last step! Simply topstitch around the entire napkin. This closes that opening and provides a nice finished look. You can even be creative here – I used a straight stitch, but you could use a zig zag, or any other decorative stitch you may have on your machine.

And here you have your lovely completed napkin! It can be folded any way you’d like – I like it as a square, with two sides of rick rack showing, or folded in thirds, with rick rack showing along the bottom edge.

And don’t forget, it’s reversible! (though I should mention that I often make these using one printed fabric for the top and then a solid white for the backing. Both are quite lovely!) Enjoy!

100 posts! Let’s celebrate with a giveaway…

admin — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 16:03:02 +0000

So, I made it to 100 posts… er, actually 101, but who’s counting?! When I first started this blog back in June, I never though I’d make it a month, let alone nearly 6 months! Thank you to everyone who’s visited, commented, provided suggestions & inspiration, and taught me new techniques. I truly enjoy hearing from everyone!

Now on to the giveaway… I put together a package for one lucky winner. You’ll receive two handmade potholders (my two favorites, in orange and green)

As well as a set of handmade napkins… I haven’t made these in a while, but if you look way back in my posts (like here), you’ll see that I was really obsessed with napkins and especially vintage cotton rick rack. This is a set of 6, made out of two coordinating pink Jennifer Paganelli fabrics with some nice gray cotton rick rack.

I’ve also included two reusable produce bags. I posted about these here. I use my set all the time for veggies, but when I sent some to a friend of mine, she said they were too nice for produce and decided to store her jewelry in them instead. So I guess it’s up to you what you end up doing with them…

And lastly, simply because I love fabric scraps, you’ll win the fabrics seen below (the 2nd photo shows the same fabrics, just stacked instead). These are smallish pieces, but would be good to incorporate into a variety of scrap projects (like those potholders or towels) or even to include in a scrap quilt.

Now for the rules – simply leave a comment telling me what kind of handmade gifts you’ll be making for the holidays (or handmade gifts you’d like to receive!) What do you think is a great handmade gift idea? (even if it’s not something you’re actually going to make!)

Want a few extra entries? Post about this giveaway on your own blog and you’ll get 5 extra entries. Please just provide a link to your posting when you leave your comment.

This contest is open to everyone (yes, even my family members!) I’ll pick a winner on Sunday and will post the winner on Monday.

oh so many rick rack napkins!

admin — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 15:57:37 +0000

I mentioned that these would be done by the end of the weekend, but obviously that was wishful thinking. I had a bit of a procrastination problem. I’m not sure if this happens to anyone else — for some reason, knowing that I had to finish these for an actual order made me want to sew anything but. In any case, it took me until midnight last night to get them all completed, but I’m pleased to say that they’re done and they’re lovely!

I used some fun summery fabrics by Amy Butler, Joel Dewberry and Jennifer Paganelli with some corresponding vintage rick rack (my stash is running low now… must do something about that!)

These green striped rick rack napkins and the pink polka dot napkins are the napkins for the custom order and the remaining three sets are now available at the store. Hopefully they’ll sell quickly, although I wouldn’t mind taking back the Amy Butler Nouveau Trees napkins for my own personal use!

I used a variety of white lining fabric for these sets – I was trying to find the best fabric for these napkins and I’m pleased to say that I’ve come up with one that I like very much. It’s a sateen white cotton, purchased at JoAnn’s. For some reason it has a very pinkish hue, but as long as it’s not next to any other white fabric, I don’t think it’s noticeable.

And now, onto another project. I’m thinking another bag, perhaps with the great Echino fabric I received recently. More about that coming soon…

Weekend project – rick rack napkins!

admin — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 17:44:54 +0000

Here are a few new fabrics I received this week -

I ordered these on Etsy from fabricpalooza. She had a great variety of fabrics, and is having a sale through the end of July. Most will eventually end up as napkins, though I do have my eye on one or two for another project.

I currently have napkins for sale locally at a store called Ink Ink, and they’ve actually been selling quite well. I brought these two sets there this week, and have already sold the green Pod Vine set.

I’m working on a few additional sets, which hopefully will be ready on Monday. Although if the picture below is anything to go by, I have quite a lot of work ahead of me and quite possibly not enough hours in the weekend…