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Wednesday, July 15, 2020

Cloth Napkins and NTT

As the weeks of quarantine wear on, it's amazing what I've started to notice in my house.  For the past couple of weeks, I've taken note of the staggering number of paper towels and napkins that we go through on a daily basis.  With the three of us eating every meal at home now, I feel like we're constantly running out of some paper product, so I decided to remedy part of the situation with some quick and easy cloth napkins.


Since my kitchen is decorated with white, beige/tan, and several shades of green, I decided to raid my green stash and get down to work.  Apple, lime, grass, chartreuse, olive, leaf... I am an equal opportunity lover of all shades of green, so I didn't discriminate when pulling the fabrics for these napkins.  There are a few duplicates in there, but just a few!

Each napkin is backed with unbleached muslin to keep things simple since these are for everyday use.


I didn't take photos of the process, but these are SO easy to make.  To make some for yourself, follow these easy steps-

1.  Cut one 18" print fabric square for the front and one 18" muslin square for the back of the napkin.

2.  Place the squares right sides together and sew a 1/4" seam around the edge, leaving an opening (about 4") for turning the napkin right side out.  Don't forget to backstitch at the beginning and end!

3.  Clip each corner diagonally (without cutting the seam) to reduce bulk in the corners when turning it right side out.

4.  Turn the napkin right side out, using a chopstick or another blunt-edged tool to push the corners out fully.

5.  Fold the raw edges of fabric at the opening inward, and press the entire napkin flat.

6.  Topstitch around the entire napkin, about 1/8" from the edge, and make sure to sew the opening closed.  Remember to backstitch at the beginning and end to secure your stitches.  And you're done!

If you're unsure about one of the steps, you can check out my One Hour Baby Gift tutorial HERE.  The process is practically the same, and there are plenty of photos in that post.


I'm hopeful that two dozen napkins will be plenty to last between laundry loads, but we'll see.  I'm so pleased with the way these turned out, and I'm really happy to reduce our household waste too!  I don't know why I didn't think to make some sooner, and I'm already thinking ahead to making a holiday set too.

Before we party, let's check out a few highlights from last week's NTT.  Look at this simple, fun quilt by Jan at The Colorful Fabriholic-



Sally at Crafts, Cavies, and Cooking shared progress on this amazing project.  It's mesmerizing!


Take a look at this soothing beauty by Myra at Busy Hands Quilts-


DonnaleeQ linked up this fantastic quilt-


And Jayne at Twiggy and Opal showed off this stunner-


It was so hard to narrow down my highlights this week!  Y'all are so inspiring.  Let's get to this week's party, y'all!

1You can link finished projects or WIP's , but just keep it about quilting and sewing!
2. Link to your specific post (not to your home page!) to make it easier for others.
3. Please remember to spread the word and post my button or a text link within your 
    post.  
4. Spread the comment love far and wide!
5. Following me is not a requirement to link, but is so very appreciated!

*If you're new to the party, here's a helpful tip for linking up- select "Auto Crop"  when selecting your thumbnail photo.  For some reason, trying to crop your own image results in the dreaded "white question mark box," and we definitely want to see your awesome work!  :)





21 comments:

  1. Your napkins look lovely. You put more work into yours. I just zigzagged the edges of mine. Happy stitching!

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  2. oh I love those greens! I need to make some for myself and my sisters! Tks!

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  3. Your napkins look great! I love the shades of green. When can we get a pattern for Rock Candy? My bundle of Farewell Amy Butler is ready and waiting!

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  4. Pretty napkins! I use lots of microfiber towels for cleaning, dusting and for the floors too. You don’t even need cleaners for most jobs and they wash like a dream! Thanks for sharing!

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  5. I've got napkins on my to-do list too! Do they come out flat after the wash or do the two layers tend to separate?

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  6. 'Love your green napkins (my favorite color). Those fabrics are all so pretty. Thanks for the instructions to make them. Cloth napkins are a great and colorful idea.

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  7. Those cloth napkins are a wonderful use of some stash fabric! I've made some for the Holidays, but not for everyday. I have a thrifted stack that I use daily. DH and the kids don't like using them. :o((

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  8. The photo of the mixer and napkins is just plain gorgeous! That is such a great idea making napkins. With so many you can easily use them once and not have to wash every other day.

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  9. I love your green napkins - what a terrific idea! I have the same green Kitchen Aid mixer. I may have to copy your idea. As for the wrinkling concern by Lisa, it depends on how quickly you pull and fold laundry from the dryer. Sandy at sewhigh.blogspot.com

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  10. Your idea to make cloth napkins is intriguing, but I'm not sure I want to "give up" my fabric stash like that! :-) My hubs does all the cooking, and I've seen what he can do to dish cloths! Thanks for the tutorial, though. These would make a great wedding gift.

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  11. Oh my goodness - you have a green KitchenAid mixer! Mine is white (so boring) I got it before colors were a thing. Love the napkins, they are so vibrant and pretty! We use cloth napkins too, and I've made some. You are right; they are so quick and easy to make.

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  12. Great idea to make and use cloth napkins to reduce paper consumption. I love all your greens! If the two layers tend to separate in the wash, you can fix that by sewing a simple X across from corner to corner.
    Thanks for the shout out.

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  13. Napkins look wonderful, hmm might have to try that. A few years ago I switched to microfiber cloths for paper towels. I got them on amazon blue pink yellow and green. Each color has a job that paper towels used to do. One jumbo pkg of paper towels from costco lasts almost a year. Yay!

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  14. I made cloth napkins when the Covid started back in March. I had a fat quarter bundle that no longer looked pretty to me (what was I thinking?). That became my "ugly napkin project"! Now I have 24 18 in napkins for everyday use. They did become pretty again on the table. We also eliminated using paper towels for drying hands. I had a dozen inexpensive white washcloths and put them in a narrow container on the counter and use those instead. Our bath towels are white so when I wash them with a little bleach the kitchen ones get bleached too. Sure don't miss the paper towels or expense.

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  15. Such pretty greens! Thanks for featuring my Mariposa quilt.

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  16. Your napkins are darling, Kelly! I'm curious to know how they come out of the laundry for you. Will you line dry them or (gasp!!) iron them? Also I am head over heels in LOVE with your gorgeous kelly green Kitchenaid mixer! :-)

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  17. LOVE THE GREEN MIXER!!!!!! Your napkins are wonderful. I have never made any that were 2 layers -- you prefer that over one? I use $1 bandanas for napkins. Thanks for sharing!

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  18. They're beautiful! I made cloth napkins for us a few years ago, though I went super simple - one layer of fabric with zig zagged edges. The first few times using them it felt super weird to intentionally make fabric messy!

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  19. Your napkins are fabulous. I keep saying I'm going to make some, but I never do. LOL

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  20. Inspired by your napkins project, I dug through my yarn-died plaids and made 12 napkins for the log cabin we are purchasing. Great idea! Sandy at sewhigh.blogspot.com

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  21. thank you for the steps on the napkins. I really like these. They are simple and I love the backing. So glad they seem simple.

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