Placemats and Napkins

Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.

~Plato

Finally. Two more kawandi placemats complete. There were only three birds so these have none and the scrap colors are much louder. I decided to pull a smaller, coordinated collection of scraps from the bag to add cohesion... Maybe. Reds in the first round established strong perimeters. I tried adding tiklis but am still not good at it. They usually occur to me after a round of stitching. 

Kawandi placemat 4

The dark pink across the top {and on the right side} is a gift from Sujata. It's Indian cotton, finer than lawn. What a difference it makes when stitching. The needle slides through like butter. Somehow, all the loud prints ended up in the previous placemat and this one was left with only quiet fabrics for the center. Still, a plate will cover it.

Kawandi placemat 5

Last week when washing the napkins, it came to my attention that they are permanently stained. Well, they've been used for several years. Clean ones are needed. At first I whined because there's not enough yardage of any of the fabrics that look like napkins. That means they won't match. Oh, boo hoo.

These fabrics have been sitting on a chair for too long. I'm starting here and will pull any fabric that is at least 22" square to make a napkin. A glorious riot of prints and color. Take your pick when you come over. 

Cloth napkins

It took more time than I thought to make them. Cut, press the seam, pin the folded seam, turn the corners, sew, and press. The first ten are done. The old napkins are going to compost.

Reading

Oh, boy. Time for the third mystery in Martin Walker's Bruno series. Black Diamond refers to truffles but the story also involves attacks on various Asian businesses. 

Enjoy the day, Ann

Another Kawandi Placemat and More Tote Bags

Life is not fair but government must be.

~Ann Richards

There was time to finish a second kawandi placemat. Sujata gave me the idea when she suggested an appropriate size for her class. And I need a new set and what fun to work on something small in the evenings for a change. 

Kawandi placemat

This time the fula were sewn between the layers at the first round of stitching - just as Sujata recommends - but I didn't make quarter circles. Instead, they are folded into thirds, making them very thick and difficult to sew. I won't do it again... unless I forget. Sheesh.

All the fabric came from my scrap bag, including the bird prints. Each placemat will have one of these somewhere. But the colors don't match my dishes. We'll have to see what happens with these.

Tote bags

I found two adorable print {remnants} - the blue with space drive-ins and Charlie Brown's shirt stripe in the lower left. The others are pretty cute, too. The totes are fully lined, not to make them reversible, but to make them stronger.

Between my aloha shirt and DH's, there's enough remnants to make all the backs. So that and the birds are the unifying design elements. I suppose I can turn them over it a calmer placemat is wanted.

Several family members requested my tote bags. Although they have no pockets or special features, they are large enough to hold a large supply of toilet paper, paper towels, or general groceries. Some people have plans to carry sporting equipment in them. Whatever the bags are wanted for, I'm delighted to make them. 

The totes took 10.5 yards and the placemat used another half yard. Eleven yards this week - not that any reduction of the scrap bag is visible. How is this possible? Elves is my answer.

Merry Christmas to all!

Enjoy the day, Ann

Placemats and Napkins

I made a set of placemats and napkins as a Christmas present. After much discussion we chose mattress ticking for the fabric. And they are so cute! The ticking is canvas-weight, perfect for placemats.

East Coast Place Setting

I like them so much I just finished a second set of mats for my husband. (Just what he always wanted!) But I used Moda  Kasuri Medallions in indigo quilting cotton for the napkins. The heavy ticking required a half-inch seam but the napkins needed just a quarter-inch seam.

Mattress ticking placemat & Moda Kasuri Medallions napkins

My grandmother taught me to miter corners but Britex Fabrics of San Francisco recently posted an inspirational guest blog by Nicole with very clear instructions that are very similar. Try it out.

Mitered corner detail

By the way. Notice how much prettier the place setting looks. Those placemats were washed, then ironed while damp. Mine were dried and then ironed. Even with steam I couldn't get all the wrinkles out. Next time, I'll iron straight from the washer.

Enjoy the day, Ann