Seamingly Smitten: TUTORIAL: Fall Kitchen Dishtowel

Fall Kitchen Towel Sewing TUTORIAL

Crafting Time: 15 minutes

I also just posted a FALL TABLE RUNNER sewing tutorial. CLICK HERE to see it. The table runner and dishtowel make great housewarming gifts for friends or handmade holiday gifts. Monogram them, applique on them or leave them as is to show off some gorgeous fabric.

Kitchen Dishtowel Sewing Tutorial

Gather Materials:

7/8 yard main fabric for dishtowel

1/4 yard fabric for ruffle (or pleat)

pins, iron, sewing machine, ruler, scissors

1. Cut your main fabric to 29 inches long x 23 inches wide

2. Cut your ruffle fabric trim to 6 inches long x 44 inches wide

3. Lay main fabric right side up. Fold ruffle in half with wrong sides together, matching the long ends. Now your ruffle will measure 3 inches long x 44 inches wide. You will be looking at the right side (the pretty side) of the fabric. Press well with an iron.

4. To give this dishtowel a ruffle you can sew a basting stitch (your longest stitch length) down the raw edge of your ruffle strip using a 3/8 inch seam allowance. Do not backstitch at the beginning or ending. Leave a tail of thread 6 inches long at the beginning and end of your ruffle strip. *TO RUFFLE the strip - grab the bobbin thread only and pull the fabric down along the bobbin thread. It will ruffle as you slide it down the thread. Continue until it is the width of your dishtowel

OR you can do it this way to more of a pleat:

Pin the left and right end of your ruffle strip to your main fabric on the bottom of your dishtowel fabric. The raw edges will be touching. The folded edge of your ruffle will be facing the top of your dishtowel.

5. Pin the middle of the ruffle strip to the middle of your dishtowel.

6. Keep finding the middle of your ruffle strip between two pins and pin it down. Repeat until you have gathered your ruffle strip evenly. I used 9 pins total which gives me more of a pleat. If you want more of a ruffle, just do one more pin between each of those 9 pins to give you 17 pins in all.

7. Sew along your ruffle strip / pinned edge using a 5/8 inch seam allowance. Remove pins as you sew. Serge or zig-zag stitch the raw edge.

8. Iron down your ruffle strip towards the bottom of your dishtowel, making sure the seam allowance is pressed up towards the top edge of your dishtowel. PRETTY!!

9. Topstitch above the seam you just sewed using a 1/8 inch seam allowance to keep the ruffle in place and give it a nice, clean and professional finish.

9. Lay dishtowel right side down. Iron a 1 inch hem around the top and both sides of the dishtowel. Pin.

10. Sew around all three sides using a 1/4 inch seam allowance. Remove pins as you sew.

11. Press with an iron.

12. Fold back the left and right sides each five inches. Press with an iron.