Friday, April 9, 2010

What To Do With Vintage Linens #12-"I think"


It is funny how if you gather enough of the same thing, it all of the sudden becomes an inspiration in itself! That is what has happened with all of the bed linen hems that I have lopped off of the sheets I cut up. Those hems are like little treasures, especially to someone( ME)who likes "easy" sewing and quick solutions! I have always loved the hems for making pants for my kiddos like the one below.

These pants were made for my Madi girl who is 10. They were made from two king size pillowcases! The ruffle is so sweet at her feet, and what is even better is that it was already made! But I am getting off track here. I wanted to share today, what to do with the linen hems when they are cut off of the sheets. Below are a few combinations that I was able to put together with some saved hems.
SUMMERTIME!!!!

GIRLIE DREAMS....
Some hems are so detailed and so unique that they are art within themselves.

GRANDMA'S PORCH
HAPPY TOTE...
The first thing I did was to lay out the hems on a piece of fabric that would become the body of the bag. I simply sewed the hems in strips, starting at the bottom. I did roll the cut edge under so that the hem would be finished even though it was not going to show once it was layered with the remaining hems.
I have shown this in the photo above. Next I chose fabric to line the tote and to serve as handles. All was made from vintage linens. The body of fabric simple gets folded in half and is stitched on two sides leaving the top of the tote open. Then the wrong sides of the body and the lining are folded in , straps are pinned in and the body, lining, and handles are stitched together.

All finished and in the shop! Yeah...now to get those others finished!
And just to get that imagination going, here are some more possibilities for the hems to add to the countless possibilities...

How fun would it be to make a skirt with the layered look of these linen hems!
Or a blanket that would completely fascinate any little fingers.
Add them to a pair of pants that have become a bit too short.
Use them at the bottom of curtains.
These would be fantastic for creating a unique pillow as well...

3 comments:

  1. LOVE the hem tote! So perfectly springy and cute. I have a feeling I am becoming addicted to your totes ... :)

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  2. Well sweetie! I will have no problem feeding that addiction;) Hey-I just finished cutting out all your fun napkins-so I was thinking about you already!

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  3. What a great idea! Thanks for sharing.

    Jennifer :)

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