Beaux R'eves

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Hostess Gifts~Ruffled Tea Towel

Do you need a fun Hostess gift for any of those Christmas 
and Holiday Parties you will be attending?
I just finished making these adorable Ruffled Tea Towels 
and have included a short Tutorial.
Earlier this summer, I found these Christmas tea towels 
at an Estate Sale.  
This lady was a hoarder of sorts.  
She had so much unused and brand new stuff 
still in the bags with the price tags.  
I bought a whole grocery bag full of these towels 
for less than $10.00.  
I think I paid less than 50 cents a piece.  
I had plans to ruffle up some towels for gifts 
and thought they would be perfect.
I picked out some fabric squares at JoAnn's 
and I had this ribbon on hand.  
The squares are about a 1/4 yard each.  
I cut them into strips about 2 1/2 - 3 inches wide 
and sewed them together to make a strip 
approximately 42" long.
 I ironed a small hem at the bottom 
and topstitched the hem with this decorative pattern.  
You don't have to do this, you can just sew a straight line but since my fabric was solid and I have these options on my machine I thought it would be fun to try.
Create a ruffle in the strips by sewing 
a long basting stitch and gathering it.  
Lay the ruffle on the towel and cut the ends 
leaving 1/2 inch on each side.  
Iron 1'4 inch and another 1/4 inch to create a hem on the sides and topstitch it down.  
Do this for all three ruffles.
Pin it carefully to your towel and sew the top of the ruffle.  
I like that my towel had a nice line on it for me, 
it made it much easier.
Pin the next ruffle 1 1/2 inches above and sew that ruffle too.
Repeat these steps for the last ruffle.
I pinned the ribbon onto the top of the last ruffle 
and topstitched it down.  
I left about a quarter inch on each side 
and tacked it onto the back to hold it.  
Isn't it cute and festive?  
Of course I would fold it nicely.
Like this!  
This project cost next to nothing.  
I even ended up using scraps that I had from other projects.  What Hostess wouldn't love to receive a gift like this?  
And hey, if you run out of time 
just take one of these cute Tea Towels sans ruffles 
and wrap up a bottle of wine!  
Still a great gift!

 Thanks for stopping in to see me.  I know in light of the terrible tragedy that a silly tea towel seems trite, but I guess my message is: Let's do things that make others happy, spread joy and happiness around and be with those you love and cherish most of all. I'm off now to spend time with precious Miss Beaux and some chocolate.

Until Next Time,
Beaux R'eves
XO Cindy
 linking up to these great parties: 

Kim at SavvySouthern Style for Wow Us Wednesdays  

 Judy at DIY by Design
   Roeshel  at DIY Showoff
Stone Gable  Tutorials, Tips, and Tidbits
Gina at The Shabby Creek Cottage for Transformation Thursdays
 From My Front Porch To Yours for Treasure Hunt Thursday
   No Minimalist Here Open House Party   
Courtney at French Country Cottage for Feathered Nest Friday
Heather and Vanessa at At the Picket Fence for Inspiration Friday
Debra at Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday

Sherry at The Charm of Home for Home Sweet Home Friday

Jen at Tatertots and Jello for the Weekend Wrap-up Party
                                     Donna at Funky Junk Interiors for Saturday Nite Special

20 click here to Comment:

Kim @ Savvy Southern Style said...

What a great find and I love how you embellished them.

ℳartina @ Northern Nesting said...

So cute! I love them!

~*Sharee*~ said...

Too cute; would love one of these..

Shar

Kathy @ Creative Home Expressions said...

How cute are they, Cindy! What a find on those towels, too.

cathy@my1929charmer said...

Stopping by from Kim's, love the ruffled tea towels. I was planing on making a few tomorrow, needed some inspiration, thanks!

Cristina Garay said...

So cute! I love the ruffles you added!

Dee ⚜️⚜️⚜️⚜️⚜️ said...

Super adorable and a great idea!

Merry Christmas Cindy!
Dee

Shirley@Housepitality Designs said...

What a great hostess gift....so cute...you are so very creative!!
Have a wonderful Christmas.

Judy Biggerstaff said...

Yes, these do make for great gifts. So clever so add ruffles to the towels. Thanks for sharing and Merry Christmas Cindy.

Angie@Echoes of Laughter said...

So gorgeous! I love this project! How lucky are your friends & family to get these for Christmas! Wishing you a wonderful Christmas & Happy New Year! Angie xo

Karen said...

Oh my goodness that is cute. The perfect hostess gift!

Anonymous said...

Oh my goodness, oh my goodness, I am so in love with these!!! I am pinning it, hoping to make some for friends next Christmas. Thanks for sharing with us at Savvy Southern Style, I found your feature there. Mary

Unknown said...

Visiting from WOW. I am putting together a Christmas housewarming gift and I think I may just have to throw in a couple of these! Too cute.

Karie said...

Wow! What a great find. I love all the ruffles. I have got to make me some. Thanks for sharing. Karie

Shabby chic Sandy said...

Those are some of the cutest towels I have ever seen! Love the ruffles. You did a lovely job!

Luisa said...

These are just adorable. I really need to learn how to sew...

lynn cockrell said...

These towels are TOO cute!

Lynn

La Vie Quotidienne said...

Very, very cute!

Patricia Krank said...

Cute, cute, cute! I love this idea. Thank you for the tutorial. Patti

petersmith said...

So cute! I love the ruffles you added! Pawn Shop

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