dottie angel do's... part two

truth be told, i like to 'snippity snip' fabrics into pieces and then spend many happy moments patching them all back together in a random fashion. however for the dottie angel tea towels, i did not allow myself a pair of scissors, other than for cutting threads. my plan being, to see if just using two oversized tea towels, one could make several gifts in a very short space of time. therefore being contenders for

'gifts to make and give this gleeful season'.

both the laundry bag and the cushions are very basic in their construction, if you can sew a straight running stitch on a sewing machine you can make these easily. having done so myself yesterday, i am thinking a length of lace on the pillow envelope closure and a few little fabric tags on the laundry bag seam would give them a little extra. i would also go as far as to suggest one real life vintage doily appliqued on, amongst the printed ones might look quite peachy...

"how exotic" i hear you cry, "i know!" says i

laundry bag ingredients

* one pair of oversized dottie angel tea towels

* around 3 to 4 yds of twill tape

(or something similar for drawstrings)

place tea towels right sides together and pin

leaving a three inch gap before you start sewing,

sew down one side, along bottom and up the other side

once again leaving a three inch gap at the top

whilst bag is still inside out,

pinch your two corners flat

and stitch down creating a nice bottom for your bag

now turn your attention to the bag opening.

still with bag inside out

fold back the top of both tea towels 1.5"

sew along edge being sure to leave a nice wide gap

for your draw strings to run through.

turn bag right sides out

and press nice bottom with Mr Iron,

next, admire your nice bottom

taking your twill tape, cut into two even lengths,

thread one piece through the top of bag

(may need to use a safety pin for threading)

and back through the other side

knotting the two ends together

repeat in the opposite direction with other draw string.

i must admit the top of the bag does look a little iffy

before you put in the drawstrings,

but when they are threaded in,

everything appears to fall into place nicely

and voila! a simple laundry bag perfectly perfect

for hanging around

cushion cover ingredients

* an over sized pair of dottie angel tea towels

* two cushion inserts

(i used sizes 14" x 14" and 12" x 16")

with design facing upwards

fold the bottom and top of tea towel inwards

to the right size for your cushion,

this example is for the 14" square cover

pin along the right and left side

again in this example it is 14"

sew your two pinned sides

turn cushion cover right sides out,

carefully making sure corners are pushed out fully

press with your Mr Iron

and fill with cushion pad

Voila!

the dottie angel do's and the doilies design fitted both these 'how-tos' rather well, plus the cotton they are printed on is very soft even before washing and like i said before, adding a few extra details would give them a more handcrafted look. i know for me it was a struggle not to 'snippity snip' the rules up and patch them together with vintage fabrics but i think for quick and easy gleeful gifts or 'anytime of the year' gifts, they are perfectly perfect just the way they are.

she is back to her 'snippity snipping' ways today, whilst keeping a beady eye on pesky little olive ~ Tif

footynote: silly, silly me! i thought something was missing, has been one of those mornings :)

i am missing a cushion! so just a little footnote to say, using the other tea towel with the doilies, i made another simple cushion cover to match the dottie angel do's one, that being the size 12" x 16" i mentioned earlier. i am pleased to report they are most happy spending quality time in a chair together