Napkins!

I have been having a blast making napkins out of stash crumbs! They are so easy a beginning sewist could do them, although I will admit they take time. Time well spent and a product you can enjoy every day...considering most of us have thousands of dollars worth of fabric and how often do we really get to physically enjoy and use it? Click on the photo to see a larger view.

• I cut my squares at 11" which finishes as a 10" napkin.
• Press, starch, then cut your square or oblong. Starch because it will make the hem stitching go a thousand times better, giving the finished edge a professional touch you'll appreciate every time you use them.
• On the back side of the square use your rotary ruler and a pencil to mark a 1/2 inch line. (lightest fabric on right)
• Trim off just a smidgen more than 1/2 of the boxed penciled corner (like the lightest fabric shown in the photo.
• Press over the edge to the back, to the pencil line.
• Next, I lay a straight pin across the pencil line corner junction, making a kitty-corner fold then fold in a perfect mitered corner and pin (like the sage fabric on the right edge). This encourages the next step/fold.
• Press the long edges over on itself, giving you a double fold 1/4 inch hem.
• Then flip it over and press from the right side too so the creases are nice and sharp.
• For the hem itself I experimented with a straight stitch, fine but dull..
• Experimented with several of my machine's embroidery stitches
• And fell in love with the mode 2 stitch 66 on my Janome 6600P sewing machine, left at the default width and length. With my F2 foot that 1/4 folded seam rides between the edges of the open toe foot perfectly, which is why I can sew from the top.

Friday Thankies
Our record snow accumulation is starting to melt
My 2 little lost doggies continued progress, 4 A+ days in a row
An abundance of fresh chicken eggs to share with the neighbors