Touch O' the Green

This month is all about green!  St. Patrick's Day is approaching!  I glanced over to my fabric stash (that had been previously washed) and located the shamrock fabric.  On another "project pile" a newly purchased (previously washed) hand towel was easily found.  Now, that combination could only mean one thing...a new decorative guest towel for our bathroom was in the planning stages.

Decorative Hand Towels look wonderful!  I've purchased them in the past...only to be disappointed when the terry cloth or the decorations do not hold up well after washing.  My solution has been simple!  I enjoy sewing.  Why not make them for holidays and special occasions using better quality towels?  Now, that's exactly what I do!

My directions are quite simple:

A strip of fabric is cut to fit into the towel's recessed area near the bottom edge.  The strip is 2" longer than the towel's width.  That way I have an extra 1" on each side to play with when doing the finishing work and sewing. 

The height of the desired strip is measured and 1/2" more is added to the measurement, so both the top and the bottom edges may be turned in 1/4" and pressed.  The raw edges on each side of the strip are also turned in, pressed and then turned in again and sewn in place. 

Sewing decorative strip in place.

When sewing the strip in place:  I like to wrap a very small portion of the colorful decorative strip around the backside of the towel when attaching, so I allow for an extra 1/2" on each side.  Pin the strip onto the plain recessed portion of the towel's front and sew in place.  Really easy!

If you enjoy sewing, as I do, a quick trip to nearby Jo-Ann's works into a routine, quite often.  Fabric that catches my eye is purchased to be used in the future.  Usually 1 yard will be purchased using a 40% or 50% coupon.  Amazing what can be made with 1 yard added to another yard.

Enjoy!