Binding Towels

This is a quick blog post because I am DETERMINED to blog SOMETHING before midnight!

(See the towel in the mending basket behind the hyacinths?)

To help our towels last longer, I have been binding the edges just as one would bind a quilt.  This has added years of life to some towels that would otherwise end up in the rag bag. By binding new towels and washcloths before we ever use them, I hope to make them last many, many more years.

To bind towels, I cut a strip of fabric 3.5 inches wide for a large towel, and three inches wide for a washcloth or hand towel. Then double it and stitch as you would make the binding of a quilt. The result is a double layer of quilt fabric over the edge that has begun to ravel.



So far, I have only cut across the width of the fabric, but one could cut a long length-wise piece if one wanted to bind a towel without any piecing of binding. 



The wash cloths are fun to do especially. It takes about an hour of all hand sewing to add a pretty fabric border. One could cut that time drastically by using a sewing machine. I love the warm "home spun" look the stack of bound wash cloths give to the bathroom.

Right now, my washcloth binding "operation" is housed in a Happy Yellow Tupperware lettuce crisper. It's perfect, and it makes me smile when I look at it on the bedside table.  LOL

The Happy  Yellow large towels made from 100 percent American Grown cotton are just beautiful. This is one of them underneath the tall pincushion (that Unc and I made).

I've also thought about making binding out of some left over blocks for a very pieced look. These 12 inch  x 12 inch scraps of a large towel are bound with left over binding. The patchwork look of these salvaged washcloth-sized towels is delightful to use and just look at if you are a fabric lover like me.

I've been plodding away at this for about a year, at least, and I still have lots of binding to do. "in my spare time" or when I want a project that does not require any thinking.

Recently I bought four large towels made from 100 percent AMERICAN grown cotton. They are wonderful and I will be blogging specifically about them.



These last three yellow washcloths are Ralph Lauren that I found on eBay as a bargain. The  yellow washcloths in the lettuce crisper are much thinner....but they are good for scrubbing behind ears and such.

Ok, let me upload this and I will have actually gotten a blog post posted before midnight! YEAH! I DO want to get back into the habit of blogging more. It's just always after midnight before the house is quiet and then I think, "I'll wait until I've had some sleep before I blog."

Comments

[Michele Colaner]

OH PENNY!!! SUCH A GREAT IDEA--you knooooowwwww--we got brand new washer and dryer last year? REALLY nice ones too!! but the washer seemed like it was just TEARING UP my wash rags and towels!! i told my husband that i was thinking about binding them just so they would last longer!!! YOU HAVE TO KNOW I MADE HIM LOOK AND READ YOUR BLOG POST!!! HAHAHA
i said--SEE??? GREAT MINDS THINK ALIKE--but the better person actually DOES IT--like YOU did sweetie!! haha!
so, NOW i think you should post pictures of how to bind a quilt--BY HAND!!! :-)
or are you gonna make me google it?
;-)
thanks a bunch for inspiration!

i reckon i'll just use the sewing machine

[Nan Harvey]

Great idea, Penny! They are so attractive. I have a question -- is the binding cut on the bias or on the straight of the fabric?

[Caity O'Connor]

Good idea! Once I unearth my sewing room (arrrgh!) I will have to give this a go. These all look so pretty!