I was home alone most of this last weekend. Friday, I passed out on the couch from 9 pm-1 am! I got up and went to bed…which meant I tossed and turned a while because I had just slept for four hours! For some reason, an idea came to me in a flash.
Back Story:
My friend Kim and I got a bee in our bonnet based on a Knitting Camp experience. We decided to go all in on embroidering kitchen towels. I bought a 12-pack of lovely cotton towels and got right down to business. I embroidered 1-2-no, ZERO towels! Yep. Not a one! Who wants to embroider towels??
This left me with 12 lovely cotton towels. Flour sack cotton is absolutely divine, so my flash of an idea was to make a shirt out of the towels. I knew I would have to piece them for length, but that would be part of the design. The fabric is absolutely fabulous to sew.
Another surprise addition was the twill tape. The towels came tied with a cute twill tape that says “linenandtowel.” I added the tape to the button side of the front and a small patch on the pocket.
All that is left to do is to buy buttons — we all know how fun that is! I want to wear it this upcoming weekend so I may put some buttons on and then keep checking around!
Speaking of this weekend, Sally is arriving late Thursday in time to participate in The Yarnery’s Brooklyn Tweed Extravaganza!! Jared Flood himself will be the main attraction. Should be really fun.
PS – Kitchen Update: We are in a total stall though the flooring is set to be installed on Thursday!
PS2 to all: I will share some more pictures but the ones I took of the whole shirt did not turn out that well. I basically used my go-to shirt, with some alterations. I pieced the fronts and the back, but made sure the seam was above the top of the side vent. At first, I added a cute bit of gathering on the fronts, in about the middle of the bottom panel. But, it made my hips look wider (NOT a look I was going for!!), so I removed the gathers and took up the extra fabric with a seam. That means there is a horizontal seam where the top and bottom “halves” are joined and a vertical seam on the lower half. The back has a center back seam and seams to join the bottom panels, as well as a deep pleat in the back. The seams line up with the corresponding seams on the front. I found some small coconut shell buttons that are not very exciting but I have another day or two to look. Buttons are so hard to find – especially if you don’t have the luxury of time.
This diagram is not to scale probably!!
Here is the pattern I use for all my shirts (Butterick B4231, View A). It is old!
PS3 to Susan – the towels were pre-washed, but I did wash them anyway. We have not yet decided on the kitchen lights, but will probably have to forego the pendant style that I wanted!
Love this! Clever, classic and likely your (new) favorite shirt! The addition of the twill tape is inspired and creative. Well done!
Comment by BARBARA BETTEGNIES — November 12, 2018 @ 1:40 pm
Your sewing/tailoring skills are as awesome as are your knitting skills!
Comment by Nancy — November 12, 2018 @ 2:18 pm
That shirt looks amazingly soft & inviting! Please, oh please share some more pictures of your shirt. I’d love to see how you pieced the towels together & incorporated that into a design element. Love how you incorporated the twill tape into it, too. I’m in awe of your talent & creativity.
Comment by Samina — November 12, 2018 @ 3:04 pm
So much better use of the towels. Bc, really, once they’re embroidered, they’re too pretty to actually USE! Can’t wait to see it adorned with buttons.
Comment by Joan — November 12, 2018 @ 4:18 pm
Fabulous!! Did you wash these before using?
What did you decide to do about the light in the kitchen?
(Wondering why I didn’t sign up for the BT wing ding.)
Comment by Susan — November 12, 2018 @ 4:43 pm
Looks lovely! I would have never thought of this! (I would have used them as plain dish cloths….) Love how you used the tape.
Comment by Amy — November 12, 2018 @ 7:17 pm
So inspired. The texture of the dishcloths looks like it might completely change the personality of the shirt and make it more interesting. (I know plain white shirts are supposed to be an indispensable wardrobe basic but they don’t tend to work for me.). Would love to see the whole shirt, too, if you somehow can get a good picture. Chloe
Comment by Chloe — November 13, 2018 @ 7:30 am
What a lovely job you made of this, and what a fabulous idea! I have a couple of 100-year-old linen sheets I purchased with a mind to make shirts but have not sufficiently motivated myself to do so. I have made doll clothes from vintage linen tea towels. One towel goes a long way! A nightgown, petticoat, and lots of tiny collars and cuffs.
Comment by WendyKnits — November 13, 2018 @ 7:43 am
What a great way to use the towels! Lovely results!
Comment by Mary Lou Keenan — November 13, 2018 @ 10:38 am