The Mission – Projects #2, #3 & #4

There have been quite a few things I have wanted to make that I thought would just make life a little nicer but I kept putting them off.  In fact, I have put some of these projects off for years.  In starting my big Mission Project I am finding that there is no better time than the present to get things done. 

Project #2 – Hanging Dish Towel 

I buy bathroom hand towels for my kitchen instead of the traditional dish towels.  They are thicker and more absorbent and I think they last longer.  They also tend to be less expensive.  I am also not a fan of the fringy stuff on the bottom of a lot of dish towels.

 

Last year I noticed one of my towels had a corner mysteriously go missing.  Weird since the rest of the towel seemed fine.  I tucked it in the back of the drawer and thought “I need to do something with it”.  It seemed too nice a towel to put in the rag basket. 

Well, I finally got out the towel and did something with it.  I made a hanging dish towel for my stove out of it and I love, love, love the results.  I also think this would make a great gift for someone and I made a few for my Etsy store.

 

 

I cut my towel in half, a little more than half for this particular project, and using a pattern I downloaded off the internet, I cut some scrap fabric I had and made the towel per the pattern instructions.  I then embellished the bottom of the towel with some ric rac and pom pom trim I had leftover from previous projects.  All scraps I used up and a towel refurbished to make this darling little towel to dress up my kitchen.

 

The remaining half was trimmed and zig zag stiched.  Now it is ready for the rag bag.

 

Why did I wait so long?

Project #3 - Pan Pads 

 

For years I have used old dish towels to put between my non-stick pans so they don’t scratch the surfaces when I stack them.  Smart idea but not very tidy or aesthetically pleasing, in my opinion.  I like things to function and to look nice and neat as well. 

I dug into my plethora of fabric donations from my two friends this summer and found exactly what I needed to make the pads I wanted to put in between my pans.  I also think they would make great gifts for someone.

 

I took some quilted fabric and some coordinating flannel fabric and cut a square of each 12 ½” X 12 ½”. 

 

 

I sewed them together leaving a three inch opening.  I then clipped the corners and turned them right sides out. 

 

 

After pressing them I did a double straight stitch top stitching along the edge to close up the opening and make it look nice as well.

 

They work great and I just love how they look.

Project #4 - Drawer Liner

I also made a pad to line the drawer under the stove.  I made it the same way I made the pan pads only larger, 18” X 24”.  Nice and easy.  Only took me about 20 minutes to cut it out, sew it, press it and topstitch it.

I had also been using a towel in there but it kept wadding up and then the pans were sliding all over the drawer.  Now it is all clean, neat and organized in there.  My grandma and great grandma’s pans have some pretty swanky digs now and once again I am very pleased with the results. 

I must admit.  I am really having fun with all of these little projects.