Pretty Little Coasters

I'm trying to sneak in this handmade post. The recipient reads Bittersweet blog but I don't think she comes to Calico Petals.
Making these pretty little cloth coasters for her for Christmas. Easy to pull togerther and sew, minus the ric-rac and trims. They are a bit finicky to add.

I'm sewing an assortment of six. Two each of the same swatch and trims.
I think they will fit in with the other handmade gifts I'm making this year. Cocoa and homemade marshmallows, herbal vinegar, cranberry chutney, toffee, Scottish shortbread, and maybe if I have time some "hot pads" as my grandma would say.

If you want to try your hand at making the coasters. Cut a four inch square of two matching fabrics. Then cut another four inch square of interfacing. I had thin interfacing on hand so I tripled the cut. Insert trim or ric-rac in the inside and make sure two fabrics are front to front, place interfacing on top of one and carefully sew around the edges making sure you attach the layers. Turn inside out and poke corners with something sharp making sure not to tear corners. Sew a running stitch along all four finished sides.

Warmly,

Jill 00

Printing on paper bags

photo courtesy of Pinterest

A friend added a tutorial picture on Pinterest on how to print on paper bags. I'm a seasoned print on whatever I can stick in my printer kind of girl. Fabric, heavy card stock and a number of other things have slipped through my printers over the years.

I must warn you. Depending on the type of ink jet printer you may have considers whether the job shall be daunting or simple and sweet.

I print every day with the operation of my business and have found over the years that some printers accept foreign objects better than others. I've found the inexpensive printers actually perform better than the more expensive ones.  There's really no way to know if your printer is going to print on other things than paper unless you try it!
Sometimes you have to help push the object though so that it won't get caught and stuck.
I was using smaller paper bags that I purchase from a wholesale supplier and found the smaller bags would not allow me to feed through the printer without getting stuck and then I would have to pull them out. I do however believe a regular sized paper bag would be easier to maneuver.

Give it a try and let others no how it works for you.

Warmly,
Jill 00


 

Trimming with Doilies...

 

I've been adding doilie accents to my gift packaging. Seriously, who doesn't like a doilie? Last year for Christmas I made homemade cocoa and marshmallows and embellished the packaging with small round doilies. The recipients seemed to appreciate the gesture and the doilies added just the right touch.

Recently, I had a customer that ordered small containers of lavender laundry powders to be given as hostess gifts at an event. Once again, I incorporated the use of doilies.

So the next time you're wrapping gifts include a paper doilie.

Warmly,
Jill 00