Friday, July 22, 2016

Tea towels anyone?

On Wednesday I took Blossom out for a special pre-baby 'pamper day'. We went to the hairdressers for a shampoo, cut and blow dry, then to the nail salon for pedicures before lunch and cappuccinos at the Coffee Club. 
Opposite where we were having coffee was a discount store with a big stand of gorgeous country style tea towels out front so after lunch we headed over for a browse. 
Now, I *love* fresh new tea towels and regularly update my stash because we do a lot of cooking in this house and my poor kitchen towels bear the brunt, so I purchased half a dozen whilst Blossom cooed over the baby wear display nearby. 
Whilst these new purchases won't require any extra embellishment from me, I do still have a supply of tea towels standing by which are destined for embroidery or applique. Why? Because I love to have a few 'special' ones for use when guests come to visit. 

Earlier this year I did a tutorial on how to make this pretty appliqued tea towel (read the blog post here)...



 ...and at the time I was hoping to create a new one each month.
Unfortunately 2016 (so far) has kept me on my toes with family health challenges so the plan has not yet come to fruition, but last night I remembered some applique bird pieces I shared with you last year and decided they'd be perfect for a new tea towel project!

Here's the little applique shapes (read the blog post here)...




...and here's the tea towel and fabric I pulled from my stash last night.



They're a perfect background for the bright little bird shapes!
I'll hand applique the birds in place on a strip of the peachy/pink gingham before I sew the completed section across the bottom of the green towel. The preparation didn't take long as I already had the applique pieces ready to use...



After mixing and matching body, wing and chest sections I peeled away the Vliesofix and fused the birds onto the gingham...







Once the shapes have been blanket stitched I'll attach the gingham trim to the bottom edge of the tea towel using the same method I showed you in this tutorial...




If you'd like to make some embellished tea towels over the weekend those little bird applique shapes are a free download here in my shop.



My "Bird in a Pot" pattern is normally $1.50 but until August 1st I'm sharing it as a freebie in my shop too!





Thought you might like to see sweet Blossom at almost full term...


She had taken a beautiful photo of the two of us earlier in the day, reflected in her vintage mirror...


So close.
Counting the hours till she and her DB hold their precious daughter.

Have an especially lovely day.
I'm off to Heather's for some stitching and to swoon over her latest craft makeover and to eat delicious food and drink endless cups of tea and coffee whilst trying to contain laughter and not split my sides! I know I'll fail dismally, but it's worth it for the fun we'll have.

hugs


12 comments:

Ondrea said...

I love your tea towels and have been meaning to make some but haven't yet managed to do so. Blossom looks wonderful and the pic of the 2 of you is really lovely. Have a great day out.

Annabel said...

These are gorgeous! Thank you.
Your daughter looks just beautiful and radiant! xxx

Maria said...

Love your tea towels Jenny. Always make a beautiful gift...
Beautiful photo of Blossom , lovely baby bump there. Not long now !
Nice one of Mum and daughter too.

Jude said...

Thank you Jenny, love your tea towels, great gifts too and as you say lovely to have some special ones for special occasions. I am currently embellishing tea towels and hand towels at the moment for birthday gift (your blog an inspiration), decorative as well as useful and came across a couple of new white hand towels in my stash which I plan to trim with appropriate fabric for baby burp cloths to include with another hand made gift. Oh the photos of Blossom are beautiful, Blossom is blooming and radiant, lovely photo of the both of you too, enjoy this next week or so, a pampering day perfect. Judithann xx

Snoodles said...

Thank you for the birdies! I am planning on making some towels using your tutorial. Thank you for sharing...glad you are feeling better and can go visiting. You and Blossom are lovely.

Brenda said...

Good Morning Jenny! As always, I appreciate and adore every one of your projects that you share with us! You are such a talented and giving artist that so inspires me to reach new levels in every thing that I do. Thank You so much for sharing and giving, plus teaching everyday also. Love the pictures of you and Blossom, she is just glowing and you are just beaming! I recently bought new tea towels, we use them constantly in our kitchen also, with these new ideas...they will be extra special this year. Thank you again for sharing and have a fantastic creative day!

Anonymous said...

I love the picture of you and Blossom together, and even more, I love the look on her face in the one by herself. That's almost a Mona Lisa smile, only a little more happy looking. =) The tea towel idea is super. I bought a batch of tea towels to sew strips to, but how much more fun to have this kind of strip! I look forward to the post showing what's going on at Heather's and what you had to eat. Those are favorite posts of mine!

Mimi said...

Dear Jenny...what a special time to share with your darling girl. My daughter is just 16, so we have a few years yet before we share similar moments (I hope!), but I know I will treasure it as you clearly do. All the best to Blossom and her lovely man on the impending arrival of their sweet daughter. And to you on becoming a grandparent...a true privilege in life. Love, Mimi xxx

Allie-oops Designs said...

LOVELY tea towels! Oh those pics of Blossom are so gorgeous, love the pic of the two of you especially!

Joanne said...

Thanks for sharing the Bird in a pot pattern Jenny!
and all of what you write, create and "show and tell"!
Such a lovely blog to read!
Take care,
Joanne

Baa. xxx said...

Blossom looks beautiful! Waiting...waiting.....to meet the new person in her life......

Cattinka said...

Jenny, did Blossom deliver jet?
KATRIN W.