travel tea party

Little girls and tea parties go hand-in-hand (Not that little boys can't have tea parties too, we have had many boys at our tea table!) and they are a great time to sit an be guest at your child's table. Amelia happens to love her singing tea pot so when I saw the idea for this on the Prudent Baby website I thought it would be a great idea for this years Easter basket. But then Easter came and went and I still hadn't made it. The forecast calling for rain all week turned out to be the nudge I needed to get going! I broke out the collection of fabrics that I have had a love affair with for sometime (perfect for a girly little tea table!) and started sewing. Here's what I did:

Materials:

Two- 1 yard cuts of fabric
3 fabric quarters (or equivalent amount of fabric, 18" x 21")
4 yards of ribbon
Sewing supplies (needle, thread, pins, scissors, fabric pen, etc.)
4 sets of velcro dots with sticky backs

Making the table cloth/bag

Step one: Cutting the table cloth circles.
Iron the 1 yard cuts of fabric. Stack them with right sides facing each other with the smaller on top. Determine the width of the smaller fabric and divide it by two to find the center and mark it with a straight pin. To make circles take a piece of string cut to half the smallest width of fabric and pin one end to the center and tie your fabric pen onto the other end. You can now draw a circle, letting the string be your guide. Using straight pins, pin both fabrics together about one inch from your line. Using a pair of sharp scissors cut through both layers of fabric.

Step two: Make the button hole to run the draw string through.
Determine where on the outer fabric the button hole will be. It should be 1/2" from the fabric edge and be 1/2" long. Mark the starting point and sew the button hole using the setting on the sewing machine. You may need to remove a pin to ensure you are sewing only through the outer fabric and replace pin when finished.

Step three: Sew the layers together.
Using the sewing machine, sew the two pieces together with a 1/4" seam allowance, leaving an opening about 6" wide to allow the fabric to be turned right side out. Once the fabric is turned right side out iron the hem to make the edge crisp. Sew the opening closed.

Step four: Make the pocket for the draw string.
Sew a 1" hem along the outside of the circle. Fasten a safety pin to one end of the ribbon and feed into the button hole and work it through until it comes back out the button hole. Making sure the tablecloth is laying completely flat, tie the two ends of the ribbon together leaving a small tail. Trim off any excess or frays.

Making the placemats:

Iron two of the fabric quarters and cut each into four 8" x10" pieces. Take two pieces and place the right sides of the fabric together. Sew the two pieces together using a 1/4" seam allowance leaving about a 3" space to turn the fabrics right side out. Once turned right side out iron the seams flat and sew along the perimeter using a 1/8" seam allowance. Repeat with the remaining sets.

Making the napkins:

Iron the fabric quarter and cut into four 8" x 8" pieces. Using an iron press 1/4" of the fabric edge over then fold over an additional 1/4" and press. (This will keep the rough edge tucked away so there will be no fraying with use.) Sew along the perimeter using a 1/4" seam allowance.

Making the napkin rings:

I can't let fabric scraps go to waste to I used the leftover fabric from cutting the circles for he table cloth but you can use new fabric if you'd like. Cut 8 strips that are 7 1/2" x 2 1/2" and 8 strips that are 10" x 1". Starting with two 10" x 1" strips, fold them in half lengthwise (one at a time) and sew a running stitch along the raw edges about 1/8" from edge. Hold onto the back thread and pull the fabric along the thread until it begins to bunch and measures 7". Spread the ruffle evenly across the thread then pin to the right side of one of the 7 1/2" x 2 1/2" strips (leaving 1/4" on each side), raw edges together. Pin to hold the ruffle neatly at the edge. Next lay a second 7 1/2" strip of fabric on top so the right side is facing down and sew along the pinned edge using a 1/4" seam allowance. Open up and remove pins and place the next ruffle on the raw edge, pin, and fold back over and sew. This will create a tube that you will then turn right side out after you carefully remove your pins. Press flat and turn in the raw edges and sew closed. Place on velcro dot on the top side on the right end of the ring, and the second onto the bottom side of the ring on the left side. Repeat with remaining strips.

Place the placemats and napkins and pretties on top of the table cloth and pull the drawstring to keep your tea linens nice and neatly together or open it up and pour a cup of tea and enjoy!

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