Great Idea: Laminated Cotton Apron

How totally cute is this laminated cotton apron!?! Laura, See How We Sew, has made a wonderful hostess apron with PLEATS!! She's brilliant, brilliant I tell you! Not only did she floor me with pleats, she added a D-ring so she could keep her tea towel handy.

Painters tape to the rescue!! Personal note, don't leave the painters tape of for too long, it can leave a sticky film if it's on too long -- I've learned that one the hard way.

Pretty laminated cotton pleats!! 

Head on over to See How We Sew and tell her how much you love it. She's hosting a give away too. Good luck!

Q and A: The wrong side of laminated cotton

This super cute fabric will be arriving in March, but I got a hold of some to play with early!! Stay tuned!!

Q: What does the backside of the laminate cotton look like and just to verify, it is food safe?

A The back side of laminated cotton is just cotton fabric. Unfortunately, the fabric manufacturers have not had their fabric tested for food safety. Here's what I know about food safety and fabric..

Q: Thank you, is the back side printed or solid white?

A: Laminated cotton is a two process fabric. First the design is printed onto cotton, just like a quilting cotton would be. Then the printed fabric is laminated with a thin coating of polyurethane.

I have attached a photo with the wrong side of a fabric that will becoming out next month. You can clearly see the monkey's on the back side.

Thanks for asking, I hope this helps,
Kelly

New Laminated Cottons!!

 Charisma laminate by Amy Butler

 Gypsy Cobalt laminated cotton by Amy Butler 

Super darn cute chevron apple laminate by Erin McMorris' Greenhouse line!

Cool Stuff: I Spy Bags

Check out what Jenn from On the Fray made with her laminated cotton. I Spy Bags!!! I think that's totally brilliant! Totally! Can you imagine how much mileage a young mom will get out of having one of these tucked away in her purse? The checkout lane of the grocery store will be a breeze now.

How to care for your laminated cotton.

The Sis Boom Blue Paisley laminated cotton fabric on the right side has been machine washed and line dried. 

So you've fallen hard for all the new laminated cottons, who could blame you? Now you're imagining all the baby bibs, barons and splat mats that your going to make for the next baby shower. Your saving your favorite print for a new dining room tablecloth and a coordinating apron to keep you clean and dry while you doing the dishes! I hear ya, I am right there with you.

So, let's talk about cleaning up all those pretty projects. The manufacturer says that the laminated cottons are machine washable in cold water and that you can tumble dry on low. For the most part, I agree with those care instructions.

I have washed and dried laminated cotton a few times to see how it holds up. The laminate's have washed up nicely but I prefer to line dry my projects to lesson wrinkling. I have found that the texture of the laminated cotton changes a bit with washing but other than that it's a great way to clean up smaller projects like baby bibs or changing mats. Let's face it NO ONE wants to hand wash either one of those messy things.

But when it comes to the larger projects like tablecloths I suggest that you just wipe then down with a damp cloth and a gentle spray. I haven't and wouldn't machine wash one of my tablecloths. The twisting action of the washer, even on the hand wash cycle is just too twisty for large items. Machine washing them would cause them to wrinkle. I'm happy to report that my very first laminated cotton has been happily wiped down with a damp cloth for over 3 years.

UPDATE: I forgot to mention a few thing about storage. You'll want to keep your big projects rolled between uses and you'll want to hang the smaller ones up. Folding will result in those pesky wrinkles.