DIY Vintage Napkins - Junk in the Trunk Vintage Market

Whether you are aware of it or not, the first thing you notice when you attend a party or event are the details. Details are what sets apart a party from a soiree (don’t you love that word?)!

One of the easiest ways to gussy up a table is with special napkins. Most people probably expect paper napkins, right? But what if I told you, you could make 20 of these beauties for less than $10 TOTAL? Would you be tempted to turn your party into a soiree? Well, you’re in luck! Details below on how to make your very own set of vintage napkin.

Materials
– Fabric (here’s where you can really save some money! We bought this fitted sheet at Goodwill for $3.99)
– Scissors
– Scrap Paper
– Lace
– Sewing Machine or heat bond tape (use in place of sewing)

Step 1

If you are using a fitted sheet, cut the elastic around the corners. You can save time and skip this step if you find a flat sheet or pillow cases to used.

Step 2

WASH your fabric. Whether you bought it at Goodwill or the fabric store, doesn’t matter, give it a bath.

Step 3

Create a pattern. I used scrapbook paper to create an 8″x 8″ square to use as a pattern. You can make any size you like, 8″x 8″ is a good size to fold in half.

Step 4

Trace your pattern. You can find fabric markers at your local craft fabric store that wash out, but I typically cheat and use a colored pencil.

In this case, the fabric was very thin, so I wanted a napkin that had both a front and back, so I doubled the pattern. Essentially I traced 2 – 8″x 8″ squares together.

Step 5

Cut your squares out. This is the most time consuming part! If you have a sewing rotary cutter, it will save you a lot of time, and blisters. In my case, I used good ol’ scissors. I could have cut 2 squares and sewed them together, but to save myself a step, I didn’t cut along the fold line for my front and back.

Step 6

Iron. I always want to skip this step. . . mostly because I am impatient. But then I do it, and I remember why it’s so important. It really helps to line up your edges. I folded my napkins along the front/back fold line (*IMPORTANT – be sure to put right sides together since you will be turning these inside out). Once all the napkins are ironed, pin along the edges.

Step 7

Sew! Sew all around the pinned edges. Be sure to stop and leave a small hole so you can pull the right side through (you will sew this hole later).

Step 8

Cut the tip of each corner. Be careful not to cut your seam you just created. Cutting thr tips will help make a cleaner corner.

Step 9

Turn the napkin inside out so the right side is facing out.

Step 10

Stitch up the hole you used to turn right-side out. You can do this by hand with a needle and thread with a hidden stich if desired, I just used my machine.