Fabric Dish Mat... or Kitty Blankie???

I have used a plastic tray as a dish drainer for years. In the last year or so, I decided I wanted to have a collection of these to change with seasons and holidays. I thought it would be easy. I thought finding a Christmas tray would be easiest of all. I looked everywhere and never found one I liked. I ended up using a fall leaves tray all through December and every time I looked at it, it annoyed me.

I'm glad my collection idea never got very far. I came across an idea I like even better. A fabric dish mat.

I first saw the idea on Berlin's Whimsy while I was looking at her Swiffer cover how-to.


Berlin's Whisey got the idea from the dish mat she saw on Seams of Life.

I wanted to see more. A search led me to this one by Darby on Fly Through Our Window?
She gives complete details on how it's made.

The other photos give you a better idea of just how pretty it must be in person. I love the fabrics.

Now, I can make my own dish mats. Fabric choices are infinite! I won't have to hunt and hunt for trays I like. I could make the quilted. I could make them from a pretty placemat. I could make them from thrifted fabrics or salvageable pieces of vintage linens. They could be simple or detailed - whatever I'm in the mood for. Or... whatever I have time for.

For my first effort, I impatiently purchased (gasp) fabric to match the vintage fabric in my curtains. I won't waste time feeling guilty, but I really prefer to find my fabrics from thrift stores and yard sales. I love turning a discard into something new. I added two other fabrics to the new and sewed strips of them all together.

I added piping from my scraps and sewed the whole thing onto an old towel.

Here it is in place. I don't know. I made it a little big, which seemed like a good idea at the time. Will it be useful? Trays are easier to clean and put right back in place. This will need to be laundered. I love choosing my own fabrics, my own designs. But, I'm not in love with it. It seems a bit tacky. There's a fine line between kitsch and tacky and I may have crossed over to the wrong side. Possibly a smaller one - just large enough for the dish drainer - would be better. On the up side , I do love the fabric combination - it would be delicious on my porch as a pillow. If I decide I don't want to use it as a dish drainer, it would make an excellent kitty blankie.

This is not how I envisioned starting off the new decade. Another less than fabulous effort. I don't seem to know what I want these days. I used to have a good eye for decorating and putting things together. Or maybe I was just deluded and completely believed my kind friends who said I had a good eye. I sure have had a lot of decorating bombs this last decade. Wrong sofa. Wrong carpet. Wrong paint colors. I'm tired of that and I resolve to move forward with a bit more confidence. (Did that sound convincing?)

Unexpected Good Things

First of all, I am flabbergasted by something that is missing from my blog. Last year around the first of January, I won a photograph from Little Red House. I remember emailing to thank her and I remember writing about it for my blog. I remember writing to my friends to tell them how excited I was to have won. It was such a wonderful surprise.

I recently framed the photo (which made it seem like winning all over again) and wanted to write Mary to tell her how much I am enjoying it. I looked for mention of it on my blog and it wasn't there! What happened? Did I delete it? Did it never get published? I went back to work around that time so there's no telling. I don't even know what to say.


The photo is so serene and quiet. It's a cold wintry day. At first it appears to be a black and white photo, but on closer inspection you see brown leaves and other slight signs of color. I propped it on my kitchen counter in a spot that draws the eye. It makes me happy every time I look at it. Thank you, Mary!

Another unexpected good thing... a free wreath was delivered to us by LL Bean just before Christmas. It's made from real fir and smells delicious. It's nice and fresh and perky. What a luxury. Better yet, what a pleasant surprise.


It needed to be outside, so I hung it just outside the door we use the most. I tend to spend more effort dressing up this door than our front. It's a reminder that things are good.

The wreath that was there needed to be moved. I had already made another one for the front door. Rudy (who seems to be doing better than me with fresh ideas) suggested hanging the extra one inside on our dining room doors. Loved it! The picture does not do it justice. It's brighter and more red in person.