Edited to add:
I turned these instructions into a printable file- download it at the end of the page.
Learn how to sew double sided fabric napkins with mitered corners; this project is fun, quick, easy and you will be able to use beautiful fabrics from your stash.
You can make them in any size, depending on the size of the fabrics you have at hand. If you have fat quarters from the same fabric collection, you can mix patterns as you want and you will make beautiful double sided napkins.
You can make square or rectangular napkins, depending on your needs.
EASY TUTORIAL -HOW TO SEW DOUBLE SIDED FABRIC NAPKINS WITH MITERED CORNERS
For a 14” x 14” napkin with 3/4” border you need:
– one piece 13 1/2” x 13 1/2” for the front side
– one piece 17” x 17” for the backing (3 1/2” bigger than the front fabric, in case you want to make napkins in other sizes).
I used quilt cotton fabric; do not use synthetic fabrics.
Fold one of the corners of the backing fabric in half, right side of fabric inside; align the raw edges and finger press the fabric fold.
Place on the corner a small square ruler as shown below.
Align the diagonal of the ruler with the raw edges of the piece and the horizontal 2” line with the fold of fabric. The center 2” point of the ruler must be placed exactly on the corner.
Draw a 1” line (half of the vertical edge of the ruler, which is 2), from the fabric fold up (see the yellow marking line below). Make sure you place the ruler correctly, the drawn line must be perpendicular on the fabric fold!
You can use a fine, permanent marker.
Use a pin to keep the layers in place and stitch on the drawn line, backstitching at the beginning and end of the seam.
Trim the excess fabric as shown, at 1/4” from the seam.
Repeat these steps with the other three corners. Turn the corners right side out.
Use such tool and push the corners out- this is very important.
Repeat with all the corners; finger press the outer edges as shown, from corner to corner.
Press the folded edges; make sure you keep a consistent width for all four borders.
Fold the border in half as shown, aligning the raw edge of border with the folded edge- this will create the final width of the border. Press.
Repeat with all the other borders. The corners should look like this:
If you want to make a single side napkin, just secure the inner folded edges of the piece. This is a self-binding napkin and you can use this technique for sewing table runners out of heavyweight (home décor) fabrics. If you want, you can use a decorative stitching.
Place the front fabric on the backing; this fabric should be 1/4” or 1/2” smaller than the backing (mine was a little smaller than this!).
Slide the front fabric under the border, keeping the layers smooth.
Use a little glue to keep the fabric under the border.
Topstitch close to the inner edge of the border. You can use a decorative stitch if you want.
Press. The napkin is done!
HOW TO MAKE WIDER BORDERS TO DOUBLE SIDED FABRIC NAPKINS WITH MITERED CORNERS
You can vary the width of the borders as you wish; here is what you need to know.
For this napkin that measures 14 1/2” x 14 1/2” with 1” wide borders you need:
– one piece 19” x 19” for the backing
– one piece 14” x 14” for the front side
Use the 3” line of the ruler and draw a 1 1/2” line (half of 3”) perpendicular on the fabric fold.
Here is how to calculate the final width of the borders, based on the length of the drawn line (X) shown below.
Border Width = X/1.41
So if your drawn line is 2”, the width of the border will be 2/1.41 = about 1 1/2”.
Alternative, if you want to make a border in a certain width, as example 2”, you must draw a line 2*1.41= about 2 3/4” so use the 5 1/2” lines of the ruler.
Here is a rectangular napkin (I think it is great for kids at school) measuring 10 1/2” x 18 1/2”, with a 3/4” wide borders (as in the first example).
You need :
Backing: 13 1/2” x 21 1/2”
Front fabric: 10” x 18”
I hope this helps and you will give it a try! Imagine all the prints you can use!
Download printable instructions below.
HAPPY SEWING DOUBLE SIDED FABRIC NAPKINS WITH MITERED CORNERS
Greta, the napkins are lovely! What creative and generous woman you are! Will you please explain something to me? In the 5th picture, the base (larger red dotted) fabric is folded in half, making a rectangle. In the next picture, where you show how to place the ruler, but the base (larger red fabric square) appears to be folded in a triangle. Which way is correct?
I plan to use this idea to make perfect corners on linens we use on the church altar. It is much easier than the current method that I use.
Thank you in advance, Fran Z!
Fran, the 5th picture just shows the fabrics used, the way I folded them does not matter. The technique starts with picture #6, you fold each corner in half and then you will have a triangle.
I love this idea. Thank you for sharing.
I love your patterns! Your instructions are so clear that it makes it easy to follow. I have wanted to make these reversible napkins for a long time but never understood the math! Thanks so much for sharing this info.
I love these! I almost didn’t click on your link in my Bloglovin’ post because there are SO MANY napkin tutorials out there, but I’m glad I did because this is different and I love the finished product! I also love that you told us how to do the math to make them the size we want. This is definitely going on my list of things to try! THANK YOU so much for posting this!!!