Pile-O-Pretty Clouds and Pile-O-Napkins

My sister is here visiting us from Arizona and she brought along a new dinner plate and a new lunch plate to show me her new dishes. We went to the fabric store and she picked out two fabrics for some new napkins. Zip, zip with the serger...and...poof! New napkins. A while back I used cloth napkins on special occasions. Now I try to use them everyday. Some days it is pretty easy to grab a paper towel or a paper napkin, but the cloth ones I have made for us are very soft and pretty and reusable. I like using clip clothespins with names written on them to keep track of napkins between meals. Unless I make something pretty messy or gooey, they can be reused several times before being washed. I have found that a fat quarter is just the perfect to make an 18" x 18" napkin. Thus, you can get four out of a yard. You also can sew two squares, wrong sides together, leaving an opening for turning. Turn right side out, press opening closed and topstitch around the edges. Obviously you need twice as much fabric, but the double cloth napkins are very nice. For everyday use, it is fun to have a bowl of assorted fun colors and prints. A good gift for someone would be just such an assortment, even matching some of their interests to the many prints out there. Great way to use up some of those fat quarters that are just waiting to be used. Bonus picture tonight. Did you happen to catch the sunset around these parts tonight? Wow. The picture does not do it justice at all...by the time I got the camera out, the neon orange in the dark blue/grey clouds was almost gone. Jerilynn