How to Create Your Own Decorative Bathroom Towels

Turn ordinary plain towels into personal works of art.

Adding some flair to your bathroom by way of decorative bathroom towels can cost a small fortune. Decorative towels are expensive, and the sad thing is, you rarely use them since they're "just for show." Save money by purchasing inexpensive towels and trimming them to match your decor yourself.

Things You'll Need

• Inexpensive towels and washcloths
• Designer upholstery fabric
• Braid or trim
• Thread to match
• Sewing machine and basic sewing implements

Instructions

1. Purchase an inexpensive bath towel, hand towel and wash cloth in a color that matches your decor. Measure the width of each to give you an idea of how much trim and fabric you will need. You only need to trim one end of the towels as the other end is folded over and hidden from view.

2. Buy decorative fabric -- a heavy brocaded upholstery fabric will work well for this project, although you can use whatever fabric you like. Fabric is usually found in 54- and 60-inch widths. Many stores will have a minimum that you need to purchase, but 9 inches or 1/4 yard will be plenty. Cut across the width into a 6-inch strip.

3. Choose a coordinating braid or other trim. Purchase to go across each towel. A bath towel is typically around 26 inches, a hand towel is 15 and a wash cloth is 12. Get about 6 extra inches to fold under for a nice finished edge.

4. Zigzag stitch or serge all the edges of the 6-inch strips for a clean, fray-free finish. Cut into pieces about 2 inches longer than the width of the towels. Cut these slightly shorter if needed to accommodate your fabric width. Serge or zigzag stitch the cut ends.

5. Stitch the braid onto the towel 5 inches up from the bottom edge.

6. Turn under one 1/2-inch edge of the long strips of fabric. Lay under the braid, pin and then topstitch to the towel. Tuck side and bottom edges around to the back of the towel and topstitch down.

7. Steam press the towel edges to hold the shape you would like when they're hanging on the rod.

Tips & Warnings

• All of these steps can be done with a heavy fabric glue instead of sewing, if preferred.

References

• Murray the Monster: Quick Tip: Sewing with Decorative Fabric Trims