20 Minute DIY Tea Towel Half Aprons

Let’s take a break from all the Halloween crafts and pumpkin spice recipes for a quick and easy DIY, ok?

Today I’m sharing a simple sewing project that takes 20 minutes (or less!) to complete and is as practical as it is cute. I’ve partnered with Snapfish to take one of their popular photo gifts and turn it into a half apron that’s perfect for protecting clothing and wiping your hands on while cooking. And the best part is that when you’re done, you can just throw it in the washing machine! See, functional and fun!

I started out with the tea towel that can be customized with any graphic, background or personal photo you like. If you’re been following me for awhile you know that I’m a big fan of dots so when I saw this dot background in the Snapfish customizer I knew I wanted to use it as is. They have tons of other fun backgrounds and templates to choose from that can be used without any editing (like the design shown) or you can add text or photos to personalize the towel. I think adding a monogram or name would make these a perfect hostess gift, don’t you?

If you’re reluctant to try this project because you’re a novice seamstress don’t worry. All you need to do is sew one long straight line with a sewing machine to make these aprons. So go ahead and dust off your sewing machine and give this quick DIY a try. Continue reading for the supply list and step-by-step directions.

Supplies

Tea Towel printed with your favorite graphics
7/8″ double fold bias tape, about 3 yards or 2x your waist measurement plus 1 yard
Thread, in a coordinating color
Straight pins
Sewing machine
Scissors
Optional: daisy lace or pom pom trim

Directions

Step 1

Head over to Snapfish and order your tea towels. They have tons of fun backgrounds and graphics available so you can create your towel exactly to a tea ::wink::. I used the fun dots medium background in coral, mint and yellow and you can find it by navigating to Photo Gifts > Tea Towel > Make This Product. On the left hand side, navigate to Backgrounds > Patterns > Fun Dots Medium and select the color you like.

Get 40% off your order!

Place your order now through 12/31/18 using the coupon code CRAFTY40 to receive 40% off sitewide!

Step 2

Once your tea towels arrive, fold them in half to find the center of the long side and mark it with a pin. Open up the double-fold bias tape and find the center. Open the bias tape and line up the center of the bias tape with the center of the tea towel, placing the edge of the towel along the center fold of the bias tape.

Step 3

Use a few straight pins to pin the bias tape in place.

Step 4

Using a sewing machine with coordinating thread, use a straight stitch to sew the bias tape closed all the way from one end to the other. Remove the straight pins just before sewing up to them to avoid breaking the sewing machine needle. Trim the ends of thread.

Reinforce the top edge of the bias tape where it meets the towel by sewing a second line. This can be done with another straight stitch or decorative stitch. While working on this project I discovered that my sewing machine does scalloped stitches so obviously I had to use that stitch! But a straight stitch would work just as well.

And that’s it! Sew easy, right? I told you this was a quick project. And if you’re like me and only have time to craft after your little is a sleep this project works up so quickly you can knock out a bunch of these in an hour and keep them on hand for holiday gifts—because we all know it will be gifting season before we know it!

Optional Detail

If you want your half aprons to be a little extra, you can add trim! I added white pom pom trim to the mint green aprons and an adorable daisy lace trim to the yellow apron. Just pin in place and sew it with white (or coordinating) thread.