Healthy Fabrics

Handmade Hemp Ornaments

Do you remember making paper snowflakes when you were a kid? Use the same fold & cut technique to make these eco-cloth ornaments. Cut snowflakes from white linen fabric backed with fusible web. Fuse and hand stitch your one-of-a-kind designs to 3" hemp rounds, front and back. Insert a piece of boiled wool sweater or wool batting to give ornaments a bit of dimension. Blanket stitch outer edge and add a loop using hemp twine or wool embroidery floss. Happy Holidays!

Hybrid Quilts

Hybrid Quilts, that’s what I call the patchwork blankets I make from new and old fabrics that are both eco-friendly and home healthy: vintage cotton prints for the top and new wide-width organic cotton or hemp/organic cotton blends for the backing. Sandwiched in between is sustainably produced natural fiber batting such as an alpaca blend, wool or cotton. The fun part about making a hybrid quilt is hunting for the vintage fabrics and creating a color scheme that’s uniquely you. I use a simple square or rectangle layout. I can piece it quickly and then hand everything off to a long arm quilting pro to do the rest. A hard core quilter once called that “lazy”. I call it energy efficient!

Hemp Canvas Fabric

One of my favorite hemp fabrics is the versatile 11 or 12 oz. semi-bleached canvas. It’s the ideal weight and texture for so many home décor applications: pillows, cushion covers, upholstery and shades. Hemp canvas is durable; wear and tear softens the hand over time but the fiber remains strong. The milky natural color has a subtle yellow cast, like pale butter. It's one of those goes-with-everything neutrals. No dyes are used to achieve it, just hydrogen peroxide. And, here’s a tidbit that might surprise you: the color deepens slowly with age and sunlight exposure resembling a tea stain. Get it at Hemp Traders.

Toxic Free by Debra Lynn Dadd

Furnishing your home with items made from untreated and organically processed materials is critical to protecting your health and creating a healthy living space. Once you’ve tackled that take the next step in reducing your exposure to other chemical off-gassing products throughout your entire house. Need a little help? Read Toxic Free by Debra Lynn Dadd. This book is full of practical information and resources for freeing yourself from the harmful effects of toxic chemicals found in consumer products and the environment. This is a must read. I like!

Amy Butler's Organic Soul

 
This week’s healthy home fabric find is this gorgeous design from Amy Butler, just one of several floral prints from her Organic Soul collection. Printed on 44” wide certified organic cotton using low impact dyes (Hurray!) and priced at $14.98/yard. I see curtains; a simple pocket-rod style lined with hemp & organic cotton muslin to add body and drape. This Lime-Peel colorway is my favorite -- a soothing and refreshing palette of greens that make an ideal backdrop for interiors. No doubt it will grace your space with “organic soul”.

 

Hemp Quilt

 
A quilt made from hemp? Yes! And, it’s soft, cozy and warm just as you’d expect any quilt to be. This one is a simple, scrappy patchwork design made mostly from hemp summercloth, hemp canvas, hemp muslin, hemp herringbone; classic weaves of subtle textures and natural hues that showcase the beauty of this amazing bast fiber. Pieces of color grown organic cotton chambray and herringbone, and vintage linen twill are interspersed to add color depth and additional surface interest.

Read on to find out why hemp makes the best healthy home quilt, which batting to use in a hemp quilt and tips for “tinting” hemp fabric with coffee or tea to create a rich palette of naturals for your patchworks.

Happy Yellow Organic Cotton Twill

My healthy home fabric find this week is Yellow Organic Cotton Twill from Organic Cotton Plus. At 90” wide this sustainably produced 7 oz. twill is a bargain: $8.95 / 1-4 yards and $7.95 / 5-9 yards. It’s an ideal weight for throw pillows, cushions and casual slipcovers. Limited time offer so buy it now and use it to brighten and invigorate your space this winter. Per Kate Smith of Sensational Color: In the world of color, yellow is considered one of the most stimulating and emotional in the spectrum. Read her interesting post, Yellow’s Split Personality.

Organic Linen Resource for Curtains

Simple organic linen panels are the perfect eco-alternative to polyester sheers. Make your own with GOTS and IMO certified organic linen from Pickering. This flax fabric is semi-sheer, lightweight and has lovely body and drape even after washed. It does a great job at filtering light no matter the season. The soft-white color and subtle texture looks beautiful when layered with decorative curtains. Cold wash and warm dry this fabric before sewing to give your panels a soft crumpled, casual appearance and to minimize shrinkage. Expect 2” shrinkage per yard length. Note: Pickering is a wholesale fabric supplier and welcomes small business purchases of 10 yards or more. For retail purchases please contact me. 

Repurpose Tablecloths Into Towels

I figure every home textile item has more than one use. A tablecloth, for instance, whether it’s new or slightly used has so much more potential than simply covering a table. I see cotton and linen tablecloths as valuable yardage, ready to be transformed into all kinds of kitchen essentials like dish towels, napkins or even an apron. Did you know a tablecloth that measures 56" x 106" will yield 10 big dish towels? Here’s how I repurposed my new and old tablecloths into an eclectic, colorful bunch of towels and napkins for less than a dollar each.

Laurel Leaf Farm’s Vintage Fabrics

 
If you’re on the hunt for a one-of-kind cotton print from a specific era be sure to peruse Laurel Leaf Farm’s extensive offering of reclaimed fabrics. This is one of my favorite online retailers for feedsacks, quilting calicos, 1940-50’s mid to heavy weight decorator cloth, like these large scale cottage florals, as well as, some really groovy prints from the 1960’s.