Great ideas!

Hi Gelswood,
I also have lots of home furnishing fabrics (used to make curtains for clients) and now use them for table runners and placemats. Usually back them with a thinner fabric so they will not be too bulky.

I was wondering about making bib-aprons from the 'polished' looking home dec fabrics?? (always splatter the top, it seems, so the only-from-waist-down aprons are useless for me). Are they washable enough? need to be prewashed/preshrunk?
Thanks!

GUILTY! glad i'm not the only one

I love upholstery fabrics, especially tapestries. I think these would make beautiful placemats or tablerunners. Don't forget fabric can be painted with transparent colors that will give a different result than painting with solid colors.
Just a basic reminder, if you have a upholstery fabric in beige and that doesn't match your decor, transparent or translucent green will give you an olive color, almost any pale color will give a greyed color - experiment and have some fun. Even a latex paint on strong fabric will produce a finish similar to oil cloth- not too flexible but water resistant. Outdoor chair covers?

Toss pillows, floor pillows, tote bags......car robes (back with fleece).

i do alot of the mentioned ones and love the ideas everyone has that i haven't tried yet but will . i haven't seen this one mentioned. take scraps or what ever you want and decorate a large oatmeal container. we try and do it in the color or theme of the person bath that is recieving it. we put baggies of cookies or candy ect in it or even shirts or whatever that will fit. then after words they can use it to hold 2 rolls of toliet paper. remembered that seeing the commercial on tv about naked toliet paper lol. we have done that since the 60's. also old cd's can be used for ornaments or coasters. as for material everything is game just like grandma and others before us did.

also above mentioned upholstery fabric that works great for totes or purses too.

[quote=cr12cats]...also old cd's can be used for ornaments or coasters....
quote]

Old CDs make a great mirror for your purse, are readily replaceable, and best of all, take up almost no room since they're flat.

What absolutely creative and thrifty people on this board. I just love to read all these terrific ideas. It's like a corporate 'think tank' out there. :thumbup: :)

good idea postal packin mama. aren't quilters a crafty bunch? i love these kinds of ideas we get here