mid-century modern cabinet

Back in the day, when music came in vinyl and "hi" was the appropriate prefix for "fi", Universal Woodcrafters, Inc of LaPorte, Indiana manufactured cabinets for all things stereo. From the smallish box surrounding a Jensen speaker, to furniture that could host both the record collection and the turntable, Universal Woodcrafters, Inc. fashioned veneered wood into humble designs with clean lines. 

I recently swooped up a sweet little UWI cabinet in fair condition that begged me for a fresh coat of chalk paint. 

If its veneer had been in better shape, I could have gotten away with a deep clean and polish. But with chipped corners and a complete peel-off on most of the bottom shelf, the veneer was beyond my repair ability. 

The appeal of chalk paint is not only the matte, shabby chic finish but the fact that the furniture surface needs just a good degreasing before applying the paint. Since a quart of chalk paint runs around $40-$60, I researched DIY recipes and got some advice from the shop owner where I purchased the cabinet. 

She advised calcium carbonate as the best chalk paint thickener, with Plaster of Paris as a close second. Calcium carbonate is pretty difficult to find locally. But I already had P of P in my craft supplies. 

She also recommended using the sample size containers of flat paint (available at many of the major home improvement stores) because it's just enough for a small project. I used the recipe found here http://howtodistressfurniture.net/how-to-make-chalk-paint-2 

and mixed up a lovely shade of green. 

I used 1-and-a-half sample sized containers of paint for this cabinet. 

Two coats of paint and 24 hours of dry time later it was ready for a clear wax buffing.

My sweet cabinet now happily lives in my craft room where it houses card-making supplies and exudes it's cheery attitude. And I love that history ties it to the wonderful Hoosier town of La Porte. 

flour sack bib

Flour sack cloth is highly absorbent and soft. When sewn with multiple layers, it makes a protective bib for babies. You can add some batting in-between the layers for even more soak-proofness. 

This was a quick project! 

You can buy bib patterns at the fabric store or make your own. I traced a store bought bib onto poster paper to make my own template.

Layer two or three flour sack towels, pin your pattern to them and then cut to size. 

Next, prepare the appliqué. 

Potential appliqué designs surround you! Once you start looking for them, you'll see them everywhere. 

Using a baby gift bag for appliqué template inspiration, I traced giraffe designs onto Wonder Under fusible web. Fusible web is transparent - be sure to trace on the paper side. 

Keep in mind that the design will be flipped horizontally when you apply the webbing-side-down fabric for fusing.

Next, cut out the fusible web shapes and iron them onto the wrong side of your appliqué fabric. (Be sure to follow the instructions provided with the fusible web.) Prewashed cotton fabrics, especially from the quilting section of the fabric store, offer some really cute designs. Choose a tiny print if your appliqué is narrow or small.

Allow to cool before cutting appliqué on the lines.  Peel the paper backing off the cutout fabric. You can scratch the paper with the tip of a pin or your scissors and stretch the fabric to make the paper pop off the surface.

Flour sack towels are pretty similar on both sides.  Just choose one side as your "right" or "finished" side. Then follow your fusible web directions to iron the appliqués onto the right side of the bib. 

Stack the fabric so the appliqués are inside & in-between layers. Pin edges and sew, leaving an opening for turning. 

Once you turn the bib inside out, you can stitch the opening closed and topstitch. Topstitching is really important!  Bibs get a lot of washing and drying-topstitching will keep the layers from shifting.

I used a snap closure for the back of this bib. I sewed a fabric leaf and used it as a base for applying the snaps.

Other bib fasteners could be fabric/ribbon ties, Velcro or knit trim (for pullover bibs).

To help the iron-on appliqués withstand multiple launderings, I topstitched along the edge of each appliqué. I used a straight stitch. A zigzag or buttonhole stitch could also be used.

(For a subsequent flour sack bib, I experimented with the edge treatment. Instead of stitching, leaving an opening and then turning and topstitching...I triple straight stitched the edges and left a little margin of fabric to fray and curl with time.)

Now, go feed that baby!