Five Uses For Ticking Striped Fabric

When I was a young teen, my sister and I embarked on a cross country road to trip with my step aunt.

It was a wonderful journey and we had the best time. We drove from New York to Wyoming. 

We spent the night in hotels and ate out every single meal. It was tons of fun. 

 I discovered a couple of things that have stuck with me to this day. 

The first time I'd ever had sour cream on a baked potato was on this trip. I've loved it ever since. 

We were disturbed in the middle of the night by bears outside our hotel window. I'd never been scared by a bear before. 

I think I had Ranch dressing for the first time on that trip too. I go in fits and starts with Ranch Dressing though. 

The best thing about the trip was the feather pillow that I adopted. It was in the back seat of my aunt's Camaro.  I started using it for car naps in her cool car. At the end of the trip, my aunt gave me that pillow. It was covered in vintage ticking. I've been a fan of ticking since that time. 

It became thread bare and eventually I had to recover it. Feathers flew all over the yard. Try moving pillow feathers from one covering to another. It's a lesson in futility! It also looks like it's snowing.

I adore ticking! 

I want to share with your my five favorite uses for ticking striped fabric. 

Placemats:
I made some placemats out of ticking about four years ago. These placemats have been the foundation for some darling tablescapes.

Pillows: 

Not bed pillows but decorative pillows. I love them thrown on the couch to ground the corners.
They are a Farmhouse Style staple and they go with any pillows that I pair them with.

Ticking comes in red too.

Valances:
This is a recent love.  

I've made two valances for the kitchen windows and one for the laundry room. 

They have such a Farmhouse feel but not just American Farmhouse. I think they also go with European Farmhouse Style.

Cupboard Curtain: 

One of my favorite uses for ticking are the curtains for the doors of the pie safe.

 

China and recipe books are hidden behind the doors.

Last year the ticking was red. This year it is blue. I love the ticking behind the rabbit wire. It almost looks like a checked pattern. It is a great way to add a little more fabric to a space.

Slipcovers: 

This is my favorite new use for pillow ticking. 

The slipcover for the curved back World Market chair is so darling. It has a fun cottage feel but the lines are clean and crisp.

I get my ticking at Hobby Lobby. It has a nice heavy weight that closely mimics antique ticking. 

Look for it in red, black, tan, aqua and green. 

Some of the colored ticking isn't as heavy a weave as true pillow ticking. This faux ticking is not really a tight enough weave to keep in pillow feathers.
Make sure you pre-wash the fabric before using. I learned this the hard way.
There you go. Five fun used for pillow ticking fabric.

Have a wonderful day.
What are you up to this weekend?
Katie

Follow The Yellow Brick Home
A Stroll Thru Life 

Recovering The Sofa For The Trailer

The sofa in our little camper is finished. 

It is a cutie.

The neighbor came out to see the trailer that we had parked just to the right of his driveway. 

He'd worked in the manufactured home industry for 30 years. 

I lamented on the hideousness of the fabric to justify the fact that I was ripping out almost pristine upholstery.
Pristine until you take into account the dance party that the mice had one winter.
After he recovered from the realization that we didn't park our mice infested vehicle in front of his house, he mentioned that typically those in the industry tried to spend about $1.00 a yard for the fabric.  

Well, that explains it! 

Palm frond collage? No! No! No! 

I'm opposed to the use of palm fronds except on Palm Sunday or for homes situated near the beach.
I make an exception and allow their use in summer decor if a beach trip is planned or has just been taken.
I am very strict about these guidelines.  

Palm fronds in a camper in the middle of Texas?
NO!

I've done this a little backwards. I should have found the fabric for the sofa before I found the fabric for the windows but I was trying to do what I could while Bill was at work.

I wanted his input for the sofa.

I hit every fabric store in town except for one.
We took a break from the flooring to go have a look at a little local shop that has been in the Town of Pantego forever. 

He has current stock but he also has some stock from about 20 years ago. 

Think big puffy florals and fruit motifs.

I had this fabric and I loved it!
Styles have changed haven't they?

I originally wanted gray denim which I thought would wear well. 

He sold 30 yards of it the day before. It wasn't meant to be, I guess. 

We found a gray that would coordinate with the curtains and the flooring we picked out.
We purchased 6 yards. We spent around $150.00 for it and the accent fabric for Bill's lumbar pillow.

Camper/Trailer stuff is a little odd. 

The fabric was held on by rings rather than staples. The upholstery guy said he didn't have anything like them and that they were probably fabricated at the manufacturer.

He agreed with me that sewing the new fabric onto the existing fabric was the best way to go. 

That is what I did. I wrapped the new fabric around the cushion and sewed it to the the underneath side.
It took a little longer than the Pride and Prejudice movie with Keira Knightly - not that 8 hour movie put out by the BBC.

After it was over, I turned on Going RV so I could look at more $1.00 a yard fabric selections.
Couldn't they upgrade to $2.00 a yard?
Just sayin. 

I felt wonderful about our choices after viewing an episode or two.

It was pretty easy going once I found the best needle and thread for the job.
The needle had a slight curve.

The thread had to be heavy duty to hold the fabric in place.

The false front of the sofa was easy because it was stapled.

Bill was able to reassemble the sofa by attaching the back and bottom onto the pull out sofa/bed mechanism.

The front was screwed into the plywood base of the sofa.

You have gotten a sneak peek at the finished product but please come back for more about our trailer.
Have a great day.
Katie
P.S. Thank you for your prayers about our "lemon" situation.
I'll have such a praise to share next week.


Read about Primer.
Read about Paint. 
Read about Curtains. 
Read about flooring. 


I'll be sharing at these fun parties, if I have time to link up.
Dishing and Digging It @ Life and Linda, 

 Show and Share @ Coastal Charm 

Tuesdays @ Our Home @ Our Home Away From Home
Amaze Me Monday @ My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia,  

Metamorphosis Monday @ Between Naps on the Porch, 

 The Scoop @ Stone Gable,

Inspire Me Tuesday @ A Stroll Thru Life, 
Brag About It @ Across The Boulevard

 Wow Party @ Savvy Southern Style 

Share Your Style @ The Essence of Home, 

Share Your Cup @ Have A Daily Cup of Mrs. Olsen,  

Best of The Weekend @ Ms. Toody Goo Shoes  

 Share It One More Time Inspiration Party
Snickerdoodle Link Party @ Across the Boulevard

The Insecure French Chair

My little $5.00 French chair is back in its old spot.
This chair gets moved around a bit.

You know the chair I'm talking about.
It's the one with the self esteem problem.
It's the "You don't love me as much as you do the other chairs"- chair.
It's the one that always gets moved when it's time to bring in the Christmas tree.
You might have one like this.

It looked pretty good until I recovered the seat. 

When it no longer matched the couch, it was another layer of visual distraction. 

I moved it out in a stunning less is more kind of thing.
I know.
I rarely go for less is more.
"More is more" is usually my credo.

Late last September, I made a slipcover for the couch.

The chair got put back in the corner when I made room for the Christmas tree.

I liked it!
Matching the upholstery was the key. I was a little amazed.
Maybe it's not so amazing and I need more to do.

I picked it up at a garage sale about 20 years ago. It was covered in a green faux finish.
I stripped it down to its original color.

I love its classic French style.
I love the cane, which is in perfect shape after all these years.
Maybe its self esteem issue isn't coming from the Christmas tree shuffle but from the vibe that Bill sends out.
He doesn't care for anything that is overtly French.
Maybe our trip to Paris this fall will change his opinion of Frenchy stuff.

Instead of being too busy, which is what I thought the last time, it looks perfect.
It's a cutie.
Thanks for staying tuned while I prattle on about chairs.
Stop back in soon.
I plan on prattling on about brass and glass.
It will be amazing.
Have a wonderful day!
Katie