DIY Drying Mats

If you like to re-use items, you’re going to love this post!

I’ve been using a dish towel as my drying mat, but it gets soaked pretty quickly.  I could use a drying rack, I know.  But they're clunky things that take up so much room.  I really can’t be bothered to take it out and put it away after each use.  I could leave it in one of my double sinks, but then I'm down to one sink!

Needless to say I was very happy to stumble upon DIY drying mats while perusing Pinterest.  Gotta love Pinterest!

I'm clearly a rubbish blogger, as I keep forgetting to take pictures of the steps along the way.  Fret not, this project is super simple, here’s what I did:

1. Looked through my towels to find which ones had seen better days and set them aside.
2. Went through my scrap fabric stash to see which pieces were large enough to tackle the job.  For my first one, I actually used pieces from an apron that had gotten stained.  I knew there was a reason I was holding onto it!!
3. I measured the area in which I will be using my drying mat.
4. Laid out my towel and fabric to determine the best measurements (taking into account step 3).
5. Cut pieces to size.
6. Ironed the cut pieces.
7. Pinned right facing fabrics together and stitched the perimeter using a ½ inch seam allowance and leaving a 2 inch gap for turning the fabric.
8. I trimmed the corners and then turned the fabric right side out, making sure to push through my corners. 
9. I then ironed the seams out, before top stitching.
10. And you’re done!

The ones I have pictured, I approached slightly differently, simply because I didn't have enough of the fabric I had chosen.  So I tackled it this way:

1. Followed steps 1 through 6, then resume as below.
2. Lay your towel out, right side facing up.  Place top fabric right side down along the long edge of the towel.  Pin together, then stitch using a ½ inch seam allowance.
3. Repeat with the other side.
4. I then ironed everything flat with the fabric centred as much as possible. 
5. I then pinned the ends closed and stitched them closed, leaving one end with a 2 inch gap for turning the fabric.
6. I trimmed the corners and then turned the fabric right side out, making sure to push through my corners. 
7. I then ironed the seams out, before top stitching.
8. Voila!

I thought I would store my drying mat when not in use; turns out the fabrics are so up-lifting that I want to leave the punch of colour out to enjoy.

Happy Organizing!