Using Bold And Colorful Vintage Tablecloths For Summer Entertaining

Summer Parties Come Alive With Exciting And Vibrant 1940s And 1950s Tablecloths


Now is the time to pull out all your funky, colorful, whimsical 1940s and 1950s kitchen tablecloths and use them outdoors for summer lawn parties, festive barbecues and tropical themed parties. Or bring the outdoors indoors with pastel colors, beach motifs and nature's beauty.

Using Vintage Style Themes

You will find so many different styles of vintage tablecloths to choose from. Common summer themes might include nautical, red and white, cottage colors, state souvenirs, checks, tropical, Mexicana, florals, geometrics, primary colors etc.

Bold Vintage Decorating

Be bold in your decorating selections. Don't be afraid to mix a red and white tablecloth with aqua or green chairs as shown in the lovely accompanying photo. Or choose a vibrant tablecloth such as the fruit patterned one below and accessorize your table with similar colors.

"Hot Kitchen And Home Collectibles of the 39s, 40s, 50s"

In the second edition of my book "Hot Kitchen and Home Collectibles of the 30s, 40s, 50s, I have added a brand new chapter on vintage tablecloths featuring textiles from the collection at The Little Round Table.

Gorgeous Ideas From The Little Round Table

I must encourage you to visit The Little Round Table to see how you can set your table with lovely older linens and accessorize your tablescape with Fiestaware, old pottery, vintage glassware and dishes.

C. Dianne Zweig is the author of Hot Kitchen & Home Collectibles of the 30s, 40s, 50s and Hot Cottage Collectibles for Vintage Style Homes. She is also the Editor of I Antique Online an actively growing internet based resource community for people who buy, sell or collect antiques, collectibles and art. You can find Dianne’s fabulous retro and vintage kitchen, home and cottage collectibles at The Collinsville Antiques Company of New Hartford, CT, a 22,000 feet antique emporium with an in-house retro café.To read more articles by C. Dianne Zweig click on this link: C. Dianne Zweig’s Blog Kitsch ‘n Stuff Email me at dianne@cdiannezweig.comVisit my website, CDianneZweig.comDianne is a member of:The American Society of Journalists and AuthorsThe Society of Professional Journalists

Collecting Vintage Polka Dot Kitchen Collectibles

Are You Ready For A Vintage Polka Dot Kitchen?

If you like changing your vintage kitchen once in awhile, perhaps you are ready for a new theme to inspire you. How about adding polka dot kitchen collectibles to your repertoire? Polka dots are very retro and can add a whimsical flair to your vintage kitchen theme.

Spice Up Your Kitchen Collections With A New Twist

Many collectors like to spice up their collections with a new twist on an old theme. Many folks find that after awhile they get tired of collecting the same old thing and that they need to give themselves a bit of a challenge when they are out hunting.

Narrowing Your Search

For example, a tea cup collector might want to look be more selective about the kind of tea cups they collect. So instead of bringing home every tea cup they see, they begin to set goals for themselves, narrowing their search to certain types of tea cups.

The Harder The Item To Collect: The More The Challenge

Every collector knows what I mean when I say, that every now and then you need to modify your collecting habits to keep life interesting. Collecting Polka dotted housewares and kitchenwares may just be the challenge you are looking for. Unlike other kitchen items, it is not that easy to find polka dot designs. Don't get me wrong, they are out there, but collectibles with polka dots get scooped up real quickly.

A Variety Of Polka Dot Collectibles

If you look hard enough you will find polka dots on vintage beverage glasses, ceramic planters, kitchen mixing bowls, aprons, canisters, pot holders , tablecloths and more. Filling a glass cabinet with all your polka dotted collectibles could be quite fun. Or how sweet would a shelf be with your collection of polka dotted kitchen-wares?
In addition to shopping in all your favorite stores and online shops, be sure to visit I Antique Online.com as well. You can also let members at IAO know what you are looking for and they will come up with lots of options.

Photo of bowls courtesy of: http://sadiesaid.blogspot.com/2009/05/its-spring-and-with-spring-comes.html

C. Dianne Zweig is the author of Hot Kitchen & Home Collectibles of the 30s, 40s, 50s and Hot Cottage Collectibles for Vintage Style Homes. She is also the Editor of I Antique Online an actively growing internet based resource community for people who buy, sell or collect antiques, collectibles and art. You can find Dianne’s fabulous retro and vintage kitchen, home and cottage collectibles at The Collinsville Antiques Company of New Hartford, CT, a 22,000 feet antique emporium with an in-house retro café.To read more articles by C. Dianne Zweig click on this link: C. Dianne Zweig’s Blog Kitsch ‘n Stuff Email me at dianne@cdiannezweig.comVisit my website, CDianneZweig.comDianne is a member of:The American Society of Journalists and AuthorsThe Society of Professional Journalists

Set A Table With A Colorful Vintage Tablecloth To Perk Up A Collection Of Vintage Dishes And Glassware

Antique Dealers Sell More Collectibles By "Setting The Table"

Anyone in the antique business will tell you that it isn't all that easy to sell sets of dishes and glassware. Every time I buy a box of dishes I am
sorry! BUT, like all dealers..... we keep buying anything and everything.

Dishes sitting on a shelf look boring. And they are usually very hard to display. So one way to help move them along to another home is to show your customers how "lovely" they will look when the table is set. Select a complimentary colorful tablecloth to perk up the ensemble and add a nice vase with fresh or dried flowers to complete the look.

Photo taken at The Collinsville Antiques Company of New Hartford, Connecticut

C. Dianne Zweig is the author of Hot Kitchen & Home Collectibles of the 30s, 40s, 50s and Hot Cottage Collectibles for Vintage Style Homes. She is also the Editor of Iantiqueonline.com an actively growing internet based resource community for people who buy, sell or collect antiques, collectibles and art. You can find Dianne’s fabulous retro and vintage kitchen, home and cottage collectibles at The Collinsville Antiques Company of New Hartford, CT, a 22,000 feet antique emporium with an in-house retro café.To read more articles by C. Dianne Zweig click on this link: C. Dianne Zweig’s Blog Kitsch ‘n Stuff Email me at dianne@cdiannezweig.comVisit my website, CDianneZweig.comDianne is a member of:The American Society of Journalists and AuthorsThe Authors Guild, Inc.

Colorful Handmade Pillows Made From Vintage Tablecloth Cutters

Adorable Pillows Made From Vintage Tablecloths


If you adore colorful vintage tablecloths than my guess is that you will fall in love with these very exciting "tablecloth pillows" made by "MaryAnns Workshop" on Etsy.om,

Adding Trim, Ribbons, Rick Rack To Pillows

Mary Ann spends a lot of time adding wonderful trim, rick rack and embellishments to her pillows. Look how terrific prints look when combined with checks, polka dots, plaids, stripes etc. Using ribbons, ties, pom poms in similar colors really makes the difference.

One of A Kind Pillows

Each pillow is one of kind, made from tablecloth remnants which in the biz we refer to as "cutters". As you can see, even if you have only a piece of a tablecloth you can build a wonder pillow around your focal point i.e. bouquet of flowers, bowl of fruit or cluster of cherries.

Mary Ann Has fair Prices For Her Custom Pillows

I have seen lots of handmade pillows, but for sure Mary Ann has some of the cutest custom made "tablecloth pillows". Also the good news is that her prices are very fair .

You can find lots of wonderful pillows at: http://www.etsy.com/shop/MaryAnnsWorkshop?ref=seller_info


C. Dianne Zweig is the author of Hot Kitchen & Home Collectibles of the 30s, 40s, 50s and Hot Cottage Collectibles for Vintage Style Homes. She is also the Editor of Iantiqueonline.com an actively growing internet based resource community for people who buy, sell or collect antiques, collectibles and art. You can find Dianne’s fabulous retro and vintage kitchen, home and cottage collectibles at The Collinsville Antiques Company of New Hartford, CT, a 22,000 feet antique emporium with an in-house retro café.To read more articles by C. Dianne Zweig click on this link: C. Dianne Zweig’s Blog Kitsch ‘n Stuff Email me at dianne@cdiannezweig.comVisit my website, CDianneZweig.comDianne is a member of:The American Society of Journalists and AuthorsThe Authors Guild, Inc.

Using Vintage Tablecloth Cutters To Make Colorful Pennant Banners

Charm Any Room With Vintage Tablecloth Pennants Banners

Some people cringe when they see colorful vintage tablecloths up-cycled into other stuff. But as Becky of Sweet Cottage Dreams tells me, her fabulous handmade Pennant Banners
are made from tablecloth "cutters".

What Are Cutters?

For those of you new to the world of re-purposing lingo, "cutters' are damaged tablecloths that
crafters and others use for sewing projects. Often "cutters' have big holes or stains making them hard to sell as a collectible tablecloths.
But these dry goods still have value to creative gals (and guys) who are constantly coming up with new ideas on how to salvage the best parts of these textiles. You can buy "cutters' on Etsy, eBay and from dealers who buy lots of tablecloths.

Cutting Tablecloth Remnants Into Triangles

Becky cuts old tablecloths that she cant sell, into triangles and forms Pennant banners that are simply darling. You can use several compatible tablecloths for this project. I asked Becky to explain to me how she goes about this wonderful vintage sewing project. Here is what I learned. It sounds quite simple.


Ten Easy Steps to Making A Pennant Banner Using Vintage Tablecloth Cutters

Step One: Preparing The Triangles
1. Make a triangle template out of cardboard. (7 1/2" x 9 ").
2. Cut out 11 triangles from the patterned cutter tablecloth or other fabric.
3. Cut out 11 triangles of solid triangles for the backing of the triangles.
4. Cut out 11 triangles of Pellon fabric to sandwich between the two triangles (the patterned and the solid piece)

Step Two: Joining The Triangles Together
5. Place and pin the three triangles pieces together printed (tablecloth), Pellon, solid fabric and iron. You are making a sandwich.

Step Three: Sewing
6. Sew the three pieces together 1/4 margin.

Step Four: Trim Edge With Scalloped Edge
7. Trim the edge of the triangles with a scalloped edge shear.

Step Five: Add Bias Tape
8. Using a 9 foot package of double fold bias tape, lay down triangles with 6/8 " spacing and fold over bias tape for making the banner. Pin the triangles as you place them.

9. Leave about 20" of tape on ends for banner ties.

Hang Your Banner
10. Hang banner in kitchen, nursery, porch etc.

Buying The Banners Already Made
Becky loves to make these handmade banners, so you can buy them already made from her at Etsy shop Sweet Cottage Dreams or make them yourself. (See instructions above).

C. Dianne Zweig is the author of Hot Kitchen & Home Collectibles of the 30s, 40s, 50s and Hot Cottage Collectibles for Vintage Style Homes. She is also the Editor of Iantiqueonline.com an actively growing internet based resource community for people who buy, sell or collect antiques, collectibles and art. You can find Dianne’s fabulous retro and vintage kitchen, home and cottage collectibles at The Collinsville Antiques Company of New Hartford, CT, a 22,000 feet antique emporium with an in-house retro café.

To read more articles by C. Dianne Zweig click on this link:
C. Dianne Zweig’s Blog Kitsch ‘n Stuff

Email me at dianne@cdiannezweig.com

Visit my website, CDianneZweig.com

Dianne is a member of:
The American Society of Journalists and Authors
The Authors Guild, Inc.