How to Make a Tray Lining Cloth

It may seem like an old-fashioned concept, but a pretty fabric cloth lining the bottom of a serving tray is one of those welcoming kind of details that make a good hostess a great one. A tray cloth can reflect the occasion or season, match your tea set, or just become the perfect backdrop for breakfast in bed or a family snack. It is a genteel touch of loveliness, but can also be a casual token of appreciation.

The first step in making a tray cloth is to choose an appropriate fabric. It is best, of course, to use a fabric that is easily washed, and from which stains can be removed. Something that is strong and can withstand scrubbing and hot water is best. Linen and cotton are classic choices. The fabric should be pre-washed in hot water and dried on high heat, to avoid any shrinking of the finished project.

If you'd like to embroider or apply other decoration to the try liner, it's best to simply mark the hemline on the fabric before cutting it out, so that there is plenty of room to fit the fabric into the embroidery hoop for working on it.

Measure the inner dimensions of your serving tray, and use a disappearing fabric marking pen to mark this on the fabric. Rounding off the corners slightly will make finishing the edges of the fabric easier later on. If the tray has rounded corners, just trace this shape onto the fabric, or if not, simply use the top of a juice cup or similar container to mark the correct finished shape.

You can use the fabric pen to draw an embroidery design directly onto the cloth, use a store bought iron on pattern or make your own iron on design with tracing paper and an iron on pencil. For more info on making your own iron on embroidery designs, see my article here.

There are many different options for finishing the edges on the tray cloth. If the fabric is felt or felted wool, it can be cut with decorative edging scissors or stitched with a decorative edging stitch. Linen looks really nice finished with a classic hemstitched hem. A serged rolled hem is an unobtrusive and sturdy edge finish for a cloth that is expected to be washed often. Trims and rickrack are really pretty finishes for these tray liners as well. Rickrack makes a nice hemming trim, because it can be sewn right along the hemline down its center , then turned to the back side, topstitched in place along the fold, and it makes cute little scallops along the outer edge of the fabric.

Making a tray cloth is a great way to practice new sewing and embroidery techniques, resulting in a finished product that will bring lots of pleasure for years to come.