I love oilcloth! So easy to use, even if you don’t sew. I love to cover my picnic table with a fresh new oilcloth each summer. Just cut a little larger than your tabletop, pull to the bottom of the tabletop and staple in place. It revives an old dingy wood picnic table with a cheerful cover that is easy to wipe clean. If you have ever been in a Mexican restaurant in Texas, this is what you find covering many of the tables.

But oilcloth can be more than just a cover for your picnic table. For a retro kitchen look, use a piece of oilcloth as a tablecloth on a kitchen table. Maybe your mom or grandma did this in the 1950’s. The fun and bright florals, fruit prints, checks and stripes all make nice choices.

Or how about some colorful oilcloth as shelf paper on some open shelving in your kitchen? No sewing involved, just cut to size and place on shelf. Oilcloth is easy to care for, simply wipe clean with a damp cloth or sponge.

But you can also sew fun kitschy items with oilcloth. Like colorful tote bags, a wipe-clean kitchen apron, an outdoor chair cushion or pillow. Just be sure to remember to use a longer stitch length and avoid stitch over the same place multiple times, as stitching oilcloth perforates the fabric. For this same reason, use tape or binding clips instead of pins to hold pieces together while sewing. No need to hem oilcloth, it doesn’t ravel.

Want to learn more tips of sewing with oilcloth? Check out one of Kelly McCants’s books “Sewing with Oilcloth” or “At Home with Modern June.” Or better yet, sign up for my Special 2021 Fall Get-Away Weekend where we will be making holiday gifts, some made from oilcloth. Get a signup brochure here.