Silverware Roll & Tutorial

My husband and I are making great progress on Wabi-Sabi Overland. As the majority of the structure has been built and installed inside the habitat / apartment, it’s time for us to start thinking about all the small details that will make the space work for us. It’s not that we haven’t been thinking about those details, but I guess it’s more like it’s time to start creating them and making it happen! So, in light of that, I have a few sewing projects planned that are not typical quilting projects but I thought might be interesting to share here as well. The first project I tackled was to create a silverware roll to store our utensils we plan to take with us.

Test Silverware Roll

We plan to use Melamine dinnerware in our kitchen, but after considering alternatives, we decided to stick with our existing silverware. In fact, we have some heirloom real silver silverware from my husband’s grandmother (two forks and two spoons) that are special with us that we want to use. The question became, how can we best store the utensils so they don’t cling and bounce into spaces we cannot reach in the drawers. The solution, for us, was for me to figure out how to sew together a silverware roll with slots for each of the utensils we want to take with us.

Test Silverware Roll

One of the biggest things I learned with the test silverware roll was the placement for the tie off, which for the test roll was lengths of ribbon. I had just randomly sewn in ribbon do begin with – might as well try something, right? – and I ended up cutting those off at the seam and sewing down this ribbon to make the roll useful. My husband plans to use this test roll for a few screw drivers or other smaller tools that we will be taking with us.

Silverware Roll

The main colors for the interior of the habitat / apartment are white, blue, and silver. So I clearly needed to make the actual silverware roll in blue, right??

If you want to make your own silverware roll, here are the general instructions:

Required Materials

• (2) 21-inch squares of fabric
  • I used the same fabric for the inside as outside, but you could experiment with different fabrics. Note that the bottom is flipped up 4 inches to create the pouches for the utensils, so some “outside” fabric will also be visible when the roll is opened.
• Closure material
  • For the test roll I used lengths of ribbon. For the final roll I used an extra clasp and webbing from an old backpack.
• Thread
• Chopstick or other device to help press corners
• Iron

Instructions

I suggest reading through the instructions before beginning.

1. Decide if you care about what direction will be “up” with your fabrics. For my test roll, it did not matter. For the final roll, the print was directional and I wanted the lines to run horizontally.
2. Measure 8 1/2″ up from the “bottom” edge of one of your squares. Pin the edge of your selected closure material here or slightly higher. Note that the closure material should be pinned to the right side of the fabric pointing from the edge to the inside of the square – don’t leave the closure material pointing out when you sew the seam in the next step. (I did it wrong the first time in my test roll, so some quick seam ripping can fix this later if it needs to be adjusted.)
3. With your fabrics right sides together, stitch a 1/2″ seam allowance around the full perimeter. Start about 2-inches beyond the center of one side and work your way around the edges, stopping about 2-inches before the center of the starting edge to leave ~4″ so you can turn the fabric right side out. Note that I also like to start and stop by back-stitching to secure the seam while the fabric is turned right side out through the opening.
4. Carefully clip the fabric near the corners so it will be easier to turn and press the corners square when you turn it right side out.
5. Taking your time, press the fabric through the ~4″ opening to turn it right side out.
6. Using a chopstick or other device, press out each of the corners.
7. Taking your time, press the square flat, working to get the seam on the edge of the square. I tend to use my chopstick to press an edge and then carefully work from one corner to the other along an edge.
8. Top stitch, using a scant 1/4″ seam, around the perimeter of the square for a finished look and to close the ~4″ opening that was used to turn the fabric.
9. Fold up the bottom edge of the square 4″ to create the pockets for your utensils and press. Note that ideally the top edge of the fold will end just below your closure material, as you can see in the photo above.
10. Lay out your utensils and decide on the spacing you want to sew for the pockets. For our forks and spoons, I used a 1 1/4″ spacing. For our knives, I used a 1″ spacing.
11. I marked one line at a time. I started stitching at the top of the fold and sewed all the way past the fold. Then without cutting my thread, I lifted my presser foot and rotated the roll and sewed back up the same line for a double line of stitching. When I got back to the top, I back-stitched to reinforce the opening a few times. Then I buried the threads inside the fabric.
12. Repeat until you have all the pockets sewn. Congratulations, you have a silverware roll!

Silverware Roll

The top flap of fabric folds down over the utensils to help keep things cozy and from clanking around too much.

Silverware Roll

Once rolled up, secure the roll with your closure device of choice and enjoy!

Linking up with From Bolt to Beauty / Beauties Pageant 12.