The importance of enjoying what you do! - curtains to tablecloth tutorial

Here in Australia it's winter.  Up in FNQ (Far North Queensland) that means that weather-wise it's one of our most pleasant times of year.  Low humidity, little rain (the dry season in the tropics), sunny days and temperatures around  25C. Just lovely!  BUT, not very conducive to sitting inside at my sewing machine looking out of the window at this gorgeous weather!  

But I know I need to find the motivation to get things done - I can't justify being a stay-at-home mum if all I do when my kids are at school is sit by the pool in the sun and read a book.....I need to feel I'm being productive, otherwise the guilt at thinking of my husband working so hard when I'm enjoying myself at home is terrible!

So, I decided to take my work outside to enjoy and appreciate the fantastic weather we are having, while still being productive!

The task I set myself to get 'A Round To' last week was to transform an old pair of curtains that I no longer needed into something useful. I decided to turn them into a tablecloth for our old round plastic table:

(These curtains have already gone through one transformation - you can read about that here!)

Since the curtains were in need of a wash anyway, I figured cutting out outside, and laying them on the ground wasn't a problem. Washing could be done after I'd finished sewing!

So finding a nice shady spot, I checked the curtains would fit around the whole table:

Then letting them hang to the ground where I wanted the tablecloth to reach to,

I just cut around leaving a large overlap from there I figured the join would be.  I did this for both curtains:

Next was to use the remaining top part of the curtains to cut the round table top part.

One curtain for each side:

So now I had all the parts for the tablecloth, they just needed putting together:

At this point I allowed myself to be a little distracted, by a beautiful pink flower in the secret garden..

And looking up at our palm tree with the stunning clear blue sky background:

But back to the sewing!

Next I pinned the top parts together along the straight join at the centre of the table. 

 I put in two pins to make sure and leave a gap in the centre that will allow me to use the tablecloth on the table in the future if I decide to get a sun umbrella to go over it! (pole would slot through the hole in the top centre of the table):

Once I'd stitched the top together (a brief interlude out of the fresh-air into my sewing room), I placed the fabric upside-down back on the table outside, and pinned the drops to the top, again inside out:

Once that was pinned, it was inside for the last time to stitch it, then back outside to trim the seams, then test it on the table!

Perfect!  Then I just needed to throw it in the washing machine and I'll give it a good iron before using it out our next market stall!

I really enjoyed doing this project outside.  I think it's really important to remember and enjoy all the good things we have in our lives - not just take them for granted and plan to enjoy them another day!

To end, I want to add a quote from the little book of inspiration I won in a giveaway :

"When faced with a problem, free your mind and think creatively - the possibilities will be endless."

I hope you all have a great day!