DIY Striped (Ribbon) trim sheet tutorial!

DIY Striped (Ribbon) trim sheet tutorial!

• 4.02.2015

I guess I was inspired to do this project a loooooong time ago.

Back in my early days of blogging (or Pinterest-ing, maybe) I came across this image, of Sasha Alder in the perfect white, grey, and bright yellow bed. I am sure this image from March 2010 House Beautiful inspired many tufted headboards, black lampshades in bedrooms, and yellow/grey combos. But for me, what stuck out was the bold black/white trim on the pillow shams and duvet cover.

I've remembered the contrast and crisp white sheets for years now! So when I was looking at ribbons on Offray's website and saw the bold black/white V-Stripe and Power Stripe ribbons, I thought back to this room! And I put together a DIY to get the same look without machine embroidery!

It would be very cool to do this with a duvet cover and shams, folding the ribbon at the corners, but... I stuck with a plain sheet set for something a little simpler and more versatile with my decor!

DIY Striped Ribbon Trim Sheet Tutorial

You will need:

• Sheet set (I recommend 100% cotton percale, like these)
• 4-7 yards wide striped ribbon, depending on sheet size--measure yours for your bed to be sure (I liked the Offray V-Stripe or Power Stripe; Offray project managers suggested using Power Stripe over V-Stripe; it may hold up better in the washing machine)
• Standard sewing supplies

Instructions:

1. Take out wires or plastic. Many wide ribbons have wire or plastic running through the edges so they keep their shape. Cut pieces of ribbon about 2-3" longer than the wrap-around dimensions of your pillowcases and the width of your sheets, and pull out the plastic or wires on both sides of the ribbon. Press any wrinkles out with a low iron.

2. Pin and sew--pillowcases. Pin ribbon in place on one of the pillowcases and sew 1/8" or less from the edge.

At the end of the seam, turn the raw edge under and pin and sew in place.

Anchor the edge by sewing perpendicular to the ribbon, up the folded edge.

Sew along the top side of the ribbon, 1/8" or less from the edge. Use pins to anchor the ribbon parallel to the grain of the sheets and keep it from stretching.

2. Pin and sew--flat sheet. Pin ribbon in place along the inside edge of the flat sheet and sew 1/8" or less from the edge.

At the end, turn under the raw edge of the ribbon and fold it over the edge of the sheet. Pin in place and sew.

Anchor the folded edge by sewing through, along the original seam. Yes, this leaves a seam that shows on the outside--if that bothers you, you could anchor it with a whip stitch by hand instead.

Then, as before, sew along the top side of the ribbon, 1/8" or less from the edge. Use pins to anchor the ribbon parallel to the grain of the sheets and keep it from stretching.

Enjoy!

Very fun and simple project, and a classy DIY touch!

Thanks to Offray for sponsoring this post!