I love the look of a table skirt on a table for entertaining. It gives the table more depth and style compared to a plain table cloth. I was at Party City one day I saw that they had table skirts, but they were made out of plastic, more of a throw away item. It got me thinking how I would love a table skirt made out of fabric that I could use over and over again. But how would I attach the table skirt to the table and still be able to put a separate table cloth on the top? I know they make table skirt clips, but I wanted something that was seamless looking. Then an idea hit me, magnetic adhesive strips might work if I put them on both the table skirt fabric and the actual table.
With these supplies in hand I started my project
I happened to see these ruffled bed skirts on 4 Men and 1 Lady‘s Joss and Main curator collection and instantly knew they would be perfect for a ruffled table skirt. They were exactly what I needed to try out my magnetic idea. So I ordered two in the king size.
I took apart the two 15″ ruffled bed skirts and sewed them together to make a 30″ x 17′ long ruffle panel. My finished ruffled skirt was heavy, I was afraid that the weight of the fabric would be too much for the magnetic strip to stay in place. So I decided on a whim to staple the magnetic tape directly to the table
This was risky move on my part. I didn’t know if I would ever be able to use the table again with just a regular table cloth over it without the magnetic tape showing through. But whew, luck was on my side, and the magnetic strip doesn’t even show when you put a regular table cloth over it. Which means I don’t always have to use a skirt on this table if don’t want to. Now that is cool!
I got to try out my new magnetic table skirt at a friends 8 year old birthday party
I figured if it held up to a bunch of 8 year old girls, then this idea was going to work
Cute right? I used a long piece of fabric for the top of the table and then lined up the magnetic tape to one another
The magnets stick to one another even through the top fabric. It worked flawlessly and held up without a hitch.
I used it again for our Memorial Day bbq. This time I used a striped table cloth for the top
It was a heavier cloth and the magnets still worked perfectly! I used it for my dessert table. It attached in seconds and held up flawlessly
I am going to get plenty of uses out of this ruffled table skirt that is for sure!
I am thinking of making some different ones so that I have a variety to choose from. The great thing about doing a table skirt, is that you can use so many ready made items, like shower curtains, table cloths, curtains etc. The ruffled table skirt only took me an hour to make, it would of taken me days if I would of had to sewn on each ruffle myself. Using the ready made dust ruffle was so easy to use and saved me a ton of time.
What do you think, do you like my idea of my magnetic table skirt? Or would you prefer to use the plastic clips instead?
Sharing this at Jami’s {air your laundry party}
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What a great idea! I forgot about magnetic tape. I’m pinning this – would love to make one! Thanks for sharing.
You said 30×17? Wouldn’t it be longer to wrap around the table or are there separate pieces?
30 inches by 17 feet
I guess the proper way would be to of put 204″ rather than 17′ Silly me!
Stephanie
http://cre8tivedesignsinc.com/
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Sent: Monday, June 4, 2012 8:41 AM
Subject: [cre8tivedesigns] Re: My magnetic idea for attaching a table skirt
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30 inches by 17 feet
I guess the proper way would be to of put 204″ rather than 17′ Silly me!
I love it !
I think you’re a genius! :) seems like you know a little bit about inventing things. You should do something like this to SELL. :)
go on Shark Tank! yeah! do it girl! :)
Absolutely adorable! The magnetic seam is genius – I wish I had thought of that for my daughter’s birthday while I was wrestling with the table skirt and spools of thick elastic
. This is such a great idea. I love the ruffles too!
Awesome! I have had terrible luck with magnetic strips, so glad it’s worked so well for you. The tables all look wonderful with the ruffles. Love it.
I think it’s a great idea, Stephanie! Did you just hot glue the magnetic strip to the fabric…or was it sticky enough to hold?
Jami, the magnetic tape was sticky enough for the first party, but I did notice it was getting less sticky for the second round. I will be using a glue gun to adhere it more permanently for future uses.
That is a super cool idea!! I love it
Absolutely brilliant! Thank you for sharing.
This is a great idea, thanks so much for sharing!
Alright – I’m stumped – how do you wash it with the magnet attached to it? I’m guessing you might have to dry clean it since you can’t put magnets in the washer?
So far it hasn’t gotten dirty or soiled when I have used it…but when it and if it does, I will probably either spot clean it, hand wash it, or pull the magnetic tape off and put it in the washer on delicate {it isn’t permanent glue, so I would just use spray glue to attach it back on}. The problem with washing it in a machine is that I didn’t wash the fabric before I sewed it, so that might cause it to shrink. I wouldn’t dry clean it though, too much money lol.
Thank you so much for sharing the magnet idea. I have a party to plan for and have been trying to figure out how to make the skirt look uniform all the way across unlike pinning does. And yes…it is also a great way to put a separate table cover on the tabletop and still have a skirt. I am renting tables so I can not staple the magnets as you did. I am going to try to hot glue a magnet strip around the table top edge of a bottom table cover, put another light weight table top cover on, and then attach the magnetic table skirt. I hope it works! And if does, Hats off to you for giving me the idea. Thanks!