How to: Crinkled Vintage Lace Seam Binding

I came up with a super easy – and super fast – way to create crinkled vintage lace seam binding for a shabby look!

Here’s an example of a vintage packet of lace seam binding:

When you unravel the binding, you’ll get definite kinks in the lace where it’s been bent around the cardboard packaging, for who knows how many years:

Depending on what you’re using the seam binding for, those kinks can be hard to remove unless you iron them out.

But this morning I experimented with a way to make these fabulous vintage laces look shabby. Here’s how easy it is to do . . .

Cut your desired length of vintage lace seam binding. Notice the kinks. We don’t like them. 😉

Are you seriously ready for how easy this is?

1. Wet the lace seam binding. I ran some water right over mine in the palm of my hand.

2. Crinkle the lace into a tiny ball.

3. Place the tiny ball of crinkled seam binding onto a paper towel.

4. Roll up the tiny ball tightly in the paper towel and squeeze, then either set it aside or put a heavy book over it for awhile.

And then, after no set time period, remove the lace seam binding from the paper towel and let it air dry.

That’s it!

Here’s a piece of the lace next to two strips that I crinkled:

I love what a difference it makes!

I repeated the process with a neutral shade from my collection:

This piece of lace will be the perfect finishing touch on a distressed frame project I’m working on.

Told you it was easy!

You can find vintage seam binding at thrift stores, vintage shops, and on Etsy, which is where I find some really good deals.

Happy crafting!

~Laura