How to Update Bed Linens

Pick a color that either accents or coordinates with your duvet or main color in the room, since you'll want to accent your linens. If you have lavender walls, for instance, a lavender-based fabric might be nice.

To accent four king pillow cases you will need about one yard of fabric. Pop into a local fabric store, or you may even have some remnants from past sewing projects that you can use. Since it's such a small amount of yardage needed, you may want to bring home a few options and then decide which will work best in the room. If you are going to match a color in the room, take a sample of the fabric with you--or if it's a paint color, be sure to bring the swatch to the fabric store so that you stay on the right color track!

On average, a 4-inch flange is standard on pillow cases. To get this look, you'll need to double the width and then add 2 inches for sewing. So a 4-inch-finished flange requires a 10-inch-wide strip. If you want a wider look, like a 5-inch-flange, that would require a 12-inch-wide strip, and so on.

Fold the fabric in half, finished side out, and iron down the center so that it holds its shape while you sew. Fold under both rough edges, so that you don't see them, and iron those in as well.

Using a clean and ironed pillow case, turn it inside out and fold the new fabric over it. Pin this around the edge of the pillow case, so that both finished sides of the new fabric cover the old case's edge, inside and out.

Sew along the same hemline all the way around--and voila! This could even be done on the flat sheet. You'll have a new set of linens in no time!