Mom and I have been on kind of a placemat kick since we figured out the ones she uses most of the time are about 30 years old. She has some fabric in the stash that's been waiting to become placemats for almost 10 years. It's time. It's really time.
We played with some heavy interfacing/stabilizer a couple of weeks ago, working on the projects for the book proposal. I got the bright idea that we could use it for placemats. Turns out we can.
We made one this afternoon. Super easy and we love the way it turned out.
Even if you don't sew a lot, you can make these guys. All it takes is a bit of measuring, some pressing, and a couple lines of stitching.
Start with:
*heavy-duty interfacing and stabilizer (we like Timtex but other brands work, too)
*fabric (two 16 x 21 inch pieces for the foundation and two 3 x 45 inches pieces for the border)
*fusible web (we like Wonder-Under)
Cut a 15 x 20-inch piece of the Timtex. Cut two pieces of fabric, each slightly larger than the Timtex.
Now cut Wonder Under to fit the fabric. Iron the Wonder-Under to the back of the fabric. Remove the paper backing and iron the fabric to the Timtex. Repeat on the other side.
You'll end up with a sandwich of fabric/Timtex/fabric.
Cut two strips of border fabric, each 3 inches by 45 inches. Press under 1/4 inch on each long edge, then press the strip in half lengthwise. Cut 3/4-inch strips of Wonder-Under and press one to each side of each strip.
Press a finished strip to the top and bottom of the placemat and trim the edges. Stitch the border in place, close to the folded edge.
Fold under 3/8 of an inch or so on one end of a strip. Slide the placemat under the folded edge and then sandwich the strip around it. Press in place.
Stitch. Repeat on the other side.
Stitch. Repeat on the other side.
That's it. You've made a darling placemat in no time flat. Now. . .about that napkin. We're all thinking green these days. Cloth napkins are inexpensive and easy to make, and they can be used practically endlessly.
One yard of fabric will make four napkins. I got this piece on sale for $4.00 a yard, and it took less than an hour to finish all four. All I did was press under 1/4 inch all the way around and then press that under again, to make a double-folded hem. Then I stitched around the edges. (Straight lines are not my best thing, so I use a small zig-zag stitch. Worked great.)
One yard of fabric will make four napkins. I got this piece on sale for $4.00 a yard, and it took less than an hour to finish all four. All I did was press under 1/4 inch all the way around and then press that under again, to make a double-folded hem. Then I stitched around the edges. (Straight lines are not my best thing, so I use a small zig-zag stitch. Worked great.)
3 comments:
I glazed over at the materials list, and you lost me with Wonder Under...but I think you two are super cool. Love love love that you do these creations, and that you do them together.
I've gone for four months with kitchen towels as placemats because my old ones are still packed. I finally bought four new ones but can't remember what drawer they're in so we still end up with a lone towel in the mix.
Thanks for showing us how cool you are!
LOVE what you are able to do, and love Prema's response.
I just had 8 girls in my kitchen saying, "Lucy's house always has the BEST food," which makes me laugh, since the other 8 mothers are all wonderful COOKS, and I just make good purchases!
Those are AWESOME!
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