No matter the time of year, we love planning for holiday decorating. Setting a beautiful table is often a focal point. This block can stand alone as a placemat, duplicate in a row as a runner or to build into a square as a tablecloth.
With so many great techniques in one placemat, it’s challenging to pick a favorite. Is it the unique decorative stitching? The straight line quilting? The patchwork featuring Jelly Roll strips? The itty bitty binding? It’s all of the above!
These placemats are a unique shape that is not only fun and different, but also perfect for highlighting the half square triangle patchwork as well as the clean corners of the octagonal perimeter binding. Available in our Etsy Shop.
A departure from a traditional tablecloth or runner, a Table Throw or Table Square offers more flexibility for how it can be placed as well as the table it can fit. The Double Star design is a holiday favorite. Includes a pattern set.
If the mention of “scallops” has you dreaming of a tasty seafood dinner, you’re in for another type of treat. Our scallops run around the perimeter of a placemat and are finished with a padded satin stitch. There’s also a companion project available to create matching napkins. Make one or make both. The
The large, flat front of a placemat is like a canvas for your creativity. These beauties combine patchwork, decorative quilting, and bold appliqué with crisp, clean lines of precision stitching and a striking color palette.
Pretty stitching takes a simple surface from ordinary to special in the blink of an eye. These traditional linen placemats include eight tiny tucks for texture plus 15 lines of decorative stitching in sparkling metallic thread.
If you’re used to table linens being long and narrow, take a look at the Table Throw – also known as a Table Square. Ours finishes at a generous 50” x 50” and is a perfect showcase for bold patchwork in gorgeous linen.
Home décor fabric is a great choice for table linens. Motifs tend to be bigger and tones more dramatic, plus it’s thicker and more durable – good qualities for any table runner. To soften, we added deep ruffles in a handkerchief linen.
Plates are traditionally round, but placemats are usually rectangles. Hmmmm. Square peg/round hole? How about a round mat? Ours are a generous 16″ in diameter, and they’re reversible: patchwork on the front, solid on the back.
Start with a simple yet bold fabric, add some distinctive decorative stitching, and you can have a stunning table runner perfect for any holiday gathering or special occasion. Remember, “Life is short; use the good china!”
We chose the Janome embroidery-only 550E machine to help create this beautiful set of embroidered placemats and napkins, selecting two built-in florals and stitching them against a shear ribbon lattice on a 100% linen background.
The idea of a dresser cloth might seem a bit old-fashioned, but it not only helps protect the wood surface from hairbrush dings and perfume spills, it also lends a lovely splash of color. Ours has a very vintage vibe.
A handy, keep-clean trick for outdoor dining. Lay out these laminated mats: one as a surface for your meal, another to sit on. When done, simply wipe clean with a sanitizing spray, re-roll, and drop back in your bag.
Bound all around and featuring accent bands and elegant tassels at each end, this table runner is perfect for a formal tabletop setting. It finishes at approximately 86½” x 15″. Choose a metallic cotton for the prettiest sparkle.
At just 16″ x 30”, it’s a great size for smaller tables, breakfast bars or as the center décor on a larger table. The pretty patchwork center features four flying geese blocks. Includes a free set of matching cards + tags to download.
For kids – or kids at heart, our playful owls placemat set makes mealtime more fun. We provide complete templates for all our owl and tree designs along with step-by-step instructions for how to layer and stitch.
This beautiful runner design is created with two layers of burlap joined by decorative stitching and highlighted with a splash of luxurious silk. We show it as wedding décor, but it would be lovely for a variety of seasons + occasions.
Dig down into your scrap stash for your favorite tall and narrow pieces, fussy cut them to center the prettiest possible vertical motifs, then stitch them together into this striking table runner with a subtle ruffled edge.
These clever mats are an outdoor version of the mug rug. There’s a full-width pocket and a grommet for hanging to store. Hold utensils or slip in a paperback to save your place on a breezy day. Outdoor fabric adds durability.
Outdoor dining season is coming; at least that’s what we’re telling ourselves as winter stubbornly clings on. Keep the faith and get ready with our darling, durable placemats that have built-in pockets to hold flatware and/or napkins.
The beauty of this solid color runner is in the texture of the pleated squares side by side with plain squares. Our tutorial shows you an easy way to create mitered corners without using a separate binding strip.
We’re all eating in right now! Maybe it’s time to amp up the wattage of your tabletop with these colorful placemats. A hand running stitch in a thick floss across the bottom panels adds a subtle dash of texture.
By emphasizing a large motif and using a contrasting fabric for the borders, this placemat design creates the perfect frame for your favorite place setting. Adapt your fabric choices to go from everyday to elegant.
Bigger than a coaster but smaller than a placemat – a mug rug is just the right size at your desk, in the sewing room, or on a small table in the living room or den. Our design adds a unique little pocket with its own napkin.
Download free embroidery designs to add delicate autumn leaves to table linens (and more). Learn two hemming techniques: narrow double-fold hem with diagonal point corners plus a wider hem with full mitered corners.
Pretty placemats sweet enough to eat. The design is perfect for leftover jelly roll strips or cut your own narrow strips from scraps. Decorative stitching ties the rows together and holds all the layers in place.
Pretty patchwork with pie-shaped wedges spins into a full circle. There are free downloadable patterns for the front wedges and the back circle. A Janome Circular Sewing Attachment gave us those perfect concentric quilting circles.
We can’t get enough of the itty-bitty adorableness of Mini Charm Squares. At just 2½”, they are bite-size pieces you can stitch together into colorful combinations. We used them to create double borders on a set of placemats.
Color Block style has a cool 60s vibe but with a bold, modern look. No prints need apply. This is all about solid, saturated color. Classic half square triangles make up our stunning runner. The easy patchwork creates a fabulous finish.
Lovely linens make any occasion special. Blend pretty quilting cottons to create a set of fancy placemats for tea time or anytime. The finishing touch: a classic gray gingham for the ribbon accents plus a delicate white lace trim.
The mug rug is a mini placemat with just the right amount of room for a mug and a few little treats. Ours features pretty patchwork on one side with custom embroidery (a free download) on the opposite side’s pocket and napkin.
A happy tabletop centerpiece has the potential to become a best-loved holiday tradition. Make one for yourself plus more for friends and family. We used a Layer Cake with bright poms in a coordinating color.
This gorgeous quilted table runner was originally designed to feature the Downton Abbey fabric collection from Andover Fabrics. However, the traditional patchwork star design is one that would work well with any number of current quilting cotton collections – especially ones that feature a similar palette of both dark and light colors and a selection
Explore heirloom stitching by machine. We show two options: hemstitching (if you are brand new) and fagoting (if you’re more advanced). Both offer beautiful borders with mitered corners and an optional monogram.
Originally developed to prevent down mattress and pillow feathers from poking through or blowing away, ticking dates back as early as the eleventh century when the fabric was made with a linen warp and a cotton weft. Today, the clean and simple look of striped ticking comes in a variety of colors and is a
It’s a reversible placemat. No, it’s a kid’s activity. Wait… you’re both right! There’s festive fabric on one side and unique chalk cloth on the other. Write on it with regular or liquid chalk; wipe it clean with a damp cloth.
Greeting cards are a nice, but most are eventually forgotten. Instead, try our mug rug project with its custom Salutation Strip through the center. It’s an every day reminder to the recipient that they have a friend in you.
An exquisite ribbon can transform a simple rectangle of solid fabric into an elegant table runner. We quilted the center in a wide diamond pattern, and the ribbon frame extends beyond the edge at the corners with pretty loops.
Three tabletop projects in one! A long patchwork table runner plus generous reversible napkins with pretty ribbon wraps. We outline how to measure to best fit the runner to your table and how to adjust the patchwork if needed.
We love placemats, because they are such a versatile table setting option. You don't need nearly as much fabric as you do for an entire tablecloth. In fact, with their smaller proportions, they're a great way to bring together a number of colors, patterns, and textures. Our table for two includes lovely quilted and
This is a super simple project to make, but the sparkle of the metallic cotton and the wide center accent panel adds an ultra sophisticated look on your table. It's a clean, cosmopolitan design that blends beautifully with other elements when setting a n elegant table for the holidays or any special occasion. We originally