How to Sew a Placemat | Free Sewing Pattern

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Looking for an easy sewing project that also makes a great gift? Here’s how to sew a placemat.

I was asked to make a set of 16 placemats to match a personalized runner that someone had. So I thought I would share with you the process. Knowing how to sew a placemat is a great beginner project.

Materials Needed to Sew a Placemat

• main fabric (this is the front of the placemat)
• secondary fabric (this is the underside of the placemat)
• medium weight interfacing (this is optional; I like that it gives a bit of structure to the placemat)

I like to use cotton quilting fabric for placemats, as the fabrics are typically good quality and come in so many patterns and colours. Certainly, a cotton-poly blend would work as well but I really do prefer the good quality cotton quilting fabrics.

I always prewash my fabric.

Cut Your Fabrics

Placemats are essentially rectangles that typically measure 12×19. Now obviously you can make them any size you want.

So if placemats measure 12×19, you want to add a 1/2 inch seam allowance all around and so you will need to cut 13×20. Using this measurement, cut out your fabrics.

Apply Your Interfacing

As mentioned, this step is optional. You can certainly make placemats without interfacing. They will be softer, however. I prefer a little more structure and so I used fusible medium-weight interfacing. A good steam iron is a must!

Using your iron, apply the interfacing to your secondary fabric. Sometimes when I have pieces with large pieces of interfacing attached, after washing I find that it comes out wrinkly. I haven’t figured out why. It may be because I didn’t apply it well. Or perhaps that is the nature of having such a large piece of interfacing? Regardless, since this happens, apply the interfacing to your secondary fabric, so if it does come out of the wash all wrinkly, at least it is the underside of the placemat.

How to Sew a Placemat

As mentioned, you are essentially sewing a big rectangle. Now, this rectangle will have 3 layers – main fabric, secondary fabric, and interfacing. However, two of those layers are already attached – the interfacing and the secondary fabric.

I sewed all of these placemats using a sewing machine. You don’t need a serger for this project (although you could). I found it easier and quicker to just use my regular machine.

Place your main fabric and secondary fabric, right sides together, and secure with pins or clips.

Sew a 1/2 inch seam allowance all around, leaving a 2 to 3-inch opening to turn right side out.

Once sewn, clip your corners to reduce bulk.

Turn right side out and press. Make sure your corners are nice and sharp. A point-turner works great for this. A good press will make all the difference – be sure not to skip this step.

Edge stitch all the way around. This will sew that opening closed. You will want it fairly close to the edge. If you like, edge stitch around again, a 1/4 inch in for a double border. Alternatively, you can hand-sew the opening closed.

The placemats turned out great. Since I was making 16 of them, I did it assembly line style and it went reasonably quickly.

While these were Christmas-themed placemats, you can certainly make these any time of the year. Now that you know how to sew a placemat, you can select fabrics to coordinate with a season or a holiday, so your home decor. The possibilities are endless!

Want to remember how to sew a placemat? Be sure to save this to your favourite Pinterest board.