Materials Needed (Makes four 19" x 15" placemats)
1 yard of Bari J. Anthology Floral Metaphor Lemon
1 ¼ yard of Bari J. Anthology Beloved Memoir Fern
1 ¼” yard of Bari J. Anthology Heathland Allusion Ecru
4.5 yards of Woven Cotton Fusible Interfacing such as Pellon Shapeflex (Note: This product used on both the wrong sides of the main side and the backing fabric makes a beautifully weighted placemat. I sometimes will use fusible fleece in addition if I want to quilt the placemat. Always put your fusible fleece on after a layer of shapeflex or you’ll end up with a wrinkly look.)
Cut:
4 - 15” x 11” Bari J. Anthology Floral Metaphor Lemon - Main Fabric
8 - 2.5” x 22” Bari J. Anthology Beloved Memoir Fern -Border Fabric
8 - 2.5” x 19” Bari J. Anthology Beloved Memoir Fern - Border Fabric
Note: I usually cut the following using the finished front placemat as a template to be super precise. So cut these after. These are the measurements.
4 - 15.5” x 19.5” Bari J. Anthology Heathland Allusion Ecru - Backing Fabric
8 - Woven Cotton fusible interfacing at 15.5” x 19.5”
How to:
Mark the wrong side of the main fabric in each corner ¼” from the edge.
Place your first border along the edge, right sides together.
Sew from the wrong side of the main fabric using a ¼” seam allowance from mark to mark.
Press the first piece of fabric, then sew the following three borders in the same manner. Be careful not to cross over your stitching so you do not end up with puckers.
Press the long borders towards the border and the short borders towards the main fabric.
With the placemat facing right side up, fold the long edge to the shorter edge, nesting the seams* which you pressed in opposite directions. Right sides are now facing each other. Press the fabric so it’s neatly folded.
Use a long ruler along the edge of the folded fabric and the pressed border to mark a line on the border fabric.
Use that line as a guide to sew the two borders together. Be careful to not sew over your initial stitches to avoid puckers.
Repeat for each border.
Trim excess fabric and press.
Use the finished front as a template to cut your backs and interfacing as instructed above.
Press the interfacing to the wrong side of the backing and the fronts.
Place the finished front and backs right sides together.
Sew a quarter inch seam allowance all the way around leaving a 4-5” gap to turn.
TIP: In the spot that would be the opening, simply lengthen your stitch to a basting stitch. Then when you finish sewing, press that open and remove the basting stitches. This will create a beautiful finished edge. You can glue baste it closed before the next step for even better results.
Turn the placemat right side out, use a pin to fully pull the corners out. Press well.
Top stitch using a ⅛” seam allowance all the way around closing the opening.
Repeat for the other three placemats.
*About Nested Seams:
Nested seams are when two seam allowances are pressed in opposite directions. When you line the seams up, the seams “lock” together at the seam line because the edges are higher on each side due to the seam being pressed in that direction. This makes the layers less bulky and helps the seams line up neatly especially in quilting. Think of it like fitting two puzzle pieces together so they match up more easily and lay flat.
