Drop Cloth French Cafe Placemats
Happy Dance Time
This is one of my all time favorite projects in regard to how it came out.
It does take time, so be prepared for that
but it is well worth it.
The drop cloth material I used was a 15′ x 4′ cotton drop cloth. Amazon has a nice drop cloth Trimaco Drop Cloth for the same price.
I had material left over which will be enough for a drop cloth pillow or another project. Gotta love that.
The very first thing you need to do is prepare your drop cloth
Here is the Step by Step to prep drop cloth for any project. Prepping Drop Cloth
Supplies you will need for this drop cloth french cafe placemats.
- canvas drop cloth (washed and prepped)
- wax paper
- ink jet printer (not laser)
- printer paper
- adhesive spray ( I like Aleene’s)
- Painters Tape 3/4″
- sponge brush ( I love foam brushes)
- acrylic paint
My place mats measure 18 x 14 when finished.
I first cut out 4 sets or 8 pieces measuring 20 x 16.
Once cut out take four of your pieces and these will be your tops for the placemats transfers.
I used this Paris Graphic. Get yours Free Bijouterie-Printable-Rev-GraphicsFairy. I used the transfer method of wax paper. You can find that method on Graphic Fairy also.
Make sure to center the graphic on the fabric.
After transferring my graphic onto each placemat I now wanted to paint side stripes to give it a more finished look.
I measured out 1 inch from the widest point of the graphic. That is where I wanted my first line to be.
Place your painters/masking tape in a straight line for that first stripe. Measure from the outer edge towards your tape to make sure your sides are going to be even. It looked like there were right so I continues on.
Started painting my first thin line. I wanted three lines total with the middle line being the widest.
To start the middle line I cover the thin line just over to where I want the middle line to start. I didn’t want to much space between the thin line and the middle. You will repeat this spacing for the second thin line as well.
Important thing here is to take your time and think out each line spacing and copy the same for each side.
xxxxx sponge brush
Your paint brush should be rather dry, because this is more a stenciling project.
To much paint on your brush may cause the paint to flow outside your lines.
It is best to make a light line and if you want darker paint again.
This will give you a sharper line.
To get your third line you need to create a tape line the same width as the space between the wide line and the thin first line.
Once painted I allowed each placemat to dry overnight.
Once dry I seamed up all four sides except my 5-6 inch turning spot. Turned each placemat inside out and then ironed the seams flat. Sew the turn spot, double stitch the edges.
I made a set of 4.
There you have it.
You can make the paint look worn with only one coat or……a darker look with a second coat….see photo below.
Here is a quick recap:
Prep the cloth, cut your placemats, print your graphic on wax paper, transfer to cloth, measure and tape for your lines, paint, let dry. Sew placemats.
What do you think? Are you going to give it a try?
Thanks for stopping by. Make your day a great one!
I have been wanting to do this. Thanks for the great instructions and pictures.
Author
Thanks Sherry…..I appreciate you stopping by. Have a great weekend!
Super cute! Found this over at Friday Favorites link party. Seems pretty easy too! Thanks for sharing.
Author
Hi Chelsea…….your right not to hard, just takes time. Thanks for stopping by.
I love these!! And will not make them! Do you have a link to your Etsy shop?
Author
I am working on populating my shop this weekend with items. I have fallen behind on adding my products. Thanks for asking and I will send you a link in a few days. Have a great Labor Day weekend!
I LOVE these!
Author
Hi Deb……thank you so much!
Hi Bonbon,
These French Placemats are so adorable!! I love them and can’t believe you made them. I’m sharing them on my Fb page today. Thanks for sharing at our Something to Talk About Link Party 33 and have a great week, Lisa at Concord Cottage
Author
Lisa…….thank you very much. They did take some time but I think they are worth it. Thanks for coming by.
Your placemats are SO lovely! Great tutorial too! Thank you so much for sharing at The Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop! PINNING!
Author
Thank you and for stopping by. I appreciate the Pin.
What a great project and use of drop cloth! I love the French look. Thanks for sharing on our Living with Style Linky Party!
Amazing! I love these and that you figured out a way to save me money by making them! 🙂
I’m choosing these as my featured post for the Thank Goodness It’s Thursday link party – thanks so much for sharing this with us, Bonbon! See you tomorrow.
This looks amazing! Your post has been Pinned,Tweeted and shared on Facebook! I’ll be featuring it this week on the Friday Favorites Link Party at Mustlovehome.com. Come by and see your feature and share what you have been working on this week! The doors open Thursday at 7PM. Hugs – Christine at Must Love Home
Ok, I am in love with these Bonbon! What a great job!
Pinning
Thanks so much for sharing at Something to Talk About!
Karen
This looks so amazing! Pinned and tweeted. Thanks for stopping by and partying with us! I hope to see you on Monday at 7 pm, so we can pin and tweet your masterpieces! Lou Lou Girls
These are beautiful Bonbon! And so affordable! Thank you for sharing at Dream. Create. Inspire. Link! I’ll be pinning and sharing your post!
Cat
I love these! Did you use fabric paint or regular acrylic paint? Your list says acrylic but does it stand up to washing? Think I’d hand wash these anyway. Thanks in advance for your reply
Author
Hi Linda
Thanks so much! I did use regular acrylic paint. I have used regular acrylic paint on pillows and washed them. The first wash will make the paint lighter but not by a lot. It gives a vintage used look if you like that which I do, but like you I only spot clean or handwash the place mats. Thanks for stopping by, I loved your question. Enjoy your day