DIY Fabric Coaster
Guest Leanne Bond of @cloverandfamily makes the sweetest DIY Fabric Coasters. She is a guest on the blog sharing how you can make your own DIY Fabric Coasters. Thank you, Leanne, for being a guest on the blog!
DIY FABRIC COASTER
If you have ever made a quilt, you can easily make coasters too!
I started making coasters after noticing my scrap fabric boxes were overflowing! I’m not one to throw away scraps.
“I’m sure I can use this for something,” runs through my head each time I’m trimming. I even save the strips of batting after trimming a quilt! That’s when I started making coasters.
DIY Fabric Coasters are essentially mini quilts and they’re so fun to make! Just like quilts, the possibilities are endless!
I love making these because:
- I get to use up my scraps, meaning less waste overall.
- It’s a great way to trial new colour combos before committing to a larger size quilt.
- You can try new quilting techniques that maybe you’ve been too afraid to try on a larger quilt.
- They make wonderful gifts for teachers, colleagues, stocking stuffers, hostess gifts….
- They are ridiculously cute!
These coasters have a quilt top, batting and backing, and these teeny, tiny little beauties can be finished with or without binding!
DIY FABRIC COASTER MATERIALS
What you’ll need:
- Quilting fabric
- Batting
- Sewing machine
- Thread
- Cutting ruler
- Cutting mat
- Hand sewing needle (if you attach your binding by hand)
HOW TO MAKE YOUR DIY FABRIC COASTER
STEP 1 – MAKING YOUR MINI QUILT TOP
There are so many possibilities here. Look to some of your favourite quilt blocks you have previously made for inspiration. Ideas include:
- A single, uncut square
- Half square triangles
- 3 piece quarter square triangles
- Strips pieced together
- Or completely scrappy
You want to end up with a coaster top of approximately 5 ½” – 6″ square.
Press all seams flat on the back. The mountain coasters I used to make this tutorial are a scaled down version of a block from The Peaks Quilt by Frannie B Quilt Co.
STEP 2 – MAKING A QUILT SANDWICH
Here is where I will break it down into making coasters WITH binding or WITHOUT.
First, I will show you how to make coasters WITH binding.
WITH BINDING
- Cut your batting and backing fabric about 1″ larger than your quilt top.
- Arrange the layers like you would a quilt: back side will be placed wrong-side up, then batting layer and finally your coaster top.
- I don’t bother with basting these little guys. They are easy enough to keep in place without, but if you’re worried things may shift go ahead and put a few pins in!
- Quilt as desired.
- A note about scrap batting: Often times, my scrappy batting strips are just a wee bit too small, so I resort to making “Frankenbatting” (as I learned from Mr Domestic!). To make, I take two strips of batting of similar length, place them side by side and stitch them together using a zigzag stitch so the pieces don’t actually overlap at all but are sewn together flat. Now you have a larger piece of batting to work with.
STEP 3 – TRIMMING
Your little coasters are now quilted together and it’s time to trim them, just like you would a quilt.
Square them up using your ruler and lines on your cutting mat.
They should measure about 5 ½” square or 6″ square.
STEP 4 – MAKING THE BINDING
After many different trials of getting the binding to come together easily and efficiently, I came across a tutorial by Crazy Mom Quilts, and it is by far the best way to bind tiny little things.
I take no credit for the awesomeness of her genius work!
- Cut your binding strips 1 ½” wide.
- Take an end of one of the strips and pin to the front of one of your coasters so the end lands in the middle of one side of the coaster (not a corner!).
- Then take the binding and lay it out all around the coaster top, taking into account the extra needed for your mitred corners.
- Pin as you go – you want to be fairly accurate for this step so you don’t end up with binding that is too long or too short.
- Once you have all sides measured and pinned, trim your binding to have one end overlap the other end by ¼”.
- Unpin from the coaster top, and take the binding to your sewing machine and join the ends using a ¼” seam.
- You will now have a loop of fabric that perfectly fits your coaster top!
- Press seam open. Place pressed seam side up and sew the binding to your coaster top ensuring the seam is placed in the middle of a side and not at a corner (not the worst thing if it lands on the corner, but does make things a bit awkward).
- Sew all around the coaster, stopping to mitre your corners, just like you would a regular size quilt, but this time, your ends are already joined once you get back to where you started!
- Next, I fold the binding over to the back and press the seam on the front of the coaster. You will then need pins or sewing clips (I hear the sewing clips are really slick, but I honestly use binder clips from an office store, and they work just as well!)
ON THE BACK OF YOUR COASTER
On the back side of the coaster
- Fold the raw edge of the binding under.
- Pin or clip around the coaster and either hand sew the binding in place or use your machine, whichever way you like best!
- Then flip that little guy over and admire the cutest little coaster quilt you ever did see!
DIY FABRIC COASTER WITHOUT BINDING
- Cut a scrap piece of batting about 1″ larger than your coaster top.
- Don’t worry about the backing at this point. We will come to that a bit later.
- Next, place your coaster top, right side up, onto the batting and quilt together just the two layers.
- As mentioned above, I don’t baste my coaster tops before quilting; I find they are small enough to handle without basting and there is very little movement of the layers, but of course, if you feel more comfortable basting, then please go right on ahead!
I mentioned it above in the “with binding” tutorial, but in case you skipped that part, here’s a note about scrap batting: Often times, my scrappy batting strips are just a wee bit too small, so I resort to making “Frankenbatting” (as I learned from Mr Domestic!)
To make, I take two strips of batting of similar length, place them side by side and stitch them together using a zigzag stitch so the pieces don’t actually overlap at all but are sewn together side-by-side, and now you have a larger piece of batting to work with!
STEP 3 – TRIMMING
Your little coasters are now quilted together and it’s time to trim them, just like you would a quilt.
Square them up using your ruler and lines on your cutting mat.
Trim off the corners too to reduce bulk for the finished coaster.
STEP 4 – ADDING THE BACKING
- After your coaster tops have been quilted and trimmed, measure them and cut your backing fabric the same size.
- You will then place right sides together and sew around the coaster leaving a 2″ opening so you can turn your coaster inside out.
- Use a point turner (or chopsticks work great, just saying) and push the fabric out at the corners.
- Use an iron and press flat.
- Take your coasters back to your sewing machine and topstitch around the outer edge (I usually stitch slightly less than a ¼” from the edge) closing up the open area you left to turn the coaster inside out.
- Take a moment to admire your new tiny, itty bitty little quilt!
I hope this inspires you! Go, create and have fun! Oh, and if you have a glass of wine while you sew, don’t forget the coaster! Please feel free to tag me on Instagram (@cloverandfamily) or use hashtag #cloverandfamily so I can see all your creations!
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