Braided Coasters Tutorial

I planned this braided coasters project for a Cinco De Mayo craft/margarita party. We enjoyed making them, however, they took a little longer than we had planned and we hit a few snags along the way… hopefully my tutorial will help to not let that happen to you! Plan two hours for this project—there is quite a bit of cutting and simple hand sewing (not difficult, just time consuming!)—but if you are a fast sewer you probably won’t need as much time. And lets be honest, it probably takes less time when you’re not stuffing your face with guacamole.

Materials:
sewing needle
thread
scissors
fabric strips about 1 inch wide, 1-2 feet long

Step 1:
Sew together the ends of three fabric strips and start braiding a relaxed braid. If you braid too tight, your coiled coaster won’t sit flat.

Step 2:
When a strip runs out just tie on another strip. Continue until your braid is about 46″ long for a coaster for a mug. Just make a longer braid if you want to make larger place mats or oversized coasters for under centerpieces.

Step 3:
Sew together the ends of your finished braid and cut off any extra fabric. Begin coiling the braid, sewing the end in place.

Step 4:
Continue to coil the braid, sewing as you go. Sew such that your stitches are only visible from the back of the coaster, by only sewing through a small piece of each side of the braid. Here is a picture of the back of the coaster, where you can see the needle is only picking up a small piece of each braid:

… and here’s the front of the coaster, where the stitch is not visible:

Step 5:
Sew until you have used all your braid, or you’ve reached the desired size for your coaster.

Step 6:
Tuck the end of your braid under the coaster, and sew it down using the same type of stitching that only goes through the back of the coaster. Knot and cut your thread.

And done! Aside from using these as regular coasters under your mugs, they look great under vases and plants, or make larger ones to place under decorative bowls on your coffee table or holiday centerpieces. Have you tried this project before? Share your tips and tricks in comments below, or post your projects on Instagram with #craftywhatnot for a chance to be featured!