The way you dress a table sets the mood for a gathering, whether it's formal or casual. Sandi Reinke, owner of the Loose Ends Company, uses some of the unusual handmade papers offered through her catalog to create place mats that are pretty wild. Materials:
One yard Savanna Cloth (makes four place mats)
Four sheets Wild ThingsB. Project Paper (available in Zebra, Cheetah and Jaguar)
Spray bottle filled with water
Iron
Iron-on fusible web such as HeatnBondB.
Protective sealer
- Cut four 16" by 18" pieces of Savanna Cloth. A soft, woven fabric made in the Philippines from banana fiber, Savanna Cloth comes in a variety of colors.
- Lightly dampen the Wild Things Project Paper by misting with water. Scrunch the paper with your hands to wrinkle or distress it (figure A). It will become soft and pliable to work with and also acquire more of a texture. Hand-press the paper until it is flat. It doesn't necessarily have to dry before you work with it.
- From the Project Paper, cut two 2 1/2" by 19" strips and two 2 1/2" by 16" strips. Using the same measurements, cut pieces of fusible web.
- Iron the textured side of the web to the wrong side of the paper strips.
- Fold the strips down the center lengthwise, webbed sides together. Holding all four folded strips together, miter cut all corners. If you cut them all at once, they should fit together (figure B).
- Place the strips around the edges of the Savanna Cloth, sandwiching the fabric between the strips. Iron the strips to the edges of the Savanna Cloth, matching the corners to create a border around each place mat (figure C).
- Spray the mats with a protective sealer, if desired (figure D).
RESOURCES :
HeatnBond® Iron-On Adhesive
Website: www.thermoweb.com/cpd-ultrahold.html
Savanna Cloth and Wild Things Project Paper
Loose Ends
Website: www.4loosends.com
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