Quilted place mats with Zen art embroidery - Advanced Embroidery Designs

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Zen Art Quilted Place Mats

This tutorial shows beginners how to make modern quilted place mats using simple machine embroidery and basic quilting techniques. You start with fabric squares, add colorful Zen-inspired embroidery designs, then layer and quilt the mats for a clean, finished look. The project requires only basic sewing skills and works well for your first try at machine embroidery or quilting.

We used the designs from the Zen Art Block Set.
The finished size of each place mat is about 13 1/2" x 17".

You can purchase this placemats from our Etsy store!

Four quilted placemats with zen zrt embroidery on a table.

You will need :

embroidery threads either polyester or rayon according to the color of the main fabric;
scraps of light-colored fabrics, large enough to be hooped in 4"x4" frames for the blocks with embroidery;
about 1 1/2 yard of main fabric (we used royal blue);
fabric for the backing;
medium-weight cut-away embroidery stabilizer;
batting;
quilter's ruler;
rotary cutter;
iron;
#12 universal needle for piecing;
quilting threads of matching colors;
#12-#14 quilting needle.

Embroidery:

Upload the selected files from the Zen Art Block Set to the embroidery machine.
Prepare threads. In our case, we used royal blue to match the main fabric. Stabilize the light-colored pieces of fabric. Hoop tightly and embroider the designs one by one.
You will need 3 stitch-outs for one place mat. For four place mats you'll need 12 stitch-outs. There are only 10 designs in the set, so you'll have to repeat 2 designs. Choose any 2 you like. If done on fabrics of different colors, the same pattern will look slightly different.

Trim the stitch-outs to 4 1/2" x 4 1/2" squares.

Cutting:

Out of the main fabric, for 1 place mat, cut:

2 strips measuring 1" x 4 1/2"
2 strips measuring 2 1/2" x 4 1/2"
1 strip measuring 2 1/2" x 17 1/2"
1 piece measuring 8 1/2" x 17 1/2"

Use the remaining fabric for the binding.

Assembly:

Note: seam allowance is 1/4". Press the seam immediately after you make it.

Sew the 3 embroidered blocks and 4 1/2" strips in a row in the following order:
2 1/2" wide strip - block - 1" wide strip - block - 1" wide strip - block - 2 1/2" wide strip.

Sew the 2 1/2" x 17 1/2" strip to the upper edge of the row.

Sew the 8 1/2" x 17 1/2" piece to the bottom edge of the row.

Quilting and Finishing

Now place the backing on a flat surface (table) face down. Cover with batting. Spread your working piece over it.

Pin all layers together.
We quilted with a matching thread in a free-motion style all over the working piece. Start from the embroidered blocks and stitch in the ditch around them first. Then proceed to the other parts of the place mat.