Burlap and Lace Placemats

I've also been wanting to update the furniture/decor in my apartment for some time now from the old mismatched college stuff to a more adult cohesive style. Pinterest has been very instrumental in helping me decide what style I want to embrace in my apartment. After much deliberating, I have concluded that I am too scattered brain and indecisive to just pick one style.. and that I should probably just keep all of my mismatched college stuff until I get married.. or move in with someone.. or both?

I decided to tackle one little section/room at a time since I don't have a budget for everything. This way I feel less pressured to pick a style just yet. And the first thing I've been focusing on is my kitchen and dining area. I really like the farmhouse style for the dining area with a small modern twist. I would love to buy a wooden dining table, but for now, my metal/glass ikea one will have to do. I can still bring that farmhouse vibe to the dining room with some small and simple touches. That's where the placemats come in.

I've been searching for some cute shabby chic placemats and it's been hard to find ones I am in love with. So I decided to make my own. I went to Michael's and bought a roll of burlap that is 10ft long and meant to be used as a table runner. It was $12.99 for the roll. I also bought a roll of white lace trim for $2 (I used some coupons). But of course, I didn't have enough lace so I had to go back for more.

You will need:
Burlap
Lace trim
Scissors
Hot glue gun
A placemat for sizing purposes
Elmer's glue

So here's what I did.

1. I took a placemat to measure the right size for the placemats. Thankfully, the burlap roll is the perfect width for a placemat. So I only had to make one cut to make them the right size.
2. Use a sharp scissor to cut! It will make cutting burlap so much easier. Cut along the line (I used a pencil to mark the spot). You will see that the burlap will want to fray and come apart a little bit. I let it fray a tiny bit, and then with some Elmer's glue sealed the edges to prevent further fraying.
3. Cut the lace to the right size so that it goes around the edges of the burlap. 
4. Carefully line the lace with some hot glue and glue to the placemat along the edge. 
5. Push the lace down with something so that you don't burn your fingers
6. Let dry and voila!

It was pretty easy to make the placemats. They aren't as sturdy as ones you could buy at the store, but they are sturdy enough to use as decor for a dinner party or something. I will definitely be using these when I have guests over for dinner/lunch. 

The centerpiece is an arrangement of faux flowers I got on clearance at Bed Bath and Beyond for $8. They came attached to a brown base that I didn't like so I cut them off and put them in a small glass container. The little white lanterns are also from BBB and they too are on clearance for $5.99! They come with little light up candles too! The centerpiece and the lantern really help tie in the shabby chic/farmhouse look to the table. I can't wait until the day comes when I can afford a new dining table =).