Quilted round coasters – sewing tutorial

Hello, my crafty friend!

I’m always looking for new ideas to use my fabric scraps, so I have a fun little project for you today!
Have you tried making quilted coasters? I have, and I can tell you they are amazing, especially if you like to use a tablecloth and are afraid of getting it dirty!

Supplies needed

Fabric – I used some cotton scraps in two different prints. You can use any type of fabric you want, but make sure you can wash it. My favourite fabric shop is Minerva. You can find a large selection of fabrics, and beautiful prints for any project!
Woven interfacing – I used a lightweight fabric, so I decided to interface it with Vilene G700. If you are using medium to heavy-weight fabric you can skip this step.
Stabiliser – unless you want your finished coasters flimsy, I highly recommend adding fusible fleece or Decovil light. I used HeatNBond for my coasters.
Single fold bias binding – I made an 18mm wide bias binding using leftover fabric. You can use a ready-made bias binding if you want, but make sure it is of good quality and it is similar to the main fabric.
Sewing machine, thread, scissors, clips or pins etc.

Sewing tutorial

To make a single coaster: cut two squares of fabric about 15 cm by 15 cm (already interfaced) and an additional piece of stabiliser (e.g fusible fleece).
First, fuse the stabiliser to the wrong side of one piece of fabric.

Place both fabric pieces wrong sides together, align on all sides and pin them together.

Baste and quilt the fabric. I stitched lines at a 45-degree angle, every 1 cm. You can adjust the space between the lines to suit your preference or try a different design.

Using a compass, cookie cutter or another circular item, make a paper template by drawing a circle about 12 cm in diameter.

Centre the template on the coaster, trace it around and cut it out.

Unfold one side of the bias binding and with the right sides together align it along the entire panel. Make sure to leave long tails at the beginning and the end.

Sew the bias binding in place using 7 mm seam allowance, but leave a 5 cm gap between the first and the last stitch.

TIP: To get nice, flat finish ease the bias binding when sewing, use a smaller stitch length and pivot often. I like to use an awl to help me guide the bias binding underneath the presser foot.

Mark a midpoint between the stitches on both tails. Place the ends of binding right sides together and matching up the midpoints join them together. Trim any excess, open the seam flat and continue sewing the bias binding until the gap is closed.

Fold the bias binding towards the other side of the coaster enclosing the raw edge. Line up the folded edge beyond the stitching line and pin it in place around the panel.

Topstitch the bias binding around the coaster.