Mug rugs are great - they can be as big or small as you need, they can be simple or sophisticated, colorful or monochrome: the choice is entirely up to you. These cute coasters are also a great project for using up fabric scraps you have left over. And when you're all finished, you can enjoy a well deserved cup of coffee or tea - served on your newly made mug rug! We have a free mug rug pattern for you - the finished product is 12 x 21 cm.
These cute mug rugs serve as a large coaster for hot and cold beverages. If something drips or spills, the mug rug is there to protect your table surfaces and can act as a barrier for hot beverages as well. So forget about rings being left on your table surfaces! Mug rugs can easily be washed and look great so consider them your drink’s best friend.
Sewing fabric coasters yourself is super easy so it’s a great project for beginners. In this tutorial for DIY coasters you will find step-by-step instructions with images to sew your very own. You only need two pieces of fabric and what you use to embellish your coaster and the design are entirely up to you. We love the idea of having a circle of fabric to place your mug with a little slogan or message next to it like, ‘but first coffee’ and of course a personalised woven label is a must! If friends and family are regular visitors, you can sew several coasters using different mug rug patterns. Add the person’s name so that they can also be used instead of place cards.
These cute mug rugs offer a nice alternative to standard coasters and can be whipped up in a flash from a few fabric scraps. What’s not to love about this project?
This is what you will need for your DIY fabric coasters:
- A mix of fabrics of your choice
- Batting - we used a quilt batting, but you can also use an iron-on product. Use volume fleece like Vlieseline H640.
- Coordinating thread
- Woven labels from Wunderlabel
Let’s get started!
First cut the fabric. You can find plenty of mug rug ideas online and in craft magazines - we decided to go with a simple striped design. Cut 6 strips of fabric which measure 16.5 long x 5-7 cm wide. You’ll need about 6 strips in total. The nice thing about this design is that it doesn’t need to be exact. You can decide how long and wide the strips are. The backing of the mug rug will be created later on.
Assemble and sew the front panel. Lay out the fabric strips side by side to see which order you like best. Sew the strips together in pairs by sewing them together along one long side with a 0.75 cm seam allowance. Then sew the pairs together until all strips are sewn together. Press the seams.
This is the step where you attach your own personalised label to the front of your DIY fabric coasters. It could look like this:
Now you’ll cut the back piece of fabric along with the batting. Both pieces should be the same size as the front panel you just created. Our front panel measures approx. 16.5 x 22.5 cm. Place the back panel and the front panel together, right sides together. Place the batting on top of the front panel. Pin or clip everything together. See below:
Sew around the perimeter of your mug rug using a 0.75 cm seam allowance and leave an opening of about 2 ¾” (7 cm) on one side for turning. Backstitch around the opening to secure the stitches. Trim the fabric around each corner so that the mug rug will lay nicely once it’s finished.
Turn your fabric coaster right side out using the small opening you created. Make sure to push the corners outwards. Press in the fabric at the opening.
Top stitch along the entire edge of the mug rug to close up the turn opening. You can increase the stitch length a little to give it a nicer look. You can also quilt the middle - we chose to sew along the strips of fabric to emphasise the design.
Your mug rug is ready! If you enjoyed this DIY fabric coasters tutorial, share your finished project with us on Instagram. We’d love to see how it turned out!
Don't miss these blog posts from Wunderlabel:
Reusable Bowl Covers - Free Tutorial
How to Make an Easy Wine Bottle Gift Bag
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