I was browsing Pier One online for inspiration for fall. I saw the Faux Maple Leaves Place Mats and loved the look but didn’t want to spend $6 for each place mat. Could I make one from dollar store leaves?
I got 5 branches of leaves from Dollar Tree. I see online that they have bags of leaves, but I didn’t find that in the store.
I choose maple leaf branches and cut the leaves off the plastic twigs and branch. Some maple leaf branches have smaller leaves. If you choose all small leaf branches, you will need more than 5 bunches. The leaves are more vibrant than Pier One’s but I like the colors. It will be perfect in October with black plates. I considered making place mats like Pier One’s and tried laying out the leaves on cloth. The leaves have a plastic spine and do not glue well. I decided I would sew them together. I don’t have a machine and don’t really think a machine would work well with the plastic spines. I got a charger and lined the leaves around the charger. I put a plate on top and it looked great. I decided to just make a ring of leaves for a “faux place mat” look.
The first ring took a while as I was playing with the leaves to come up with a pattern. Choose a color or colors you want to showcase. For the first ring, I choose red as primary, orange as secondary, and green as the bottom layer for background. For the second ring, I choose green as primary, orange as secondary and red as second layer background. Large primary leaves have two secondary or second layer leaves on each side beneath the primary.
If you wanted to do all one color or just two colors that would work but you would need more than 5 branches of leaves for 4 “faux place mat” rings.
Materials
- 5 bunches of maple leaves from dollar store (or more depending on size of leaves)
- charger for sizing of ring
- pins
- needle and dark thread
Directions
- Cut leaves off bunches
- Place around rim of charger in a pleasing pattern
- Have edges of leaves hang over side of charger
- Pin in sections to form circle
- Use dark thread and needle to sew a running seam underneath leaves
- Make tiny stitches on top on dark shadowing of leaves
- Periodically check that you are making a circular shape by placing on charger
- I found that sewing sections decreased the number of thread tangles on leaf points
- Sew sections together
- You can use it on top of a charger or without a charger
- Place plate in middle of ring and enjoy
- If a leaf is stained or damaged, sew a new leaf on top of old one (I did that and it works)
This post was featured on:
Thanks for the visit. Get exclusive free printables & all the news straight to your mailbox!
Please see my Link Parties page for the parties where this post was shared.
How clever of you!
Very beautiful!
Love this. So simple looking and very elegant!!
Thank you Donna. Your comment warms my heart.
Well done! Very pretty.
Thanks
Pier 1 has so many beautiful place mats and table runners that are not in my budget. This is a great idea and I love that it’s not expensive or time consuming.
I’m so glad you like it
Looks so pretty! Maple leaves last for long – I have made autumn wreaths out of them. Wishing you a lovely weekend Carol.
Have a lovely day Ritta!
Great hack! And probably a lot more economical than buying the placemats in a store. Visiting from Create Bake Grow and Gather party.
Thanks – have a great weekend!
What a brilliant idea Carol. And in all honesty I think your’s look way better than the ones from Pier One. So much more realistic and vibrant
You’re so kind Michelle – thank you.
this is such a great idea. I can see one sitting in the middle of the table it would be perfect for fall and we always have a wecoming catch it all this would be perfect
I’m glad you like it
Great idea. The placemats look fantastic. I like your version the best.
Thanks!
Carol, Your placemats turned out wonderfully! How great they will look on your table for fall! Great idea to use the charger as a guide too! Pinning to share.
Thanks for the pin!
Love your faux leaf placemats. Thank you for sharing at Snickerdoodle..
Your faux leaf placemats turned out so nice! Very pretty! Thank you for sharing at Party in Your PJs.
Hi Carol, thank you so much for participating in the Weekend Journal Page. Great to find a way to save $$ and make something yourself that fits your style! I put your perma link in the comments of the Dec. 8 Weekend Journal Page. Have a great weekend:)
Great! Thank you. Happy Weekend. See you tomorrow.
Wonderful idea….lovely colours!
How creative!! Thanks so much for linking up at the #UnlimitedMonthlyLinkParty 5. Shared.