Crochet Placemat Patterns

Table mats you can crochet in an afternoon

Placemats are the ideal small project: one ball of cotton, a couple of hours, and a finished thing that gets used every single day. The designs here cover simple double crochet and half treble rectangles, textured basketweave and waffle stitch mats, mandala-style rounds worked from a magic ring, granny square sets, ovals for oval tables, openwork lace mats descended from traditional doilies, filet crochet designs with a motif worked into the mesh, and seasonal sets in autumn and Christmas colourways. Several patterns come as a family, with a matching coaster, runner or bread basket, so you can build a whole table setting from one download.

Choosing between round, oval and rectangular

Shape is worth thinking about before you fall for a colour. A rectangular mat of roughly 30 x 40cm holds a dinner plate, cutlery either side and a glass, and works on any table. Rounds of 30-35cm across suit a round table and look generous under a single plate, though cutlery tends to overhang. Ovals split the difference and are the traditional choice for a long dining table. Openwork and filet mats are decorative rather than protective; they look wonderful under a cake stand or a jug but will not shield a table from a hot casserole dish. If the mats will do real work at family meals, choose a dense stitch.

Yarn, hook and quantities

• Cotton is the right answer almost every time. It takes heat far better than acrylic, washes at 40 degrees, does not pill and blocks to a crisp edge.
• DK cotton on a 3.5mm or 4mm hook gives a firm mat. Go a hook size smaller than the ball band suggests for extra body.
• Aran cotton or T-shirt yarn on a 5-8mm hook makes a thick, mat-like fabric fast, and is excellent for a trivet-style design.
• Crochet thread with a 1.5-2.5mm steel hook is for fine lace mats, which take longer but use very little yarn.
• A single 100g ball of DK cotton usually makes one to two rectangular mats, so a set of six needs around 400-500g.

Keeping mats flat and square

The two classic problems are curling corners on rectangles and rippling or cupping on rounds. Curling is nearly always a tension issue: a very tight fabric with tall stitches pulls at the edges, so add a final round of double crochet all the way round to settle it. Cupping on a mandala means too few increases for the stitch height; rippling means too many. Count the increases per round against the pattern rather than eyeballing it. Whatever the shape, block properly: soak the mat, pin it out with plenty of pins and let it dry completely. Cotton holds blocking through several washes.

Techniques and finishing touches

Beyond the basic stitches you will meet working in continuous rounds, front and back post stitches for basketweave texture, the magic ring, joining new colours invisibly at the start of a round, and a crab stitch or picot edging to finish. Filet mats teach you to read a grid chart, which is a genuinely useful skill that transfers to blankets and curtains. Weave your ends in along the direction of the stitches for at least 5cm; mats get washed more often than most crochet, and a lazily secured end will work loose. If you want mats that grip a polished table, a thin coat of textile anti-slip spray on the underside helps, or back the mat with a piece of felt slip-stitched into place.

Seasonal sets and gifting

A set of four mats and four coasters in a house's colours is one of the best housewarming or wedding presents a maker can give, and it costs far less than the equivalent shop-bought linen. Make them in an autumn palette for Christmas, or in bright cotton for a summer table outdoors.They are also a tidy way to use leftover cotton: a striped set sharing one base colour looks intentional rather than scrappy. For the matching pieces, browse the crochet coaster patterns, and for more around the house, the wider home crochet patterns and crochet cushion covers.

Common questions

Are there free crochet placemat patterns as PDFs? Yes, plenty. Filter for free designs, add them to your library and download the PDF to print or read on a tablet.

What size should a crochet placemat be? Around 30 x 40cm for a rectangle, or 30-35cm across for a round. Measure your largest dinner plate and add at least 5cm all round.

Can I put a hot dish on a crochet mat? On a thick cotton mat, yes, for a warm serving dish. Cotton will not melt as acrylic does, but for anything straight out of the oven use a double-thickness mat or a proper trivet underneath.