Jute Placemats {DIY Project}

I've really been settling into our little apartment lately. We haven't quite been here a year but we're signing another lease and I'm really trying to personalize it so it doesn't feel like a cookie cutter apartment. Not too long ago I got a great little table second hand from my grandmother but undecorated it tends to get piled on when we walk in the door. So I decided to give it a simple little tablescape.

So I decided to clean up one of my empty wine bottles and use a canvas ribbon and some silk flowers that match my summer wreath for a simple centerpiece. For the placemats I tried following this tutorial, but it wasn't really working for me. Simply gluing the cord to itself wasn't stable enough to give me a nice flat placemat, and definitely not with a large enough diameter. So I decided it needed some backing. Here's how I did it.

Step One: Pour some wine.

Step Two: Turn your coffee table into a workspace.

You'll need jute cord, a hot glue gun and gluesticks, scissors (I love my fiskars rotary cutter, it's amazing) and some kind of material for backing. I had an old sheet that I'd already cut for another project so I used that.

Step Three: Cut two large 14" x 14" squares from your material. It gives you room to work with if you don't start perfectly centered.

Step Four:  Use the hot glue and glue the cord to the fabric and to itself in a spiral until you reach the size you're going for. 

Step Five: When you are about one more spiral from the size you want, trim the fabric down to your cord and glue the last cord layer to the layer before it so that the fabric is not showing when the placemat is flat on the table surface. I cut my cord at an angle and used a small drop of hot glue to smooth it down against the placemat. 

Voila! Placemats!

I love Jute, and I use it alot. A couple of weeks ago I used Jute to coffee an old aluminum coffee can to make a large utensil holder for my counter. I bought that huge roll at Hobby Lobby with a 40% off coupon for less than $10. 

So basically, jute is the star in my little apartment makeover :)

Have you ever used jute in your DIY projects? I'd love more ideas for my big roll!