Sew Patriotic Coasters from Scrap Fabric

Make these patriotic quilted coasters for summer craft sales, to decorate your home for summer holidays, or as small last-minute gifts for unexpected occasions. They make great hostess or housewarming gifts for new neighbors.

Coasters are one of my best sellers. I can price them inexpensively because they are made using scraps of fabric and batting, and they can be completed very quickly. A good price is like a beacon. On average, customers will purchase several sets at one time.

These coasters are made using red and blue fabric scraps. If that's not enough to scream 'patriotic and Americana', the quilting in the shape of a star will do it.

Things You Will Need:

Lightweight cardboard
Ruler
Pencil
Scissors
Assorted red and blue print fabric scraps
Quilt batting scraps
Straight pins
Sewing machine
Iron
Freezer paper
Small wood star (mine was 1-inch)
Hot glue gun

Step 1
Trace a 5 1/2-inch square on lightweight cardboard and cut out. This pattern size will give you a 4 1/2-inch finished coaster.

Step 2
Trace four squares on blue print fabric, four on red print fabric and four on scrap quilt batting. Four squares of each fabric color will produce a set of four patriotic coasters. Cut out the squares.

Step 3
Lay the batting square on your work table. Place a red print square on the batting with the right side facing up. Place a blue square on top of the red square with the wrong side facing up. Align the edges. Pin the layers together.

Step 4
Sew around all four edges of the pinned squares using a 1/2-inch seam allowance. Leave a 2-inch opening in the center of one edge for turning.

Step 5
Trim the seams to 1/8 inch except at the opening.

Step 6
Turn the coaster right side out and press.

Step 7
Top stitch around all four edges of the coaster 1/4 inch from the edge using white thread. This will finish the edges and close the opening.

Step 8
Trace four 4 1/2-inch squares on the paper side of freezer paper. Cut out the squares.

Step 9
Draw a star on the paper side of each freezer paper square. The star is a line drawn star like the kind teachers draw on the top of really great homework assignments. A friend calls them "perfect paper stars". Fill the entire surface of each square with a star.

Step 10
Lay the coasters on your ironing surface with the desired front side facing up. Place a freezer paper square on each coaster with the wax side facing down. Iron each square to adhere them to the surface of the coasters. Note: This is only a temporary bond.

Step 11
Top stitch over the traced lines of the stars on each coaster using white thread. This will add the star design and quilt the coasters.

Step 12
Peel off the paper squares. The perforation created by the stitching will allow you to tear the paper from around the stars. The shorter your stitches are, the easier this will be to achieve.

Step 13
To give the coasters as a gift, or prepare them for sale, stack the coasters together. Rip a 1-inch wide by 20-inch long strip of red or blue fabric. Place the stacked coasters on the center of the strip. Bring the ends together on the front and tie into a knot. Trim the ends of the knot. Use hot glue to attach a wooden star to the center of the knot.