Placemats for Thanksgiving

Walk in nature placemats | Thankful placemats | Leafy fun | Turkey hand placemats
Corn cob designer placemats

Crafting and designing your own placemats is an easy way to add a personal, yet festive feel to your Thanksgiving dinner table. Children can also design special placemats to give as gifts or participate in the holidays.

WALK IN NATURE PLACEMAT
These easy-to-construct placemats are made with a little help from Mother Nature and parents. Take small children on a special walk to gather supplies first. Since there is ironing involved, children should be supervised.

YOU'LL NEED
Wax paper
Leaves
twigs
sand
flowers etc.
Iron
  • Cut two pieces of wax paper to your desired size.
  • Place one sheet of wax paper on a table or work area and allow children to place nature items on the paper in their own design.
  • Once finished, place the second sheet of wax paper over the first, lining up the edges as closely as you can.
  • Iron the wax paper together.
  • Trim edges so that your place has no frays or loose ends.
TIPS, TRICKS, AND HINTS
HAVE children write their name on a small piece of colored construction paper and place in between wax paper before ironing. Grandparents and friends will treasure the placemat as a "special" gift from their loved one. You can also include a date or photo of the child before ironing.
ADD a few pieces of colored yarn or construction paper to add color to your placemat. Yarn can be arranged to form a word, letter, or design.


THANKFUL PLACEMATS
These fun-to-design placemats are perfect for teaching your children the meaning of Thanksgiving. You'll be using wax paper again to seal in your design, so some parental supervision and help will be necessary. Small children should use child-safe scissors and markers.

WHAT YOU'LL NEED Old newspapers and magazines
Construction paper
Wax paper
Scissors
Crayons or markers
  • Page through old magazines and newspapers with children. Have children locate things they are thankful for. Clip pictures, photos, and words from newspapers and magazines and set aside.
  • Tear two sheets of wax paper to desired size.
  • Have children place cutouts on to the wax paper.
  • Once finished, place second sheet of wax paper on top of the first and iron together.
  • Trim edges to make placemat appealing.
TIPS, TRICKS, AND HINTS
USE craft scissors with designer blades to shape the edges of the placemat.
CLEAR contact paper can be used in place of wax paper.
CHILDREN can write a special note to parents or grandparents and place it in the placemat design, as well.


LEAFY FUN
By coloring over leaves which have been placed between two sheets of paper, you can design festive, leave printed placemats. This project is exciting for small and older children and takes only a short amount of time to complete. Before beginning, go on a quick nature walk to find freshly fallen leaves in good condition.

WHAT YOU'LL NEED
White paper
Scissors
Crayons
Contact paper
  • Place a single leaf in between two sheets of white paper.
  • Gently rub a crayon over the outer sheet of paper, coloring in the area where the leaf is. (If you do this properly, the shape and pattern of the leaf will begin to show through your color markings.)
  • Repeat as many times as you like, using the same top sheet of paper.
  • When finished, place sheet of paper with leaf designs on it in between two sheets of wax paper and iron together. (Contact paper can also be used.)
  • Trim edges.
TIPS, TRICKS, AND HINTS
LEAF designs can be cut from colored construction paper and placed in between the contact paper for a "cleaner" looking placemat.
MATCHING name or gift tags can be made by coloring leaves on smaller pieces of paper and then writing a name in the center of the leaf design and placing on the table.


TURKEY HAND PLACEMATS
By tracing their own hand with a crayon on to a sheet of colored construction paper, children can easily draw and design their own turkey placemat.

WHAT YOU'LL NEED
Colored construction paper
Scissors
Crayons or markers
Wax paper or contact paper
  • Set out a single piece of construction paper on a flat work area.
  • Have child place their hand on the center of the paper and trace the outline of their hand print.
  • Once done, this outline will serve as your turkey body. The thumb will be the turkeys head and the four fingers will serve as feathers and plumes. Have child color in the turkeys body, eyes, and feathers.
  • Draw legs for your turkey and a gizzard.
  • When finished, place turkey in between two sheets of contact paper or wax paper. If using wax paper, iron together.
  • Trim edges.

CORN COB DESIGNER PLACEMATS
Using an ear of corn, you can paint your own colorful design to mix and match for the holidays!

WHAT YOU'LL NEED
Ear of corn
Corn cob holders (or large nails or pins)
Fabric paints
Fabric
  • Choose your fabric. You can buy plain white placemats to design or use equal sized pieces of white scrap fabric. Make all placemats a uniform size and place them on a flat working area.
  • Cut corn cob so that you have a center piece approximately 2-inches wide, and then attach corn cob holders. (If corn cob holders aren't available, use two large pins or nails.)
  • Drizzle a small amount of fabric paint on to a piece of wax paper, paper plate, or similar flat object. If you'll be using multiple colors, have all your paints ready before proceeding.
  • Dip corn cob into paint so that a small portion of the cob is covered in your desired color.
  • Roll corn cob across placemat until desired effect is achieved. You can continue to dip the corn cob into different shades of paint to mix and match colors or rinse the cob off between rollings.
  • If fabric paint needs to be heat-set, follow label instruction to complete. If not, allow paint to dry and enjoy!



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