Do your kids love Lego’s? Ours do but no one wants the little pieces in the carpet. We were looking at the option of building a Lego table but did not want something that big. Then we saw a Lego mat and loved the idea of a mat that sits on the floor that can be put away. The only problem was that we wanted an extra large mat (most to purchase are about 40”) so we decided to create our own. And here is a DIY Lego mat tutorial.
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If you just want to purchase a pre-made mat a great place to find them is on Etsy.
LEGO MAT TUTORIAL
This tutorial is for a mat that is about 60 inches wide and made from canvas. I would suggest using canvas as the base but the side can be regular cotton fabric (I used canvas for both).
SUPPLIES:
– 1 ¾ yards 60” canvas
– ¾ yard of 60” canvas or 1 yard of 42” fabric (sides or trim)
– ½ yard of fabric for binding (I used 2.5” strips from 5 different fabrics)
– 5 ¾ yards of cording
2 – cord stops
4 – large eyelets
– thread
– washable marker (used to mark the fabric)
TOOLS:
– scissors
– sewing machine
– iron
– eyelet tool
– ruler
– serger (optional)
SIDE NOTE about the fabric: For the sides of the mat I did use canvas but because the canvas is thicker the top does not close completely.
CUT THE FABRIC
Once you have purchased your supplies you can cut the fabric pieces. First, take the 1 ¾ yards of canvas and fold it in half (30”x length) then in half again (30”x approximately 31”). You will create one-quarter of a circle from this folded fabric. Take a ruler and measure 30 inches from the inside point (the one where all the folds are at) and mark the fabric. Starting on this one side, move around the fabric marking 30 inches until you reach the other edge (you are creating a quarter of a circle shape).
When the fabric is marked connect the marks to create a part of the circle. Then cut all the fabric (4 pieces) along that shape. TIP: you will want to pin the fabric together to keep it from moving. Will look something like this after:
TIP: Make sure you are using the middle of the fabric for your inside point or you will not have a circle after cutting.
Next, take the fabric for the sides of the mat. Cut the fabric into 6-inch strips. You will need a total of about 195 inches. So for canvas (60” wide fabric) you will need 3.25 strips and cotton (42” wide fabric) you will need 5 strips.
Then cut the fabric for the binding into 2.5-inch strips. You will need 5 strips.
SIDE NOTE: To prep the canvas, I also serged the edges to keep it from fraying but you do not need to do this.
ADDING THE SIDE OF THE MAT
Take your 6-inch strips and sew them together (using a ½ seam) along the 6-inch side, leaving the first and last one unattached (not sewn together). With the one long strip of fabric, fold and iron it in half (3”) with right sides out (seams inside).
With the circle fabric (mat) mark with the washable marker where the four quarters are (if the fabric was folded again it would be the side where the fabric meets). Next, pin the side fabric onto the mat (circle fabric); the folds of the side fabric will be facing the inside of the circle.
TIP: Make sure you can still see the marked spots of the circle and start pinning the side fabric at one of these marks.
It is IMPORTANT that in this next step you leave about 6-8 inch gap of NO sewing over these marked spots (3” on one side and 3” on the other). Also, leave about 4-6 inches from the start and end (where the fabric pieces meet) of the trim not sewn so you will be able to attach the two together. Start sewing the side trim piece onto the mat, making sure to leave the gaps.
After coming all the way around, pin the start trim pieces into place (it should already be pinned) and overlap the end of the trim pinning it in place also. Find the end of the start piece and measure 1” away from the edge, mark the end of the trim piece (it’s overlapping the other) to this measurement.
This marked spot is where you will cut the end of the trim and sew the two pieces (start and end) together using a 1/2” seam.
TIP: Unfold the trim piece first and have the seam be on the inside of the fold (like before).
INSTALLING THE CORDING
Before you can finish sewing the trim (sides) to the mat you need to install the cording inside it. But first, you need the eyelets in place. Remember those marked spots on the mat? Two of those will be where the cord stops will be, so the eyelets will be placed there.
At one of the marked spots, measure 2” on each side of the mark (you will be marking the trim piece) and mark the measurement. TIP: Place each mark about 1”-1.5″ away from the folded edge.
These two marks will be where you place the eyelets. SIDE NOTE: To make the hole in the fabric I used a hole punch then installed the eyelets.
Place two more eyelets the same way in the trim directly across from these two eyelets. Once all 4 eyelets are installed it is time to feed the cording through the trim.
Start at one of the marked spots that does not have an eyelet. Take one end of the cording and start feeding it in the trim piece (inside the fold). TIP: Use a safety pin on the end of the cording to help feed it between the fabric.
When you reach an opening with the eyelets, feed the cording through the eyelet then install the cord stop. Once it’s added, feed the end through the other eyelet.
Continue feeding the cording around the mat again until you reach the other eyelet section. Add the cord stop the same way (feed through eyelet first and after) as before and continue around the mat until you reach the starting point.
TIP: Before going on check to make sure the cord stops are correctly installed. Will look something like this when the mat is completed.
Pin the start and end sections of cording to the trim fabric right where the mark was placed (pin about 1-1 1/2″ from the fold). Make sure to leave 1/2″ -1” of extra cording past the line for each end that way you have something to sew. Sew the two ends to the fabric (the fold should be opened when sewing).
After sewing, adjust the cording so it is equal on all sides, directly across from the end pieces (just sewn to trim) sew this cording into place just like the other. Now sew all the openings in the trim to the mat with a 1/2″ seam.
ADD THE BINDING
To make the binding take the 2.5 inch strips and sew them together, like a quilt binding. Here is a great tutorial to do that.
Next, fold the fabric in half (with right sides out) and iron. Open the fold and fold the edges of the fabric to the fold you just created, ironing again. Then fold the fabric again to hide the edges inside the first fold. Will look something like this:
Take the binding and pin into place around the mat, the fold will be on the edge of the mat fabric plus trim.
Starting about 8 inches from the end of the binding, sew the binding in place with a 3/8-1/2” seam (make sure to leave 8 inches on the other end also). Attach the ends together like you did with the side (trim) piece but if you’re using the angled edge (like I did) measure 2.5” from the edge then cut and sew together. After attaching the ends together, sew the rest of the binding to the mat.
And now you have an extra large Lego mat. What do you think?
Did you have any questions? Oh and if you don’t want this large of a mat, figure out the size you want your mat. Then find the circumference of that size of circle (this will be the number of inches you need for the side and binding fabric) then use this tutorial to create your mat.
Hope this helps you not find so many Lego’s everywhere!
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