Mark Your Place

Yes. I admit it. I grew up with placemats. The hard sort with various scenes of the River Thames. Not my style now, BUT I find myself lusting after something apart from my natural linen ones. Don't get me wrong - I do like the look of the natty linen, but it's just not practical with kids unless you have 700 of them and throw them in the wash after each meal. Um, not me. I need a wipeable version that doesn't belong on Romper Room. So that pretty much rules out anything textured like bamboo and anything unwashable like the laser cut felt ones I have.

Food Wasted

Although the design on these isn't exactly what I'd choose, I love the idea of reusing old school placemats. I even have a set in the basement that is just begging for this type of treatment!

Pinterest

...old placemats could even be painted with chalkboard paint! I wonder if it would stand up to numerous wipings. That said, my chalkboard wall is fairing fantastically well and we use a damp cloth to wipe it down.

Pinterest

I really like the outlines of the elements of a place setting here. I wonder if I could permanently apply them to a chalkboard mat?

My DIY juices are definitely flowing. Stay tuned for the results!