Mandala Placemat Crochet Pattern

If you are looking for the perfect wedding gift, housewarming gift or just a nice way to personalize your table, the Mandala free placemat crochet pattern is for you.

I created these mandala crochet placemats as a wedding gift for my sister. I wanted something colorful and elegant, which could easily match her future home and that she would keep for a long time. That is why I used 10 different colors, but you can use as few or as many colors as you want.

No time right now? Pin this free placemat crochet pattern for later!

Scroll down for the free version but I recommend you purchase the ad-free PDF Pattern to get all the instructions and pictures in a nice PDF you can print and take notes on without relying on your phone or an internet connection, I’ve got you covered!

The Mandala crochet placemat pattern is now available on Ravelry: click here and add it to your queue! But if you prefer Etsy, you can purchase it here.

*This post contains affiliate links (only for products I love, use and spend my own money on obviously). This means I earn some yarn money if you make a purchase through one of these links (of course at no extra cost for you!), which I promise to use to create more awesome patterns like this one. All opinions are my own. See my full disclosure here. 

Before You Start Your Free Placemat Crochet Pattern

Materials

I used following materials for this pattern:

• 3 mm hook. I use this basic set. Each size has his own color which is very convenient and make it easy to find the right hook straight away.
• Cotton yarn: 2 50g skeins of Schachenmayr Catania Originals per crochet placemat. Lovecrafts offers this yarn in 82 colors, you’ll definitely find some you love for your crochet placemats.
• Tapestry needle to weave in the ends. I love this set as it has different eye sizes for different yarn thicknesses and it comes in a small tube which is very convenient so I don’t lose them.
• T-pins for blocking. I like to use these

Size

The finished diameter of one crochet placemat is 37 cm / 14.5″. It has taken me a lot of time and trial and error to decide on the best size. It had to be big enough so you can enjoy it when the table is set but not take too much room on the table so you can still seat people. So 37 cm / 14.5″ it is.

Abbreviations

This free placemat crochet pattern follows UK crochet notations.

• sl = slip stitch
• ch = chain
• dc = double crochet
• tr = treble crochet
• dtr = double treble crochet
• puff = puff stitch

Notes

• Repeat the stitches mentioned between * * until the end of the round.
• Each row starts with a ch1 or ch3 which counts as a dc and tr respectively unless otherwise specified.

Tips and Tricks for the Mandala free placemat crochet pattern

Blocking:

Depending on how loose or how tight you crochet the sides might flare up a little. But don’t worry, there is absolutely no need to rip off all your hard work. This will be fixed by blocking your work.

Colors:

As I mentioned previously, I used 10 different colors. One main color (royal blue, my sister’s favorite) and 9 others. I haven’t followed the same order for each crochet placemat but have kept the proportions of each color equal. I always do the first round and the last round in the main color and on average every 5th round. The other colors are used randomly around 2-3 rounds in each color per placemat. This makes each crochet placemat unique while keeping a uniformity in the set. It is just what I did, you can make them however you want, using 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 different colors and arranging them how you like. You can even make each crochet placemat a solid color but use a different one for each in the set. Possibilities are endless, don’t hesitate to let your creativity loose!

Weaving in the ends: 

As each row uses a different color, a lot of ends need to be woven in. If you’re like me, weaving in ends is not your favorite part of a crochet project. I made 12 of these Mandala crochet placemats, so you can imagine I had to find a few tricks to make this process less tedious.

• As the pattern is not too lacy, you can usually get away with crocheting the next round over the tail of the previous round.
• After you have crocheted a few stitches over the tail of the previous round, leave about 3-4 cm /1″ – 2″ of the tail and finish your round.
• Weave in the end of the tail in the opposite direction. With this method, you only have to do half of the weaving in process per tail.
• When you start a new round, don’t start where you finished the previous one. Start somewhere different at random. Having all your ends in the same section of the crochet placemat will make an extra layer, which you want to avoid. You don’t want to see where you started your rows in your finished crochet placemat, this trick makes them nearly invisible.
• When I start a row, I tag along the tail and crochet with a double yarn for a couple of stitches. It’s not perfect but I find as these are at random around your crochet placemat, they are not too visible and it makes you save a lot of weaving in ends time. If you don’t like it, you can leave your tail and weave it in afterwards like you would normally do.

Mistakes:

Don’t be afraid to make mistakes. This pattern is very flexible and forgiving. If you realize a few rows later you don’t have the right stitch count. Don’t panic, don’t rip all your hard work. You can usually get away with a small adjustment for the rounds where the pattern is based on the number of stitches.

Now that you have all my tricks, let’s get started.

The Actual Mandala Free Placemat Crochet Pattern

1. Rounds 1 – 10

Round 1: Make 11 puff stitches in a magic ring. Don’t forget to lock each one with a ch1. Finish the round with a ss in the 1st puff. Don’t pull to close the ring yet!

Round 2: Yarn in between 2 puff stitches. Ch3, 2tr in the same stitch. Repeat * 3tr between each puff * around. Finish the round with a ss in the 3rd ch of the ch3.

Round 3: Join yarn in the gap between 2 tr groups, ch3, 2tr in the same place, * ch2, 3tr in the next gap between 2 tr groups *. Finish the round with a ss in the 3rd ch of the ch3. Now you can tighten the magic ring to close it. Pull the tail until the hole disappears. Don’t forget to weave in this tail to secure it before you cut it.

Round 4: Yarn in ch2 space, ch3, 4tr in the same ch2 space, ch1, * 5tr, ch1 *. 
Finish the round with a ss in the 3rd ch of the ch3.

Round 5: Start round in ch1 space, ch1, 1dc in the same space, ch6, * 1dc in the next ch1 space, ch6 *. Finish the round with a ss in the ch1.

Round 6: Yarn in a 6 ch space, ch3, 7tr in the same 6 ch space, * 8tr in every 6 ch space around *.  Finish the round with a ss in the 3rd ch of the ch3.

Round 7: Join yarn in any tr, ch4, miss 1, * 1tr, ch1, miss 1 *. Finish the round with a ss in the 3rd ch of the ch4.

Round 8: Yarn in ch1 space, ch3, 1tr in the same space, ch1, * 2tr in the next ch1 space, ch1 *. Finish the round with a ss in the 3rd ch of the ch3.

Round 9: Start in any ch1 space, ch3, 1tr in the same space, ch2, * 2tr in the next ch1 space, ch2 *. Finish the round with a ss in the 3rd ch of the ch3.

Round 10: Join in ch2 space, ch1, * 2dc in the same space, 1dc between the next 2tr *. When doing the dc between the tr I only go over the 1st level of yarn separating the tr not both. I like the look of the 2tr group. If you want a more lacy look, you can insert your hook below the 2nd level yarn too. Finish the round with a ss in the ch1.

2. Rounds 11 – 20

Round 11: Yarn in any dc, ch3, * 1tr in each dc *. Finish the round with a ss in the 3rd ch of the ch3.

Round 12: Join in any tr, ch1, 1dc in the same space, * 1 dc in each tr *. Finish the round with a ss in the ch1.

Round 13: Yarn in any dc, ch3, 1tr in the same stitch, ch1, miss 1, 1tr , ch1, miss 1, 1tr, miss1, * 2tr in the same st, ch1, miss1, 1tr, ch1, miss 1, 1tr *. Finish the round with a ss in the 3rd ch of the ch3.

Round 14: Yarn in between 2tr, ch3, 2tr in the same place, 1tr in the next 1ch space, 2tr in the next 1ch space, * 2tr between the 2tr, 
2tr in the next 1ch space, 1tr in the next 1ch space, 2tr in the next 1ch space *. Finish the round with a ss in the 3rd ch of the ch3.

Round 15: Join yarn in between a 2tr group and a 1tr, ch1, 1dc in the gap between 1tr and 2tr group, ch7, * 1dc in the next gap between 2tr group and 1tr, 1dc in the gap between 1tr and 2tr group, ch7 *. Finish the round with a ss in the ch1.

Round 16: Yarn in a 7ch space, ch3, 8tr, * ch1, 9tr in the next 7ch space *. Finish round with a ss in the 3rd ch of the ch3.

Round 17: Join yarn in any tr, ch3, ch1, miss 1, * 1tr, ch1, miss 1 *. Finish with a ss in the 3rd ch of the ch3.

Round 18: Join yarn in any 1ch space (doesn’t count as a dc), 1dc in the same space, * 1dc in the 1tr, 1dc in the next 1ch space *. Finish with a ss in the ch1.

Round 19: Join in any dc, ch3, * 1tr in each dc *. Finish the round with a ss in the 3rd ch of the ch3.

Round 20: Yarn in a tr, ch1, * 1dc in each tr *. Finish the round with a ss in the ch1.

3. Rounds 21 – 26

Round 21: Join in a dc, ch1, 8dc, ch2, miss 1, * 9dc, ch2, miss 1 *. Finish with a ss in the ch1.

Round 22: Yarn in the 2ch space, ch3, 1tr in the same space, ch2, miss 2, 1tr, ch1, miss 1, 2tr, ch1, miss 1, 1tr, ch2, miss 2, * 2tr in the ch2 space, ch2, miss 2, 1tr, ch1, miss 1, 2tr, ch1, miss 1, 1tr, ch2, miss 2 *. Finish the round with a ss in the 3rd ch of the ch3.

Round 23: Yarn in anywhere. Ch3 which counts as a tr and

• in each ch2, 3tr
• in each ch1, 2tr
• between each tr of a 2tr group, 1tr

Finish the round with a ss in the 3rd ch of the ch3.

Round 24: Yarn in anywhere, ch1, * 1 dc in each stitch around *. Finish the round with a ss in the ch1.

Round 25: Join in a dc, ch3, ch1, miss 1, * 1tr, ch1, miss 1 *. Finish with a ss in the 3rd ch of the ch3.

Round 26: Join in a ch1 space, ch4, * 1dtr in each tr and each 1ch space around *. Finish with a ss in the 4th ch of the ch4.

You’re almost done with your free crochet placemat pattern, you only have some finishing touches left!

Blocking your Mandala Crochet Placemats

I usually don’t like the finishing touches of a project. Once I have crocheted the last stitch, I wish I could start enjoying my project straight away. Unfortunately, the last few steps make a huge difference. So, let’s get it over quickly.

First waive in all the ends of your crochet placemats and cut off any remaining threads. 

Now you need to block your placemat. This step will remove any flaring up or uneven tension in your work and make it look its absolute best.

Don’t skip this step as it can make a huge difference. Read my detailed tutorial on why block, how-to, and all my tips and tricks if you need help.

It’s a very easy process. Take your project and soak it in some water. The first placemat I blocked was a disaster, the royal blue had bled onto the other colors! In a panic, I called my mom desperately. I had spent so much time on this project and I thought it was all for nothing. But as all moms usually do, she knew exactly what to do to save my mandala placemat.

What to do in case of color bleeding?

Don’t worry, of course I’ll share her trick with you!

If you worry your yarn colors might bleed, add some white vinegar to the warm water and let it sit for a while. About 10-15 minutes usually do the trick. I used relatively warm water (about 40 °C) to get the cotton to bleed all it would and set the color so my sister would not have the issue once she washed the placemats. If you use other materials, be careful with the temperature, read the yarn label carefully. 

Using a homemade blocking mat

After the soak, get as much water out as possible, but don’t squeeze your placemat! Roll it between 2 clean towels to get the water out. 
Lay it flat on your blocking mat. 

If, like me, you don’t have a proper blocking mat, no problem, you can make one yourself. You just need a clean towel and some foam or anything soft you can prick into and that doesn’t get damaged by water (so no cardboard). You can even use a mattress or your couch. Pin the towel stretched to the foam (not too loose) and you’re good to go. For the pins, it is harder to go homemade. I tried to use my husband’s nails. That was a very bad idea. They rusted and destroyed my project. For a few bucks, you can get nice stainless steel T pins which you can easily reuse for each project.

Now you need to pin the edges of your crochet placemat following a 37 cm / 14.5″ diameter circle. To make it easier, I drew a circle of the correct size on an old kitchen towel as I knew I would have to repeat this a few times (remember, I made 12 of these!).

Let it dry as long as it needs. It needs to be 100% dry. Mine took 24-36h to dry entirely because it is very humid where I live.  Be patient!

Once it is dry, remove the blocking pins and you’re all done. Congratulations!

Any questions, comments? Need some extra help? Don’t hesitate to leave a comment or send me an email.