Quick Mug Rug Project to Celebrate Grads & Dads

Hi! It's Melanie from A Bit of Scrap Stuff! Today, I'm sharing a quick and useful gift for Dad, Grandpa, and/or Graduates! I think it is tricky to quilt gifts for men and graduates so I love making a personalized mug rug / snack mat for that special person. You can even add a fun mug or snack or gift card to complete the perfect gift! I also love that you can make a mug rug in one afternoon - yay!

Only a few fabrics are needed for this project - so try to find fabrics that your recipient will love. Check out this blog post: The Art of Picking Quilt Fabrics if you need tips!

Fabric Ideas:

• Men: Tools, Woodgrain, Nature, Video Game, Sports, Hobbies, Music 
• Graduate: Licensed College Fabrics, School Colors, Fabric that represent their major or favorite subject (Music, Math, English, Science), Sports

Alphabet Ideas: 

GO! Classic 2" Alphabet Uppercase Set 

• Dad, Pop, Pa, Gpa
• School Initials
• Initials of recipient 

OR

Number Ideas:

GO! Carefree 3" Numbers 

• Graduation year

Did you notice the two Mug Rugs are the same pattern - but different sizes? Guess how I did that? 

AccuQuilt GO! Mix & Match Qubes! I used both my 12" and 10" Mix & Match blocks to create the size I needed! I love the flexibility of GO! Qubes! This pattern will also work for 9", 8", and 6" Qubes depending on the size of mug rug/snack mat you want! 

Let's get ready to start creating!

Supplies:

• AccuQuilt GO! or GO! Big Fabric Cutter
• AccuQuilt GO! Qube 12" Mix & Match Block OR 10" Block
• AccuQuilt GO! Queen of Hearts die
• AccuQuilt GO! Classic 2" Alphabet Uppercase Set OR AccuQuilt GO! Carefree 3" Numbers
• AccuQuilt GO! Strip Cutter 2½" (2" Finished)
• Fabric Scraps
• Fusible Adhesive *Fuse per manufacturer instructions to wrong side of fabric that will be used for letters and heart.

Cutting

The following information is for one mug rug. I used both the GO! Qube 10" and 12" Mix & Match Blocks. Here are their individual finished sizes:

• GO! Qube 12" Block = finished size 6½" x 12½"
• GO! Qube 10" Block = finished size 5½" x 10½"

You can use any GO! Qube block, just remember the smaller you go, the more shapes you will need to create a rug big enough for mugs.

Fabric A: AccuQuilt GO! Mix & Match Qube 12" or GO! Qube 10" Block

• Cut (1) Die 1 Square
• Cut (2) Die 5 Half-Square Triangles

Fabric B: AccuQuilt GO! Qube Mix & Match Block same size as above

• Cut (1) Die 8 Rectangle
• Cut (2) Die 5 Half-Square Triangles

Fabric C: AccuQuilt GO! 2" Classic Uppercase Alphabet OR AccuQuilt GO! Carefree 3" Number

• Cut desired letters.
• I cut D A D and U W 
• OR - For the graduate- instead of the school letters- cut out the graduation year using  Example '20

Fabric D: AccuQuilt GO! Queen of Hearts Die

• Cut (1) Heart

Fabric E (binding): AccuQuilt GO! Strip Cutter 2½" (2" Finished) 

• Cut (1) 2½" x WOF strip

Fabric F (backing)

• Cut (1) 8½" x 14½" rectangle

Assembly

• Sew Die 5 (half-square triangles together). Make 2.
• Sew (2) half-square triangles together to make (1) rectangle.
• Sew (1) Die 8 rectangle above the half-square rectangle from step above to make (1) square.
• Sew (1) Die 1 Square to right side of pieced square from step above.

• Fuse chosen letters in desired layout on Die 1 Square. Be sure to leave about 3/8" from edge to allow for binding.
• Fuse heart in desired location.
• OPTIONAL -  use FREE embroidery files from AccuQuilt to stitch around the letters, heart, and/or numbers.

Mini-Quilt Sandwich 

• Layer mug rug (right side up), batting, and back (right side down)
• Quilt as desired
• Bind with favorite binding method

I'm so excited to have a handmade Father's Day gift to give my husband from the kids! I'm sure your Dad, Grandpa, Uncle, Brother, Son, or graduate would love to have a personalized mug rug/snack mat as a gift! 

You can use this same mug rug pattern to make this gift for anyone! Use their initials and it would be great for bride/groom, birthday gifts, or a just because gift!

If you want to learn more about AccuQuilt GO! Qubes - click here. Choose the Qube size you are interested in and watch the video.

I hope you enjoyed this mini-tutorial for making a personalized mug rug! Be sure to follow me on Instagram @abitofscrapstuff and on my A Bit of Scrap Stuff Blog for more fabric fun!

Happy Quilting!

Melanie