Free Beginner Bernat Easy Life Placemats Knitting Pattern

There is something deeply satisfying about sitting down at a table set with handmade placemats. They bring warmth and personality to a meal in a way that store-bought linens simply cannot match. If you have been wanting to try your hand at knitting but have not found the right project to start with, or if you are a more experienced knitter looking for a relaxing, low-stakes project you can work on while watching television or chatting with friends, these Bernat Easy Life placemats are exactly what you need. This pattern is forgiving, quick to work up, and produces beautiful results that look far more complicated than they actually are.

In this post, we are going to walk through everything you need to know to create your own set of Bernat Easy Life placemats from scratch. We will cover the yarn itself, the tools you will need, the basic stitches required, full step-by-step pattern instructions, helpful tips for beginners, and some creative ideas for customizing your placemats to suit your home.

Why Bernat Easy Life Yarn Is Perfect for This Project

Before we get into the pattern itself, it is worth taking a moment to talk about the star of the show: Bernat Easy Life yarn. If you have not worked with this yarn before, you are in for a treat. Bernat Easy Life is a bulky weight yarn that is made from a soft blend of acrylic and cotton fibers, which gives it a wonderful texture that is both comfortable to handle and durable enough to withstand regular use and washing.

The cotton content in the yarn means your placemats will be more absorbent than a purely acrylic option, which is a practical quality in a table accessory that might come into contact with spills and condensation from glasses. The acrylic content keeps the yarn affordable, easy to care for, and resistant to stretching out of shape over time.

Bernat Easy Life comes in a lovely range of colors, from clean neutrals like cream and gray to warmer tones and bolder shades. This makes it easy to coordinate your placemats with your existing kitchen or dining room decor. The yarn is sold in 220-yard skeins, and you will typically need between one and two skeins per placemat depending on your chosen dimensions and how tightly you knit.

For beginners especially, bulky yarn is a joy to work with. The stitches are large and easy to see, so counting is straightforward and mistakes are easy to spot and fix before they become a problem. It knits up quickly, too, meaning you will see real progress after just a short sitting, which is incredibly motivating when you are learning.

Materials and Tools You Will Need

Getting your materials together before you start is always a good idea. Here is a full list of everything you will need to complete this project.

Yarn: Bernat Easy Life yarn in your choice of color. For a standard placemat measuring approximately 12 inches by 18 inches, plan for about 150 to 180 yards per placemat. If you are making a set of four, two to three skeins should be enough depending on the colorway and your tension.

Knitting Needles: US size 10 (6.0 mm) straight or circular needles. Circular needles can be used even for flat knitting and many knitters find them more comfortable for longer rows. If you prefer straight needles, make sure they are long enough to hold all your cast-on stitches comfortably without crowding.

Scissors: A sharp pair of small scissors for cutting yarn at the end of your project.

Tapestry Needle: Also called a yarn needle or darning needle, this blunt-tipped needle with a large eye is used for weaving in your yarn ends when you finish.

Measuring Tape or Ruler: Useful for checking your gauge and the dimensions of your placemat as you work.

Stitch Markers (optional): These are helpful if you want to mark the center of your work or divide your stitches into sections, though they are not strictly required for this pattern.

Gauge and Why It Matters

Gauge refers to the number of stitches and rows per inch in your knitting. Getting your gauge right is important for projects where size matters, like garments, but for placemats it is a little more flexible since you can simply adjust your dimensions to get the size you want.

That said, here is the target gauge for this pattern using Bernat Easy Life yarn on US size 10 needles:

14 stitches and 20 rows equal 4 inches in stockinette stitch.

Before you cast on your placemat, knit a small swatch of about 4 inches by 4 inches and measure it. If your swatch is larger than 4 inches across, try going down a needle size. If it is smaller, go up a needle size. This quick step will save you frustration later and ensure your placemats come out close to the intended size.

Understanding the Stitches in This Pattern

This placemat pattern uses only the most basic knitting stitches, making it truly beginner-friendly. Here is a quick overview of the stitches you will encounter.

The Knit Stitch: The most fundamental stitch in knitting. Insert the right needle into the front of the stitch on the left needle from left to right, wrap the working yarn counterclockwise around the right needle, pull the new loop through the stitch, and slide the old stitch off the left needle. That is one knit stitch.

The Purl Stitch: The knit stitch’s close companion. Bring the yarn to the front of your work, insert the right needle into the front of the stitch on the left needle from right to left, wrap the working yarn counterclockwise around the right needle, pull the new loop through, and slide the old stitch off. That is one purl stitch.

Garter Stitch: When you knit every single row, you are working in garter stitch. This creates a ridged, stretchy fabric that lies flat naturally, which makes it ideal for placemats because it will not curl at the edges the way stockinette stitch tends to do.

Seed Stitch: Seed stitch alternates knit and purl stitches across each row, with the stitches offset on each subsequent row (so you knit the purls and purl the knits). It creates a beautiful pebbly texture and also lies flat without curling, making it another excellent option for placemats.

Stockinette Stitch: This is what you get when you alternate a knit row with a purl row. It is smooth on one side (the “right” side) and bumpy on the other (the “wrong” side), but it does tend to curl. If you use stockinette in your placemat, you will want to add a border of garter or seed stitch to keep the edges flat.

The pattern below uses a combination of garter stitch borders with a stockinette center, which gives the placemats a classic, polished look.

Free Beginner Bernat Easy Life Placemats Knitting Pattern

Finished Dimensions: Approximately 12 inches wide by 18 inches long (blocked)

Yarn: Bernat Easy Life, one skein (220 yards) in your chosen color; for a full set of four, plan for two to three skeins

Needles: US size 10 (6.0 mm) straight or circular needles

Gauge: 14 stitches and 20 rows = 4 inches in stockinette stitch

Abbreviations:
CO = cast on
K = knit
P = purl
RS = right side
WS = wrong side
BO = bind off
st(s) = stitch(es)
rep = repeat

Pattern Instructions

Cast On

Using your preferred cast-on method, CO 42 stitches. The long-tail cast on is recommended here because it creates a neat, slightly elastic edge that looks professional and handles wear well.

Garter Stitch Border (Bottom)

Rows 1 through 6: Knit across every stitch to the end of the row.

These six rows of garter stitch create a firm border at the bottom of your placemat that will help it lie flat on the table.

Main Body

Now you will begin the main section of the placemat, which features garter stitch columns on the sides with a stockinette center.

Row 7 (RS): K5, knit to last 5 stitches, K5.
Row 8 (WS): K5, purl to last 5 stitches, K5.

Repeat rows 7 and 8 until your piece measures approximately 16.5 inches from the cast-on edge, ending on a wrong-side row. The five-stitch garter columns on each side act as borders that prevent the stockinette center from curling and give the placemat clean, structured edges.

Garter Stitch Border (Top)

Work six rows of knit across every stitch, just as you did at the beginning, to create the matching top border.

Bind Off

On the next row, bind off all 42 stitches loosely. Using a needle one size larger for your bind-off is a helpful trick to keep it from being too tight and causing the top edge to pucker.

Finishing

Cut your yarn, leaving a tail of about 6 inches. Thread your tail onto a tapestry needle and weave it in carefully along the wrong side of your work, working through the bumps of the garter stitch or along the side of the stockinette fabric. Weave in any other ends from color changes if applicable. Give the finished placemat a gentle wash by hand or on a delicate machine cycle and lay it flat to dry, shaping it to the correct dimensions as you go. This process, called blocking, will even out your stitches and give your placemat that neat, polished finish.

Helpful Tips for Beginners

If this is one of your first knitting projects, here are some tips that will make the process smoother and more enjoyable.

Count your stitches regularly. It is easy to accidentally add or drop stitches, especially when you are still building your knitting rhythm. Count your stitches after every few rows to catch any mistakes early. With 42 stitches, it only takes a moment and can save you a lot of backtracking.

Keep consistent tension. Tension is how tightly or loosely you hold your yarn as you work. Inconsistent tension leads to uneven fabric where some rows look tighter than others. Try to hold the yarn at a consistent angle and with a consistent amount of give throughout your work. This comes naturally with practice.

Use a row counter. A small mechanical row counter, available at any craft store, clicks up with each row to help you keep track of where you are in the pattern. Alternatively, you can use a simple tally on a piece of paper.

Do not knit too tightly. A very common beginner habit is to hold the yarn very tightly for fear of dropped stitches. This makes it difficult to slide stitches along the needle and can make your fabric stiff. Practice holding the yarn with a looser, more relaxed grip.

Work near good light. This sounds simple but makes a real difference. Dark yarn in dim light is a recipe for mistakes. Good overhead or task lighting helps you see your stitches clearly, especially when you are checking your work.

Embrace imperfection. Your first placemat is not going to look like it was made by a machine, and that is completely fine. Handmade items have warmth and character that comes directly from the person who made them. Small imperfections are part of the charm.

Customization Ideas

One of the best things about this placemat pattern is how easy it is to modify. Once you have the basic structure down, there are countless ways to make each set unique.

Play with color. The most straightforward way to change up your placemats is to use a different color for each one, creating a mix-and-match set. You could also try holding two strands of thinner yarn together instead of one strand of bulky yarn, which allows you to blend colors as you go.

Try stripes. Horizontal stripes are very easy to achieve in knitting — simply change your yarn color at the beginning of a right-side row. Carry the unused color up the side of your work to avoid too many ends to weave in. A set of striped placemats in complementary colors looks beautiful on a dinner table.

Switch the main stitch pattern. Instead of stockinette with garter borders, try using seed stitch throughout the entire placemat. Seed stitch has a wonderful texture, requires no border to stay flat, and is very beginner-friendly because you do not have to worry about keeping track of a right side and wrong side. For a full seed stitch placemat, cast on an odd number of stitches and knit every row following the pattern: K1, P1, repeat across, end K1.

Adjust the size. A rectangular shape is classic, but you can easily make your placemats larger for a more luxurious look by adding more cast-on stitches and working more rows. A 14-inch-by-20-inch placemat is a lovely size for formal dinner settings. You can also make smaller versions as coasters by casting on about 15 stitches and working until the piece is roughly square.

Add a simple border pattern. Once you are comfortable with the basic pattern, you might try adding a simple textured border like a moss stitch or a small cable at the edges. This adds visual interest and shows off your growing skills without requiring you to learn complex techniques all at once.

Caring for Your Bernat Easy Life Placemats

Because Bernat Easy Life contains both acrylic and cotton fibers, it is a relatively practical yarn to care for. Most colorways are machine washable on a gentle cycle in cold water. However, it is always worth checking the specific label on your skein, since care instructions can occasionally vary by colorway due to differences in dye processes.

For best results, wash your placemats inside a mesh laundry bag to protect them from abrasion. Lay them flat to dry rather than hanging them, since gravity can stretch the fabric while it is wet and heavy. Avoid putting knitted items in a hot dryer, as heat can cause the acrylic fibers to pill or even warp.

With proper care, these placemats will last for years and continue to look beautiful through many seasons of use.

Making a Matching Set

If you are planning to make a full set of four placemats, consider knitting them all at the same time by rotating through them in sequence, working a few rows on each one before moving to the next. This technique is called knitting in rotation and it has two major advantages. First, it keeps your tension consistent across all four pieces because you are constantly switching between them rather than finishing one completely before starting the next. Second, it ensures they all end up the same length, since you work the same number of rows on each before binding off.

Another option is to work two at a time on a long circular needle, which also helps with consistency and can feel more efficient.

A Relaxing Project Worth Returning To

Knitting placemats might seem like a humble goal, but there is real joy in making something functional and beautiful with your own hands. Every time you sit down to a meal and see those placemats on the table, there is a quiet satisfaction in knowing you made them yourself. They also make wonderful gifts — a hand-knit set of placemats is a thoughtful, personal present for a housewarming, a wedding, or the holiday season.

The Bernat Easy Life placemat pattern is the kind of project you will come back to again and again. You might find yourself experimenting with new colors every season to match your table decor, or making a quick set over a weekend when you need a gift and do not have much time. The simplicity of the pattern means you can work on it without giving it your full concentration, making it perfect for evenings when you want to do something creative without committing to deep focus.

Whether you are picking up knitting needles for the first time or returning to the craft after a long break, this free pattern is a wonderful place to start. Cast on, settle in, and enjoy the process — stitch by stitch, row by row, you will have a beautiful set of handmade placemats before you know it.