The number three tutorial of 2014 was these Dry Erase Placemats! I’d like to take a moment to answer some of the most frequently asked questions about these placemats.
- What if I can’t find similar fabric?
- I think it would work just as well to draw (or trace) doodles onto white canvas fabric with sharpie.
- Do these really wash well?
- I have washed mine in the washing machine a couple times. I don’t put them in the dryer. The vinyl has gotten a little wrinkled in places, but still works really well. For most cleaning I wipe them down with a damp paper towel and only wash if the back side is starting to get really dirty for some reason.
- Do these work with regular washable markers?
- I haven’t tried it, but I don’t see why not.
- Could I use overhead pens on these?
- Again, haven’t tried it, but I don’t see why not.
- Does the marker smudge onto the kids hands?
- Yup, if their hands drag in it. But since their hands are washable too, we just do that.
Get the full tutorial for these placemats here.
Get access to my free pattern gallery - sign up for my newsletter!
Page protectors can be used with write-on/wipe-off markers. They use them at school all the time for kids to practice math tests. I keep a binder in the car full of page protectors with pages with lines to practice writing, blank pages for drawing, etc. It has a pencil pouch with some colored dry erase markers and an old sock (eraser). If we have something we know we will be waiting for (dr appt, pharmacy line) we just grab the binder and take it in with us.