{"product_id":"althea-hardboard-cork-placemat","title":"Althea Hardboard Cork Placemat","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA Garden in Full Flutter — Brought to the Table\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eStep outside — well, almost. The Althea hardboard placemat brings the dreamy calm of a cottage garden to your tabletop with a beautifully detailed botanical print that feels less like a placemat and more like a watercolor you accidentally ate breakfast on (in the best possible way). Against a soft cream background, an airy tangle of ferns, delicate leaf sprays, and wispy flowering botanicals unfolds in soothing fern greens and sage, while golden-orange butterflies and gossamer dragonflies drift through the scene as though they've just stopped in to admire the centerpiece.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe botanical illustration tradition that inspired designs like this one stretches back centuries — to the great plant hunters and scientific illustrators of the 17th and 18th centuries who documented newly discovered flora with painstaking artistry. Artists like Maria Sibylla Merian, who published her landmark study of Surinamese insects and plants in 1705, helped establish a visual language for depicting the natural world that married scientific precision with genuine beauty. The Althea's ferns and fluttering insects are very much heirs to that tradition — a little corner of natural history, right there next to the salt and pepper shakers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe rigid MDF core keeps everything flat and dinner-party-ready, while the 1\/8\" cork backing grips the table surface and protects it from heat. Wipe-clean and endlessly reusable, this placemat works just as hard as it looks good — which is saying something.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eMaterials:\u003c\/strong\u003e MDF hardboard core, coated paper print surface, 1\/8 in. (3 mm) cork backing\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 13 in. x 16 in. (33 cm x 40.6 cm)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eColor \u0026amp; Design:\u003c\/strong\u003e Cream\/white background; fern green, sage, and soft grey-green botanical foliage — ferns, delicate branching sprays, and wispy florals; golden-orange butterflies and dragonfly accents throughout\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eConstruction:\u003c\/strong\u003e Rigid hardboard with wipe-clean coated surface; cork backing for non-slip grip and heat protection\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eCare:\u003c\/strong\u003e Wipe clean with damp cloth; not dishwasher safe\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e","brand":"C \u0026 F Home","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47782694158489,"sku":"210000127937","price":7.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0421\/8204\/9945\/files\/dtxadg6tcu9zlkk6gliq.png?v=1779480226","url":"https:\/\/www.countrychristmasloft.com\/products\/althea-hardboard-cork-placemat","provider":"The Country Christmas Loft","version":"1.0","type":"link"}