Cotton Table Runner

SUPPLIES & TOOLS:

• Cotton fabric_x000B_Cutting mat_x000B_Rotary cutter_x000B_Tape measure
• Clear quilting ruler
• Iron_x000B_Hand needle_x000B_Pins

DIRECTIONS:

1. Cut two pieces of fabric that are 14" by 72". These will be the center insert of your table runner.
2. Pin with wrong sides together and baste a half-inch from the edge.
3. Cut your binding pieces. These pieces should be 9 inches wide and as long as you're able to make them. You can piece together sections by matching the pattern and sewing on a 45-degree angle. This is similar to making bias tape. In total, you'll need about 200 inches of binding to complete this project.
4. Iron your binding in half, wrong sides together to create a fold down the middle. Then fold up the long edges a half-inch to create a clean edge.
5. Start at the center of one of the long sides of your insert. With the binding piece open, place the large center insert into the fold that you've created by ironing. Then pin the binding pieces to the center insert making sure to catch all layers of the fabric. You'll also want to do your best to make sure that the center insert comes all the way to the fold of the binding.
6. Pin until you reach 4 inches from the corner and stop pinning but do not cut your binding piece.
7. Take your piece to the sewing machine and topstitch the inside edge of the binding securing it to the insert piece. When you reach your last pin, stop and backstitch. Remove your piece from the machine.
8. Now you'll need to iron your corner in. To do this take the binding piece and align it with the next edge. You'll end up with a small triangle of fabric that needs to be tucked under to create a neat mitered corner. This corner is similar to if you were binding a baby blanket. Once you have one corner tucked properly be sure to check the other side to make sure it is tucked as well.
9. Once you have the corners tucked, pin them in place. Then continue to pin the binding as you did before, along the shorter edge, stopping 4 inches from the next edge.
10. Topstitch the edge and stop when you get to your last pin, then repeat the process of folding the corners.
11. When you've made your way around all four corners back to where you started, trim the binding piece leaving an inch or two to overlap. Fold over the binding piece a half-inch, iron to create a clean edge and topstitch to secure.
12. Then you'll need to go back and complete your corners. We used a hand stitch to secure our corners since the front and back corners won't directly line up. Using a hand needle and thread, use a ladder stitch to secure the diagonal.
13. Press and enjoy!

JOANN HACKS:

• If you have a walking foot, this is a good opportunity to use it! If you don't, just be sure to use lots of pins when securing your binding to make sure it doesn't move!
• Fold your fabric lengthwise a few times so it's easier to manage when cutting out the long pieces for your binding.