Lately my life has been like this: Eat. Sleep. Craft. Repeat.

By the way, my house is NOT decorated for autumn just yet.  I took a couple of these photos when I was displaying my autumn centerpiece idea using Dollar Tree items, hence the colorful leaves and pumpkins galore.

But, the thing is, I have been wanting to decorate my table since I built it.  I mean, that’s the main purpose of having a table, right?  To decorate it?

Last year for the holidays was the first time I put decor on my table and had this beautiful centerpiece display. But it was always missing something. A pop of red. And the first thing that came to mind was a table runner.  However, the cost of the table runner I was interested in was out of my price range and the length of all the ones I found that were in my price range were just too small for my table.  So, I went without.

I went almost an entire year without.

Until I knew that my table desperately needed something.

And while it may not be the red table runner that the holiday season was screaming for.  It is this beautiful ruffled drop cloth table runner that I absolutely adore.

And the best part?  It’s so stinking easy to make.

Because, my friend, I am by no means a sewer.

supplies:

• drop cloth (long enough for the longest length of your table, plus an additional 12+ inches for the overhang)
• sewing machine
• measuring tape
• sewing pins
• scissors

To determine how long to cut your drop cloth, fold the fabric in half length-wise and place it on the end of the table.  Then pull it on one end so that the other end is just about the length you want to hang over the edge (I chose an additional 6 inches of overhang on each side).

Place something heavy on the table to keep the fabric from sliding and measure 6 inches of overhang on the opposite side (the side that has the excess fabric).  Now cut off that excess fabric (it doesn’t have to be the most perfect cut).

To determine what you want for the width, fold the fabric over until you get the desired width.  Then cut where the fold is.  Just make sure you keep that original fold you started out with when measuring the length.  This way, you only have to sew one side.

Sew the un-folded edge together.  Turn the fabric so that the inside is now on the outside.  This will give you a beautiful seam along the edge.

Set aside.

And this is where my photo above begins.  I have no idea what happened to the rest of the tutorial photos.

To cut the ruffles, grab a piece of finished edging that you cut off from when you cut the length/width of your runner.  Decide what length you want your ruffle attachment to hang – I recommend anywhere between 2″-4″.  I chose 4″ because I don’t have chairs that sit on the ends of my tables, so I wanted a good long overhang.  Cut this straight across the entire finished edge.

Now, measure the width of your runner and add that number plus 1/2 to get your width.  For example, if your runner is 20″ wide, you would take 20″ plus an additional 10″ for a total of 30″.  So you’d cut two 30″ pieces from that finished edge fabric you have.

Now you want to get those ruffles going!

Raise your stitch length as high as it will go and run a stitch all the way down the unfinished edge of the fabric. Do not back stitch at the beginning or end.

Now grab the bobbin thread and give it a little pull.  You will start to see the fabric gathering. Keep pulling until your ruffle is the length of the runner.

Now, match up the unfinished edge where your thread is, to the edge of your runner (that you set aside) and pin it in place.

Make sure to change your stitch length back to a shorter stitch, and sew your edges together.

This next step is optional, but I did it because it holds the seam down snugly.

Lay your ruffle flat on the table, but make sure the seam underneath is laying away from the ruffle, and sew another stitch.

How easy was that?

I seriously love the way this turned out.  But I’m pretty upset that I lost a lot of the photos I took in the step-by-step process.  So, if you need any additional explaining, please ask it below!

And now I really am seeing a pop of red in my future, because I can make my own red table runner.