Tutorial: Charming Gathered Table Runner

After I finished up my last Moda Bake Shop Project (to be posted in March), I had a bunch of charm squares left over and knew that I could not let them go to waste!  If they get put in my “scrap bucket” they are likely to sit there forever, so I thought I’d make this easy table runner.

This table runner is made from the new Sherbet Pips line, yardage is not out yet, but I have seen pre-cuts for sale.

At first I was going to appliqué the hearts onto the center, then I realized that I would like to use this runner until Spring, and the hearts make it too Valentiney to me. So instead I attached them with buttons! That way after Valentine’s day I can just take off the hearts and leave the runner out longer. You could do the same thing with a Christmas runner. I think I’m going to do the same thing for Easter.

I thought that gathering the charm squares gave it a fun twist!

Okay now onto the tutorial!

You will need:

1/2 yd fabric for backing

1/2 yd white batting (I use quilters dream cotton)

3 Jelly Roll strips for binding

2 buttons

6 Jelly Roll strips cut to 14″ long.  (or if you don’t have Jelly Roll strips, cut white fabric to 2.5″ x 14″)

1-2 Charm packs (buy 2 if you are picky about which prints to put in your runner) from those charm packs pick out:

12 Charm Squares in color 1

12 Charm Squares in color 2

3 Charm Squares in color 3 (for center)

2 Charms for Hearts

To begin:

Sew 6 charm squares together 4 times… soo… you will have

2 rows of 6 RED charm squares

2 rows of 6 GREY charm squares (or whatever color scheme you choose).

Sew 3 charm squares together of color 3 (in my case white).

Press seams OPEN. (it will make it easier to gather).

Beginning with your grey charm row, run 2 rows of gathering stitches down each long side of your row.

Pull up on gathering threads and pin to one of your 14″ white strips.  Sew.

Repeat with a 2nd white strip on the other side of your grey row.

Press seam towards white strip.

It should look like this.

Next gather and attach your RED row and so on until all rows are sewn.

It should look like this:

ROWS

1- White Strip

2- Grey Gathered Row

3- White Strip

4- Red Gathered Row

5- White Strip

6- White Row of 3 charms that is NOT gathered (the 3 charms sewn together)

7- White Strip

8- Red Gathered Row

9- White Strip

10-Grey Gathered Row

11- White Strip

Next cut your batting and backing to 18″ x 37″ (this will give you 2″ extra to work with on each end)

Quilt and bind- if you want to see how to do this- check out my last table runner tutorial here

Next take 2 charm squares and make a “sandwich” with the charm square on top, batting in the middle and fabric on the back.

Draw a heart on with disappearing ink.

Stitch around the heart

Trim off extra

You will have 2 quilted hearts.

Stitch 2 buttons to the center of the runner, and stitch 2 button holes in the hearts.

Trim threads, press well and you’re done!

I hope you like it! Let me know what you think, it’s really easy to sew, I did it in an afternoon!