Keyboard Table Runners

Rainbow Piano Keyboard, 10" x 29" and Piano Keyboard, 10" x 34", handmade by Pam Geisel

I made these the Rainbow Piano Keyboard table runners for the "Fused" Fiber & Glass" two-person collaborative show that I'm having at Village Artisans (on view from September 13 through November 5, with an artist reception on Friday, September 13 from 6–8 pm), and the black and white one at the same time although it will not be in the show. The rainbow one uses hand-dyed fabric. And while I made them as table runners, they both have a hanging sleeve on the back and can hang on the wall (hanging stick not provided).

Kaleidoscope Table Runner and Placemats - Project Quilting

 

"Kaleidoscope Table Runner" 36" x 16", made by Pam Geisel for Project Quilting, Season 14, Challenge 5: Sew Not a Square

Recap for "Sew Not a Square":

You may use no square shapes in your project.

If you look at the quilts on my website, at least half of them are square. But quilts lend themselves to the share shape. The designs are called "quilt squares" even. But I do sometimes make non-square quilts, including a few 3D art quilts, but something that lends itself well to rectangles are table runners. 

I had two large scale print fabric in my stash that told me they wanted to be made into a table runner, so I did. There was also enough fabric to make four placemats, which are also not square.

"Kaleidoscope Placemats" 12" x 16" each, also made by Pam Geisel for Project Quilting, Season 14, Challenge 5: Sew Not a Square

I was glad the fabric told me what it wanted to be as I don't use a lot of large scale prints in my art quilts and the fabric was really cool.

And the prints on the fabric are also not squares.

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Click on any of the photos to see larger images.

To read more about Project Quilting, go here.

To see other entries for this challenge, visit the Sew Not Square page.

Two New Autumn Table Runners

(Left) Autumn Table Runner Long, 12" x 38" and (right) Autumn Table Topper Square, 25" x 25", made by Pam Geisel, June 2022

It's a little out of season but I recently made these two autumn table runners. They are both on the large side so I borrowed a friends large dining room table to take my photos.

The long rectangular one has rectangular fabrics that blend from a yellow gold through rust orange to a deep red and the border has autumn leaves in it.

The square one is done in a traditional "Broken Dishes" arrangement with triangles of yellow gold, warm brown, orange, and red and the background triangles have autumn leaves.

 

Terra Cotta Table Runner

Terra Cotta Table Runner, 45" x 15.5", made by Pam Geisel

I made this custom table runner a few months ago but it was going to be a gift so I didn't want to post it too soon. The customer picked an approximate size and suggested colors then since she was local, I let her come over (wearing masks, of course) to select which fabrics she wanted me to use.

We played around with the layout until she was satisfied with the design and also selected the backing and binding fabric.

Christmas in April?

"Happy Little Christmas Trees" Table Topper, 16" x 16", made by Pam Geisel, April 2020

We've been in "quarantine" so long that I'm not sure what day it is, or even what month, although I'm pretty sure it's not December. I've heard of Christmas in July but I don't think it's July, either. I've been told that it's April so we'll go with that.

I recently got this red fabric with the green Christmas trees on it. If you've been following my blog, you might know that fabric sometimes speaks to me. (If not, you can read this short post.) This Christmas fabric was also speaking to me so I took a break from my other work and made this holiday piece. I added the green fabric in the middle to coordinate with the trees. The red piece in the center has gold printed on it.

I call this a "Table Topper" as opposed to a "Table Runner" because for me, a runner needs to be rectangular in shape and not square. I also believe that both table toppers and table runners can go directly on a table or on top of a table cloth. This one would look nice on a green, red, or cream colored table cloth.

Double Sided Scrappy Table Runner for Quiltsy Scrappy Quilt Challenge

Quiltsy, my on-line Etsy quilting group, is having a scrappy quilt challenge. Here's a small double-sided table runner that I made using 5" batik fabric squares that were left over from a couple of different "charm" packs. A charm pack is a collection of 5" squares with each square being a different but coordinating fabric. I'd already used most of the charms and I wasn't sure what to do with the leftover pieces so voila!

Originally I was going to make a larger table runner with all of the fabrics on the same side and a solid backing fabric but I couldn't find an arrangement that I liked. Then I realized that the black and brown fabrics complemented each other, as did the blue and greens. I did have to add some fabric from my stash for the half square triangles in the "corners" as those have to be a little larger than 5".

I was able to find a navy/gray fabric to use for the binding (it looks navy on the blue/green side and like a dark gray on the black/brown side). I also used a navy thread for quilting because it looks like black on the black/brown side.

New Placemats & Table Runners

I recently made some placemats and table runners (the shibori table runner can also be hung on the wall). They are currently in my Etsy shop (where you can also see more photos of them), and I'll have them at the Yellow Springs Open Studios on Oct 20 & 21. After that any that are left will go to Village Artisans.

Winter Wonderland: Dancing & Prancing Table Runner

"Dancing and Prancing" Table Runner, 13" x 30", handmade by Pam Geisel, Nov. 2016

This month the Island Batik Ambassador's are making pieces that fit the theme "Winter Wonderland." I made this blue table runner this month using Island Batik fabrics from the Frost collection, although the dark blue inner border is from the Jewels and Gems Collection: Lapis Lazuli from last year. You can click on the photo below for a closer look.

Bountiful Table Runners

From left: "Three Pines," "Berries & Wine," and "Flight" table runners made by Pam Geisel, Sept. 2016

This month the Island Batik Ambassador's are making pieces that fit the theme "Bountiful Table Runners." I made three table runners this month using Island Batik fabrics. Two of these might look a little familiar as they are based on previous projects that I've made using Island Batik fabrics.

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"Three Pines" is based on the 6" x 6" mini that I did for "Christmas in July" except that it has an inner border the same color as the tree trunks, and an outer border.

The fabric in the outer border is kind of a water-color style with purple, blue and gold and has images of forest animals including moose, deer, elk, and wolves. I used fabrics from the from the Holiday Happenings collection,

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"Flight" is based on the art quilt I made for the "Modern Batik Challenge." I used what was left of the pre-cut California Creamery jelly roll.

The 27 blue and purple fabrics came from the Wind & Sea colletcion, the Desert Rose collection, and the Sweet Pea collection (from last year).

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"Berries & Wine" was made using some of the pieces from a charm pack (5" squares) from the Hollywood Hills collection.

As always, you can see any of the photos larger by clicking on them.

Autumn Table Runner, Just in Time for Fall!

 

"Autumn Island Batik Table Runner," 36" x 9" handmade by Pam Geisel, Oct. 2015

Here's a little project I finished recently, using some of the Island Batik fabrics that I got last Spring. This table runner uses 17 different fabrics and each piece is approximately 1" x 3".

Here's the table runner on my dining room table. The backing is a yellow green and the binding a darker green.

And here's a close up of the detail in the fabric.

Table Runner with Handwoven Fabric

I was contacted by a student at Earlham College in Indiana about making a table runner using the hand-woven fabrics she and her classmates made this semester. Each had to weave 7 yards then cut them in to 19 pieces so everyone could have one. She sent me 12 to make into a table runner and also she also sent this fun photo of the students with their fabric before it was cut.

Not having sewn with hand-woven fabric, I was concerned about it stretching when it was sewn and I also decided to use a half inch seam allowance instead of the usual quarter inch.

Since I wanted the hand-woven pieces to be 4" x 6" when finished, I cut my test pieces at 5" x 7" but they slid a bit so when I cut the actual pieces I cut them at 5" x 8" so I’d be able to cut them down to 5" x 7" if something shifted. And when I cut them, I made sure to have the 8" along one of the selvage sides since it was less likely to unravel.

I arranged the hand-woven fabrics into color families then sewed together each pair, using a half inch seam allowance. Then I hand pressed the seams apart and top stitched 1.4" from the edge to hold the seams down.

The black sashing between the hand-woven fabric was 1" finished so I cut them at 2" to allow for the larger seam allowance. I pieced each pair of hand-woven fabric with a 2" black sashing strip then pieced the pieces together.

The borders were only half an inch wide so I cut them at 1.5" and sewed them on.

I layered the quilt top with the batting and backing fabric (the same black as the sashing and borders) then basted it. I used a black thread for quilting and quilted 1/4" from the seams, being careful to go in the same direction every time. I started in the center and quilted an “L” shape on the hand-woven fabric then started back at the beginning and quilted a reverse “L” shape. There was some stretching of the fabric but since it was the same way every time, it was easy to control.

I also quilted 1/4" from the seams in the black sashing and the black borders. Since it’s a table runner and won’t have a lot of stress on the binding like a bed quilt will, I trimmed the backing fabric 1" larger than the quilt top and batting and folded the backing fabric in 1/4" and then to the front where I machine stitched it down.

Christmas Gift Ideas from For Quilts Sake

Table runners in holiday themes! Most of my quilted table runners measure 13.5" x 31".

To purchase table runners, click here.

Golden Frost Art Quilt and Table Runner

"Golden Frost on the Window," 30" x 30"

I made this quilt in November of 2007. It features fabrics with tan, brown, and black and they also have gold printed on them. The larger lighter colored squares and the black sashing are pieced, the smaller squares are turned edge applique and quilted 1/4" around them.

I love the gold on these fabrics. Shortly after I made this ny mother had the inside of her house repainted (it was yellow when I lived there, then it was a country blue and pink but now it's a combination of stylish beige tints). She saw this quilt and mentioned how she though it would match her new wall colors and sure enough, it really did.

For Christmas last year she requested a smallish table runner that matched this quilt.

I didn't have all of the same fabrics (some of the light pieces in the middle were purchased as Fat Eighths from a store that was going out of business) but I had enough of the inner and outer borders, and she's happy with both of them.

More about Golden Frost on the Window.

Table Runners with Mini Quilt Squares

I made this set of 5 table runners for a group of 5 women who are friends of the family. I wanted to use mostly neutral colors (light browns) as it is sometimes hard to predict which rooms people will use table runners in and what colors would be best for those rooms, but I also wanted to include a pop of color so the table runners wouldn't be just beige.

I wanted to explore the idea of traditional quilt patterns versus contemporary uses. Around this time I was looking through my February 2010 "American Patchwork & Quilting" magazine and found "Tiny Dishes" by Virginia Cole of Galloping Pony Studio. Virginia, who likes to make miniature quilts, had a pattern which had small, colored, traditional mini quilt squares arranged in a contemporary layout. My sizes worked out a little different that the ones in the magazine, and I decided to use a different square in each runner and to have the quilting lines (on the right side) be the same quilt pattern as the mini square.

I really liked how the striped binding sets it all off. If I have a solid colored binding I will sometimes sew it on with the sewing machine but since the stripes aren't a solid color, I sewed the binding on by hand.

I wanted all 5 table runners to be similar but not exact copies so I used 2 different striped fabric for the bindings and 5 different light browns for the background (3 on each). And with the exception of one of the striped binding fabrics, I was able to use fabric that was already in my stash.

Christmas Handkerchief Table Runners

December just flew by in a blur. I was fortunate to be busy with some custom orders including these 5 table runners using vintage Christmas handkerchiefs that belonged to my customer's family members. She had 13 of them and she also provided the other Christmas fabric and decided which handkerchiefs she wanted grouped together. She also wanted the quilting to be subtle so I used white thread.

All handkerchiefs and borders were stitched-in-the-ditch with some seasonal quilting where there was room for it. All of the handkerchiefs were stabilized by using fusible webbing to adhere them to a white cotton fabric.

This one is called "Santa's Sleigh" and is the largest at 18" x 45". It has 3 printed handkerchiefs that were almost all the same size and each one had a decorative scalopped edge which I left showing and carefully quilted just inside the borders.
The details of Santa's reindeer, the holly berry border and the houses was just exquisite and I used these elements to quilt around.

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This table runner, "Poinsettias" also featured three handkerchiefs although these were embroidered. The middle and left have poinsettias and the right shows a candle with holly leaves. The inner border of green offsets the white handkerchiefs and the white borders which has gold swirls printed on it.

Again really hard to see but there is a white poinsettia quilted in the middle of each of the handkerchiefs.

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The "Holly" table runner has holly in the borders and the sashing. Since the fabric is linear on it, I mitered the corners to keep the lines going around the quilt.

The handkerchiefs on this quilt are embroidered and more detailed than the poinsettias above.

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In "Golden Swirls" the handkerchief on the left had some gold metallic threads around the outside. There is a thin inner border and sashing that has gold swirl printed on it (also used in the "Poinsettias" table runner). The border fabric has holly berries and some more gold in it.

The holly berry fabric was also used for the backing of this quilt and when I quilted it I had the back part facing up and used the gold swirls to define where the quilting lines would go.

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This table runner is called "Candy Canes" because of the candy canes embroidered on the left and right handkerchiefs and also because of the candy cane print fabric in the borders (and also on the back).

The handkerchiefs with the candy canes embroidered on them weren't as large as the one in the middle with the printed Santas so they have a white sashing to make them the same size. And it's a little hard to see with the white on white quilting but there's a large holly berry quilted on the candy cane handkerchiefs.