Linen + Shamrock Table Runner {a tutorial}

You will need:

• green scraps to make shamrocks
• 1/4 yard linen
• 1/4 yard background fabric preferably linen
• 1/2 yard backing
• batting scrap at least 11” x 30”
• fusible web of your choice (I used Lite Steam a Seam 2)

Use a 1/4” seam unless noted.

1.  Download & print the template for the shamrock.  Lindsey Weight of the Fort Worth Fabric Studio blog kindly let me borrow the link.  You will need the smaller template for the table runner.

2.  Trace the template 5 times on fusible web.  Following manufacturer’s directions iron the web to the wrong side of your green scraps.  Cut very carefully around the shapes you traced.

3.  Cut five 5.5” squares from your linen.  Peel off the paper from the back of your shamrocks and arrange them on the squares how you like.  Press them to bond into place on the linen.

4.  Set your stitch length a little longer than the normal 2.5 for piecing.  I set my machine to 3.0.  Straight stitch close to the edge of the shamrocks to permanently stitch on the linen.

5.  Cut five 2” x 5.5” and five 3” x 5.5” rectangles of background fabric.  Arrange your 5.5” squares in a row how you like them.  I alternated the shamrock orientation.  Sew the rectangles onto the top and bottom of your 5.5” squares so that the squares appear to move up and down.

6.  Press all your seams open and you can use some light starch or Magic Sizing to help set those seams open.  I found that the linen seams didn’t stay perfectly flat without a little spritz of Magic Sizing.

7.  Sew your blocks together and press those seams open.  Add a 2” x 9.5” strip to each end of your runner.  Press those seams open, too.

8.  Press your runner really flat.  Now baste it however you prefer to your piece of batting.  I used a little bit of spray adhesive or you could use safety pins. 

9.  I hand quilted big stitches around the perimeter of the center section.  One nice thing about this runner is you don’t need to bury your threads because you are quilting through the top and batting only.

10.  Once your runner is all quilted, square up your runner & batting to approximately 9.5” x 28.5”.  Place right side down on the right side of your backing.

11.  Using straight pins, pin the top/batting to the backing all the way around the perimeter.  Then I used a long ruler and rotary cutter to trim off the excess backing.

12.  Using a walking foot, sew a 3/8” seam around the edge leaving a 2.5” opening for turning your runner.  Clip off the corners making sure not to cut through your stitch line.

13.  Turn right side out.  I used a chopstick to push out the corners of the runner.  Press the opening closed as perfectly as possible so you can’t even tell there’s an opening.  Press the entire runner as flat as possible.

14.  Using the walking foot, sew a 1/8” to 1/4” seam around the edge of the runner. 

That’s it!  Sewing this runner took about 3 hours, including almost an hour to do the handstitching.   Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Zakka Style Shamrock Table Runner {a finished project}

Maybe it’s the warmer (finally!) weather or my love of the color green, but after making those Shamrock Pillows with the kids, I needed to sew something else green.  So, I fooled around with more applique, linen, and some hand stitching, and a Zakka Style Table Runner was born.

I used green fabric from my stash, including Jennifer Paganelli, Connecting Threads, True Colors, and a mystery green of unknown origin.

Does it look better with purple?

Or green? 

I like the simple look of the straight line stitching in natural colored thread on the applique and the gray perle thread outline on the linen.  What do you think the frog in the photo above is thinking?

I stitched only through the batting, with no backing, so the back is simply a piece of linen with edgestitching.  I went back and forth about using quilting weight cotton for the back and putting on binding, but I think the plain linen without binding is the perfect compliment to the front.

I used a 1/4” walking foot to do the edgestitching and it turned out very nice and even.  The finished size is 9.5” x 28.5”.

Originally these shamrock squares were going to be a pillow.  So I had a few squares left over.  I already gave away the finished runner, so this new one will be for our table.

These shamrocks better bring us some luck for spring weather.  Snow is in the forecast again!

Linking up to WIP Wednesday and Fort Worth Fabric Studio.

Spring Pillows and New Shoes

Over the weekend we finished up another Shamrock Pillow. 

One of the pillows is for us, and the other we gave to my great aunt this morning along with the yellow flower and caramels as an early St. Patrick’s Day gift.  My great aunt happens to be very Irish and proud of it, so she loved the pillow!

If you want to make your own, you can get the template from the Fort Worth Fabric Blog and resize the larger shamrock to 200%.  We appliqued it to a 12.5” block and added 2.25” borders around, so the cover fit a 16” pillow form perfectly.  The envelope back was made with two 16” x 20” panels hemmed on one edge by folding the fabric back about .5” twice.

Esther picked this nice springy fabric for the back.  It’s the perfect compliment to the linen on the front.  Now I just wish the weather would feel like spring already!

I was so enamored of these pillows that I had to start another project with them.  Here’s a little sneak peek. 

Miraculously I got all the hand stitching done in the waiting room at gymnastics this morning so as soon as the rain stops and the sun comes out I hope to get some photos of it finished.

Over the weekend we planted some lettuces and strawberries in repurposed containers and put them on this cool A-Frame plant stand I bought on clearance at an online shop called Gardener’s Supply Company. 

I was actually on there ordering the most awesome wellies for myself for the spring.  I’ve never owned a pair of rubber boots, but my kids always wear them in the spring and summer, so I thought I’d treat myself to a pair.  The nice thing is I won’t outgrow these and need a new pair every year!

No, I don’t have backyard chickens, but I wish I did!  I got my mom a pair for Mother’s Day because she does have chickens.  Don’t worry, she doesn’t read my blog, so no spoiler alert.

And while I’m on the topic of shoes, I also got a pair of custom painted Tom’s for the summer from Anna See.  She has an online store and I happened to see these shoes while I was buying some bird prints for our bedroom when we were redecorating.  I never buy shoes full price or probably more than $15 a pair, but these were too amazing to pass up.

She custom painted peacock feathers on them.  It took a few weeks for her to make them, but it was well worth the wait!  I’ve been rocking them all over town the past few days and I have to say, Toms are some comfortable shoes. 

Hope you are having a good start to the week!