Birthday table runner

July is birthday central for us. Starting at the beginning of the month with #1's birthday then a week later mine, followed by my dad's, my Gran's, then mum's and their wedding anniversary, and finally at the end of the month my niece's. So it's a busy time and one that I try to get as organised as possible for.

As soon as I saw French Generals "rouenneries" range for Moda I knew it would be perfect for my parents. The fabric has a linen look about it and there is a lovely selection of small and large prints as well as solids. To me it just speaks of kitchens and reminds me of my mum and dads, so I decided on a table runner.

I wanted to use as many of the great prints as possible so I decided to use a charm pack. And what a delight, anything that takes the cutting process out is a bonus in my eyes! The hardest part of this project was deciding the layout though also very enjoyable, I had great fun selecting the arrangement of the prints. 

I've added a linen border and used a heavier interior weight fabric on the back. Both these fabrics were bought from ikea (here) who are beginning to produce some very useful fabrics at excellent low prices. I used a bamboo/cotton wadding and kept the quilting to a minimum.

It's one of the quickest sewing projects I've done and I'm very pleased with the result.

The loveliest thing is with my mum over for a short stay I've been able to give her their present,  in person, a little early but great to see her reaction. And judging from her "ooh's and aah's" she too has fallen for this gorgeous range of prints and the table runner will soon be taking pride of place in their French farmhouse kitchen.