How to Make a Round Table Cloth

A round table can turn into a room centerpiece if you make a round table cloth that really catches your eye. Not only does a table cloth look good, it protects—or hides—the table that lurks beneath. You can make a round table cloth with a few simple supplies and several easy steps.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Scissors
• Fabric
• Needle and thread
• Iron (optional)
• Cardboard (optional)

1. Figure out the size. If you are making the cloth for a particular table, measure the diameter of the round top. Then add any length you want the cloth to hang down. You can give it an extra 2 feet and 2 inches, which will give you 1 foot of fabric hanging below the tabletop and an inch for the hem, a good amount to help keep the cloth stable.

2. Pick your cloth. Fabric stores have a grand array of cloth or you can choose something you perhaps have lying around the house. Steer clear of very filmy, flimsy, heavily textured of extra thick cloth that may buckle or not lay right. Pick a fine linen, a simple cotton or, if you are getting fancy about it, a silk blend.

3. Cut your circle. Mark a circle with chalk on the underside of the fabric that is the diameter you want. Cut carefully around the edges. You may want to cut a piece of cardboard and pin it to the cloth to use as a guide, as perfect circle cutting can get tricky.

4. Hem the edges. Once your circle is cut, stitch a hem in matching thread on your sewing machine or by hand. You can fold the hem under and iron a crease then stitch it so you have a crisp line.

5. Iron if needed. Once your hem is complete, you can give the entire table cloth a once-over with the iron so it is fresh and new and ready to use.

Tips & Warnings

• You may want to pre-treat your fabric before you use it as a table cloth with a stain and spill protector.
• You can add some pizazz to an otherwise mundane room by picking a striking pattern, bright color or even tie-dying the fabric you use as a table cloth.
• Add even more jazz to the round table cloth by sewing beads, fringe or tassels around the edges at the hem. To measure the edge length, take a piece of string around the cloth and then measure the length of the string with a tape measure.
• For the ultimate creativity, think of round objects and emulate them on the table cloth using fabric paint. Your cloth can be the sun, a smiley face, a skull, a wheel, an eyeball or a happy little orange man surrounded by flowers.
• Table cloths often get a lot of wear, tear, abuse and spills. Keep this in mind when investing in a fabric to use.