Things You'll Need
Tape measure
Fabric
Fusible interfacing
Dressmaker’s pins
Sewing machine
Iron
Quilt batting (optional)
Like a table runner in your dining room, a bed runner adds color and texture. Usually 18 to 24 inches wide, a runner generally rests along the foot of the bed, although you can also position it down the center, from head to foot.
Basic, Simple Runner
Step 1
Measure the width of your bed. Add 26 inches.
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Step 2
Fold the fabric in half, selvage edges and right sides together.
Step 3
Mark a rectangle measuring 1 inch wider than your desired finished width by the width measurement you made. For example, if your bed is 48 inches wide, and you want a runner that is 18 inches wide, you would mark a 74-inch (48 inches + 26 inches) by 19-inch rectangle.
Step 4
Cut on your marks to make two matching strips.
Step 5
Cut one matching piece of fusible interfacing.
Step 6
Iron the interfacing to the wrong side of one of your fabric strips.
Step 7
Pin the two long sides and one end together, right sides facing.
Step 8
Stitch the three pinned sides, using a 1/2-inch seam allowance.
Step 9
Turn the runner right side out.
Step 10
Press the seams flat.
Step 11
Slip-stitch the open end closed.
Step 12
Press the seams flat.
Step 13
Top-stitch 1/4 inch from the edges, all the way around the runner.
Padded Bed-Top Runner
Step 1
Cut two fabrics strips with a length equal to the width of your bed plus 26 inches. Make the strip 1 inch wider than the desired finished width.
Step 2
Measure and cut a matching piece of batting.
Step 3
Pin the batting to the back of one of the fabric strips.
Step 4
Position the other fabric strip on the front side of the first strip and pin them together.
Step 5
Stitch around the two long sides and one end, using 1/2-inch seam allowances.
Step 6
Trim the seams to 1/4 inch.
Step 7
Turn the runner right side out.
Step 8
Top-stitch the runner with your favorite quilting design or top-stitch 1/2-inch from each edge.
Tip
Make your bed runner reversible by cutting one strip from each of two different fabrics.
Most fabrics will work well for a bed runner, but woven fabrics -- such as cotton, satin, silk or linen -- will produce a crisper look than knits.
Instead of a single, long strip of fabric, consider making a patchwork design by cutting pieces of coordinating fabrics into different lengths and stitching them together to create a rectangle of the correct dimensions.
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