Christmas Table Runner

I saw this really cute, cute Halloween table runner on this great blog, Pleasant Home.  Here is the link.  Isn't it the greatest quilted pumpkin runner you ever saw? 

As soon as I saw it I knew I wanted to try to make a Christmas one for myself.  Problem is I have only made 2 quilted pieces and they had instructions.  For this one, I was going to have to figure it out all by my little lonesome self.  I wanted to use a solid white background just like the Halloween one and put 3 wonky Christmas trees on it.  These are the fabrics I chose:

I used the 3 prints to cut out the trees.That was a learning experience in  itself.  I had only worked with squares and rectangles, so I didn't know that I would need to make the lower section larger than the one above it.  Oops, I've already forgotten what I learned.  I needed to make the lower section smaller than the one above it.  See the photo.  That way, when I sewed them together, I ended up with nice triangles. 

 
Then, the second challenge was to figure out how to attach the white background.  I worked in 3 sections, one for each Christmas tree.  So, first I cut a piece of white for the left hand side of the tree and attached it...not hard.  Then I cut one for the right hand side of the tree.  It took a lot of trial and error to figure out how to add the seam allowances.  For the white section that has the tree trunk, I could never figure out how to sew the trunk into the white fabric....I ended up appliquing it onto that section.  Lastly, I sewed the tree section to the trunk section.  I kind of wanted it to end up more off-center to emphasize the wonkiness, but it's alright.

Then I sewed all three trees together.Things that I needed to be careful of:  making the horizontal seams nice and straight and parallel, making the vertical seams vertical, evenly spacing the trees, and having about the same amount of white fabric outside the outer trees.

Then I cut batting and backing fabric about two inches larger than the front.  I loved how the pumpkin runner was quilted in straight lines, alternating the direction of each section.  So, I decided to quilt the outer trees horizontally and do the middle section vertically.  The quilt lines are about 3/4 inches apart.  I used the same backing fabric for the binding, but made it kinda scrappy by inserting small sections of the tree fabrics.  Here is the final product:

Oh, and, noone told me I'd need a walking foot to quilt this.  This wasn't included in my fancy, dancy sewing machine.  So, I called the local Bernina shop to ask how much they were.  I almost had a heart attack.  I had no idea an attachment could cost so much.  But they did have a 25% coupon, so I guess I just suffered a stroke.

I like the runner, but there is one problem I should have thought about.  I didn't wash the red backing fabric beforehand and it bleeds when wet.....SO, I guess I will never be able to wash this runner....need to keep my fingers crossed that noone spills on it. lol.....oh well, it was a fun learning experience.

Joy and Peace,

Kelly