Fall Rail Fence Table Runner & Veggie Turkey

  Having never made even one table runner,  I decided to make two table runners this fall--one for the kitchen table, and another for the
dining room table.

I started with these fabrics:

The kitchen table runner became this one, which is the Rail Fence block design known by quilters everywhere .  I chose to use some of the solid tones and accentuate the espresso brown and gilded brown leaf print. Decided I also liked the homespun red plaid mixed with the bright pops of red, orange, yellow, and green batiks. 

They say it takes a village to raise a child. 

It also takes a whole box of pins to keep a binding on tight before sewing. 

 I sewed this binding on by machine.  Was pleased with the first half, 

but kept having machine problems with the new electronic Janome.

(Or, more likely, operator errors.) 

It kept stopping after two stitches, as if it didn't like multiple layers.

Switched to my older mechanical Kenmore. It did the job without a complaint, 

but I will not 

show my corners here. Ugh. Let's just say I have more to learn about

mitering corners. Not as easy as youtube videos make them look. 

I could not decide on a good color thread to quilt the runner with,  and was using the quilting method called stitch in the ditch. 

(Straight lines in the seams.)  So I ran to Joann's and picked up some invisible thread. 

Think fishing line. Think very forgiving to novices!  

I had forgotten my swatch of 

binding fabric, so took a guess. 

I kind of impressed myself with that guess. 

But the runner did provide a festive  backdrop to this veggie turkey platter

I  saw going around on Facebook. 

I cut up the celery and my youngest son did the rest. 

Quite a sacrifice, considering he gags on the smell of celery. 

  

That was my kitchen table runner. The other one is coming up next.