Burlap Table Runner

I have a picture frame I'm working on painting, but the snow is flying (again/still), so that'll have to wait on the back burner for a nicer day. Bummer. I didn't know what to do with myself so, I decided to run an errand, and ended up making a cute table runner:

 

It took me about 15 minutes with a glue gun, and cost under $10!

I ended up at Walmart. Ugh.

Big A had some electrical work to do, and the kids were at school for a couple more hours, so, essentially, the world was my oyster. So why Walmart? (You ask, feeling sorry for me, I hope). Well, needs be, and I needed cat litter!

While I was there, I decided to help the Easter Bunny a little and hit the candy aisles too. Shuffling along, up to my eyeballs in peeps, and 3 packs of undies (yes, my kids get undies from the Easter Bunny), I happened to turn down the fabric aisle. I usually skip out of Walmart as quickly as possible, but this stopped me:

Ooooh. Riiiibonnn. Look at all the preeeetty colors. (That was what that little voice in my head was saying to me.)

Half an hour later and I was home with some brown and green polka dot ribbon and 2 yards of burlap to play with. I thought about making a runner, and how I could do this. I could make a double layer of burlap and sew the edges together, or I could use no-sew fabric tape to turn down the edges...

In the end, I had kids to pick up from school, soccer practice to attend, and dinner to make, while channeling my inner drill Sargent over homework.  I went with "easy".

All I did was fray the edges of the burlap along the long side.  Just pull the little strings away and trim the fringe so that it's even.  (Burlap is messy so I don't advise you do this wearing black pants like I did. They are now black fuzz factories.)

Next I hot glue gunned the ribbon to the short end of the runner.  I did this on cling wrap because the glue would go through the burlap. Then I pulled the cling film away when the glue was drying. When the ribbon was in place, I ran a line of glue on the underside to prevent any further fraying, and I used sharp scissors to trim any of the burlap sticking under the ribbon for a neat edge.

 

 

I cut the ribbon and wrapped it under the edge of the burlap. 

 

And voila! A table runner.

 

 

I'm definitely going to make another runner with the burlap when I have a little more time. I love how it looks.