EMBRACE THE CHANGING SEASONS WITH MY FALLING LEAVES TABLE RUNNER, A QUICK AND EASY QUILT PATTERN PERFECT FOR BEGINNERS AND SEASONED STITCHERS ALIKE!
Who’s ready for an easy quilt pattern? Yes, me too! And my new Falling Leaves Table Runner checks all the boxes – fun, fast and FALL!
I don’t know about you, but I adore Fall. I mean, really, really love it. Cool nights, changing leaves and pumpkin spice EVERYTHING! This year, I’m bringing Autumn into our home with easy quilting projects.
Finding an easy quilt pattern can be a game-changer for beginners and seasoned quilters alike, and this table runner is no exception. Get ready to fall for Fall with Falling Leaves!
There’s just something special about decorating for Fall. It’s my second favourite time of year – only Christmas gets me more excited to decorate! So let’s take a look at what we need.
GET A PRINTABLE AD-FREE VERSION OF THIS BLOG POST HERE! ONLY $3!
When you purchase this FALLING LEAVES TABLE RUNNER POST, you’ll receive all the instructions found in this post, PLUS you won’t need to find this webpage every time you make this table runner!
*Please note – purchasing this printable blog post is optional. You can still complete the Falling Leaves Table Runner using the instructions found in this post.*
Fabric Selection and Supplies
As with all quilting, the choice of fabrics is nearly endless. For this Falling Leaves Table Runner, I chose to use Dawn on the Prairie by Fancy That Design House for Moda Fabrics. As soon as I saw it, I knew it was meant for something special. In fact, it’s meant for several somethings. But that’s for another day!
In addition to our local quilt shop, some of my favourite fabrics come from these amazing sites:
Next, make sure you have your essential quilting tools. Here is a list of what I like to have on hand when making any quilting project:
- Rotary cutter and mat – You can absolutely use a good pair of scissors, but I do find that you get the most accurate cuts using a rotary cutter.
- Quilting Ruler
- Sewing machine
- Thread
- Iron and ironing board or pressing mat
- Pins or clips
- Fabric marker
- Spray starch – I have recently started starching my fabrics, and I’m loving the difference. A note of caution, however: starching precuts may not work out well, as the starch can shrink your fabric in one direction only. Your squares will no longer be squares!
For this easy table runner, I chose to use a fusible fleece batting. This is a low-loft batting, perfect for a decorative table runner. It helps with quick quilting, to be sure!
Watch my easy tutorial for the Maple Leaf Block on my YouTube Channel! Be sure to subscribe and turn on your notifications so you don’t miss out!
Continue reading below for step-by-step instructions.
Falling Leaves Table Runner – Full Instructions
This pattern, as I have made it, calls for six different fabrics. I chose to use the same fabric for the background pieces on the front and the backing, but you could switch them up if you like!
This table runner is made up of three 9-patch blocks – two Maple Leaf blocks and one 9-Patch block.
Fabric Requirements:
- Fabric 1 (background) – ⅜ yard (0.11 metres) If using the same fabric for the backing, you will need 1 yard (0.91 metres).
- Fabric 2 (body of leaves and centre patch) – ¼ yard (0.23 metres)
- Fabric 3 (HSTs on leaves) – ¼ yard (o.23 metres)
- Fabric 4 (leaf stems) – ¼ yard (0.23 metres)
- Fabric 5 (corners of 9-patch) – ¼ yard (0.23 metres)
- Fabric 6 (border) – ¼ yard (0.23 metres)
- Backing – ⅝ yard (0.57 metres) – This assumes usable width of fabric is 43-44 inches.
- Batting – 18″ x 41″ – if using fusible fleece. Otherwise, you will need approximately 20″ x 44″.
Note – You could easily use fat quarters for Fabrics 2 through 5.
Cutting Instructions:
Please note – these cutting instructions follow the exact layout of my own table runner, where I used Fabric 1 as background and backing. Be sure to label your pieces as you cut them to avoid confusion.
Fabric 1:
- Cut six (6) 4 ⅝-inch squares [A]
- Cut four (4) 4-inch squares [B]
- Cut four (4) 5-inch squares [C]
- Sub-cut these four squares into Half Square Triangles (HSTs) – cut once diagonally
Set the remainder aside for backing.
Fabric 2:
- Cut seven (7) 4 ⅝-inch squares [D]
Fabric 3:
- Cut four (4) 5-inch squares [E]
- Sub-cut these four squares into Half Square Triangles (HSTs) – cut once diagonally
Fabric 4:
- Cut two (2) 4 ⅝-inch squares [F]
Fabric 5:
- Cut four (4) 4 ⅝-inch squares [G]
Fabric 6:
- Cut three (3) Width of Fabric strips at 2 ½ inches wide
- Subcut: two (2) strips 38 inches by 2 ½ inches wide and one (1) strip into 17 inches by 2 ½ inches wide
Assembly:
Nine-Patch Block
You will use the four [G] squares, four squares of [A] and one square of [D]. You can refer to my Nine-Patch Quilt Block post for instructions. Your layout for the centre block will be as follows:
G – A – G
A – D – A
G – A – G
Once squared up, set this block aside.
Maple Leaf Block
To make the stem, you will use one [F] square and two [B] squares for each block.
Place one [F] square right side together with one [B] square. Align the [B] square with the lower left-hand corner, as shown in Figure 1 below.
Stitch diagonally from corner to corner of square [B] and trim ¼-inch from the seam as shown in Figure 2.
Press your seam and repeat with the second [B] square. This time, you will align the [B] square to the top right corner of [F]. Stitch, trim and press seams.
Repeat these steps for the second Maple Leaf Block.
Create four (4) HSTs by stitching triangles [C] and [E] on the long edge. You will make eight (8) of these in total, four for each leaf. Press your seams toward the darker fabric.
Lay out your Maple Leaf Block as shown below:
I spent some time outside in my mom’s garden taking photos. I almost like this runner better outside than in!
This layout will be:
A – HST – HST
HST – D – D
HST – D – STEM
The layout for both leaves is the same, just be sure to rotate the blocks so that the stems face the centre.
Once your blocks are squared, stitch all three blocks with a Maple Leaf on each side of the Nine-Patch. Press your seams.
Border
Stitch the long strips of Fabric 6 to the top and bottom edges of the runner. Stitch the shorter strips to the ends of the runner. Square up.
At this stage, you will decide what type of batting to use. I chose a fusible fleece batting, as it is easy to quilt and very lightweight. I will be using this runner for display purposes only, so a thin batting is fine. If you are using a fusible batting, be sure to follow the manufacturers instructions.
Quilt as desired. I chose a very simple quilting pattern, using squares on the Nine-Patch and squares and triangles on the leaves, but you can quilt it as much or as little as you prefer.
Once your quilting is complete, finish with binding.
And now you have a gorgeous Fall table runner for any space you want!
GET A PRINTABLE AD-FREE VERSION OF THIS BLOG POST HERE! ONLY $3!
When you purchase this FALLING LEAVES TABLE RUNNER POST, you’ll receive all the instructions found in this post, PLUS you won’t need to find this webpage every time you make this table runner!
*Please note – purchasing this printable blog post is optional. You can still complete the Falling Leaves Table Runner using the instructions found in this post.*
For more quick and easy patterns, be sure to visit MY SHOP! Some of my most popular projects are:
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