Fall table runner...kind of!

I wanted to make a nice Autumn table runner for our kitchen table, so decided to cut out some leaf shapes from felt.  I went with the traditional Autumn colours of brown, orange, red and yellow, but also decided to mix it up with some different shades of brown (from very dark brown through to light beige) a bit of green (well, there are SOME green leaves on the ground outside...right?) and even a couple of shades of purple.

 

 

I drew some basic leaf shapes, after checking out the garden to seeing what was around!  I came up with 3 shapes - one is supposed to be a maple leaf (there are a LOT of maples around here!) but don't ask me what kind of trees the other two come from!  Possibly an oak for the leaf on the left?

I ended up cutting out 28 leaf shapes from the various colours.  It took me about an hour to pin the template, cut, re-pin etc.  The perfect job to do while watching your favourite TV show...

And this is what I ended up with.

I had originally planned to artfully arrange these into a runner for the table and then either sew or glue them together (although after all that cutting, I'm pretty sure I would have ended up using hot glue - super fast!).  But as I played with them, I started to see the potential for leaving them unattached.

1)  I can arrange them in all kinds of different ways, whatever takes my fancy (see pictures below);

2)  Craft felt doesn't wash very well - if there was a spillage at the table (and with 4 kids, they are not exactly rare) I am hoping I can scoop up the few leaves in the firing line - if they get ruined so be it, at least I don't have to thrown the whole project away!

3)  I can make a few new leaves every year to add to the pile - maybe one day the pile will be big enough to require a garden rake :O)

So, here are the ways I tried - I'm quite sure the options are almost limitless though (sew them into an Autumn mobile?  Put them in frames for Autumn artwork?  Make a bunch of them into an Autumn wreath?) - my ideas are all to do with the table.

Spread them out randomly to cover quite a long distance...

Gather them closer into the middle of the table...

Or even try to arrange them around a centrepiece.  Obviously, I don't have a centrepiece in this picture, I'm planning to carve my pumpkin with the same leaf shapes and sit it on the table too, so that would work.

 

Those sharp-eyed readers amongst you may have noticed that 3 of my leaves have some embellishement.

 

I added some veins to the purple leaf, I outlined the orange (in blanket stitch - a tried and trusted favourite of mine!) and on the yellow one I did both.

 

Over the next few days I am planning to grab a few leaves whenever I have a spare half hour, and eventually do one of the above to them all - it adds a little texture and interest, I think.  They don't all have to be done, even just a few "accent" pieces would be nice!

I will be sure to post a couple of updated pictures once I am done!

Nikki x

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