A nostalgic redwork rooster table runner with a prairie points border. 'Redwork' is an embroidery design style using basic line drawings in thread originating in the late 1800's. A red colorfast thread developed by Turkish cotton processors made this style affordable and popular until the 1920's. Fast forward a century, and staying true to the style, line drawings are still appealing but appear in many colors (blue work, green work, etc.) as long as the design uses just one color. Twister Tweed rayon thread from Robison-Anton was used for this project. Twister Tweed is made of two colors dyed and twisted together to give a heathered embroidery stitched appearance.
Step 1:
Read the directions before beginning the project. Gather and prepare the materials. Lightly starch and iron the fabric. Print a copy of the design templates to use as placement guides.
Moda toweling fabric was used to make this runner. You can substitute a piece of 100% quilter's cotton for the toweling if needed.
(Click Image to Enlarge)
Step 2:
Hemming the ends of the table runner. Fold the raw edge of the toweling down 1/4" toward the wrong side of the fabric. Press with an iron. Fold the edge down again 1/4" tucking the raw edge to the inside. Press edges with an iron. Pin in place. Repeat for the other end of the runner.
Sew a seam 1/8" along the edges on each end of the toweling.
Step 3:
Making the prairie points trim.Measure the width of your runner. Divide that number by 2. That number tells you how many squares to cut for each end of the runner. So, if the runner is 16" wide, you will need 8 squares for each end of the runner. A total of 16 blue 3"x3" squares.
Cut the blue fabric into 3"x3" squares.
Step 4:
Follow the steps in the picture to make the points on the prairie points.
1: Fold the square in half on the diagonal with wrong sides together. Press
along the fold line with an iron.
2: Next, fold the triangle in the middle. Press along the fold line with an iron.
3. Repeat steps 1 & 2 for each 3"x3" square.
Step 5:
Attach the points to the ends of the runner. Place the raw edges of the first triangle about 1/4" on the hemline of the runner. The triangle must be turned so that it opens like a book. Place the tip of the first triangle 1/2" past the edge of the runner. Tuck the point that overlaps to the underneath the triangle. Pin the triangle in place.
Step 6:
Use the picture as a guide. Place the next triangle inside the corner of the first triangle. Overlap the points about 1/2". Pin the triangle in place.
Step 7:
Continue putting triangles on the edges to make the prairie points border. Pin the triangles in place. The last triangle should overlap slightly also. Tuck that corner underneath too.
Once the triangles have been pinned on each end of the runner. Sew a 1/4" seam along the edge. Reinforce the stitching at the beginning and end of the seam.
Step 8:
Adding the red trim. Measure the width of the runner. Add 2 inches to that number. That is the length you will need for the red trim. (If it's 16" wide, you need to cut the fabric 18" long.)
Cut 2 strips of red fabric 2" times the width of the runner plus 2".
Step 9:
Press the edges of the red strips down 1/2" toward the wrong side of the fabric. Fold the edge down again 1/2". Press with an iron.
Step 10:
(Click Image to Enlarge)
Place the red strip so that it covers the seam line on the blue triangles. Pin the red trim in place on each end of the runner.
Step 11:
Sew a 1/8" seam on all sides of the red strips. Reinforce the stitches at the beginning and ending of the seams.
Step 12:
Design placement. Use the design template as a guide for placement on the runner. Pin the template for Rooster 1 onto the runner once you finish with placement.
Step 13:
Use the design template as a guide for placement on the runner. Pin the template for Rooster 2 onto the runner once you finish with placement.
Hoop one piece of No Show cutaway mesh stabilizer. Float the runner on the stabilizer using the hoop and design template grids as guidance for centering. Use a light mist of 505 Temporary Adhesive spray on the stabilizer to secure the runner.
Step 14:
Load the design. Check the needle size, thread, and bobbin before starting to stitch. A 80/12 embroidery needle is recommended because the Twister Tweed thread has two strands. Reducing the speed to 600 stitches per minute also helped give a better finished product. Most embroidery machines have a basting box feature. A basting box can be added before stitching the design to reduce puckering.
Step 15:
Stitch each rooster design.
Step 16:
Clip & remove the threads from the basting box. Trim excess stabilizer from around the back of each design. Trim long threads if needed.
Step 17:
Great job! You have completed a traditional redwork rooster runner with a twist! WTG!
Beautiful things are made one stitch at a time....
Marisa Littleton is a retired educator with a love for teaching and learning. Interests include machine embroidery, hand embroidery, quilting, cooking, and antiques.
