Easy Burlap Tablecloth

I am linking this post to DIY day at A Soft Place to Land. Be sure to stop by there for more great DIY projects!

I’ve been needing a kitchen table for my guest house for a looooooooong time now.

But I wasn’t sure what I wanted.

At first, I was thinking my husband could make me an island with some bar stools to use as my eating area in the guest house.

But I placed a large buffet table in the middle of the room, to get an idea of what an island would look like, and I didn’t like it.

It took away from the detail of the cabinets.

So then I started thinking I wanted a small table with two chairs.

But what kind of table did I want?

Well, I found what I wanted in my favorite inspiration spot…Ballard Designs magazine. (If you don’t get this magazine in the mail, visit their website and sign up to get it FREE in the mail.)

It is a burlap tablecloth with jute trim and sells for $85.00.

Of course I said, “Why buy it, when I can make it?”

So I went to Hobby Lobby and got 4 1/2 yards of burlap. I like their burlap because it is a softer, smoother material, and it doesn’t stink like most burlap. :)

Their burlap was on sale for $1.99 a yard, so it cost me only $9.00.

And here is the table I was going to use. It was a small patio table that Mom and Dad had on their back porch. Since I was covering it with a tablecloth, it didn’t matter what it looked like underneath! And it was the perfect size. (And price…FREE!)

Here’s how I measured it:

(Do not laugh at my drawing! I just really thought you would need to see this part if you wanted to make your own tablecloth. You would just use the measurements of the table you were using, not mine, of course.)

That is a total length of 94 inches.

My burlap was 45 inches wide. So I folded it over lengthwise 47 inches (half of the 94 inches I needed.)

I did that TWICE, so I would have two identical pieces.

Then I took one of those pieces and cut it right down the middle.

I laid the two smaller pieces on both sides of the larger piece. I unfolded them to show you what it would look like.

Then I sewed each of the two smaller pieces to each side of the whole piece. Ladies, I didn’t even pin the pieces together! I just held the pieces together on the sewing machine and sewed a straight stitch all the way down. The burlap did well this way. I wouldn’t be able to do that with every fabric. And I wasn’t worried if the ends matched up perfectly because I knew I would be trimming it and adding fringe.

(The reason you add two smaller pieces to the side is so that you don’t have a seam running down the middle of the top of your table. Doing it this way keeps the seams on the sides of the table.)

Now, we are almost finished.

You need to fold this entire piece in half (from top to bottom).

Then fold it in half again, just like folding a piece of paper (from side to side).

Since the total length of my tablecloth was 94 inches, I needed to take half that amount to measure where I was going to cut the material, which was 47 inches.

Since I couldn’t find my sewing tape measure, I used my husband’s metal tape measure to cut a string 47 inches long.

My oldest son helped me with this part.

He held the string at the top corner of the material, as I measured.

Then I drew a line from one side to the other to show where to cut.

(My son told me I should leave the scissors on the material to show you guys that I cut it with them. How cute is that?)

The angle at which I took this picture makes the right side look long than the other side, but they are both 47 inches long.

Then I put it on the table to see if it worked. (I was doubting myself a little at this point.)

But it DID!

Now I need to add some fringe at the bottom. I found some at Hobby Lobby that I loved, but even with the 40% off coupon, it is still pretty pricey.

So I am on the hunt for a bargain, or a homemade version.

I will post about that when I get it finished.

I could just sew a hem on the bottom, but I was really wanting some cute fringe.

But for now, I am very pleased with the results.

And now our guests have a place to eat!

I will be getting some glass to put on top of the table to protect the burlap.

The two black chairs on each side of the table were purchased at Goodwill for $30.00.

They looked like this when I bought them…

And after I re-did them, they looked like this...

You can read about that project HERE.

I thought I would be using them by the couch in the “living” area of the guest house. But now I think they are perfect for the kitchen table.

I still have some more projects for the guest house that I am working on, and I will share them as soon as they are finished.

But for now, thanks for letting me share this project with you!

Blessings,

I am linking this post to Funky Junk Interiors' Saturday Nite Special.

I am also linking up to Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch.

Be sure to go check out the Before and After Party at Thrifty Decor Chick!