For quite a while now I have been thinking about my next seasonal tablecloth series for my sister Lisa. I found some commercial fabric that looks good with her dishes and together we happened upon a scarf at a local store that will be an interesting base for a setting. Because she is sort of starting from scratch with her table I also made her a white full size cloth and some napkins because it is always good to have the basics. I thought by making this "starter" cloth I would work out the dimensions I would need for the other undercloths I will be making as the seasonal settings come together and I was glad that I did.
The diversity of table sizes always surprises me. You would think that dining tables would be fairly standard, but they actually are not. Ovals are especially various, but even rectangles can be quite different. For example, Lisa's table is 48" x 66", which is short and wide. My table by comparison is 40" x 72". It is narrow enough that I can sneak by with one three yard length of 60" (56" after shrinkage) wide linen, if I use the selvages as the hem. That leaves me with an 8" fall around the table, which is a little on the skimpy side, but not bad. The practical result is that at $10.00 per yard I can have a tablecloth in any of the many many colors that linen comes in for $30.00 plus shipping, needing only to be hemmed on the two short sides before I slap it on the table.
For wider tables, however, I have to order twice as much fabric because I need to add panels to the sides (and the ends to finish it properly) to make it wide enough for a generous fall. For Becky's table (44' x 70") I needed to add 4 inches to each side (and the ends) to make a 10" fall. By cutting the panels 8 inches wide I had enough to fold the panel back on itself, encasing the raw edge of the large middle piece completely, with a double thickness of cloth around the edge and both sides cleanly finished. Four eight inch panels (actually 10" with seam allowance and hem) could be cut from fabric 56" wide with plenty to spare (napkins anyone?), so I could make Becky's big cloths from six yards of linen.
You wouldn't think that four extra inches in table width would make much difference. In fact, I didn't think it. For Lisa's table I had to add seven inches to each side to get my favorite 10" fall. Doing my usual double edge meant that each panel had to be 16.5 inches wide to accomodate my usual inch and a half hem. It never occurred to me that I couldn't get four panels out of one fabric width (duh!) until I was deeply into it. I had to buy another length of fabric to make that last panel, which really added time and money to the project. I ordered more fabric but it didn't exactly match because it came from another dye lot. It makes me feel so foolish not to have seen this in advance, but sometimes that's how I am.
Having had this experience makes me wonder how to make future tablecloths for Lisa out of the original six yards. One option is to lessen the size of the fall. If I made an 8" fall I could get four double panels out of one three yard length and that would solve the problem. However, Lisa's table is one of those tall tables with tall chairs and while I feel okay with an 8" fall on my table, I worry that it will seem even skimpier on hers. The other possibility is to make the panels out of single pieces of linen, instead of double. That would solve the width problem, but would leave me with open seams on the back side. When I made Lynne's tablecloths for her oval table I had to add large curved panels to each side and used plain seams with zig zag edges. I could do the same with Lisa, but after the completely enclosed seams I have been used to, I balk. I have been experimenting with french seams, in which you sew a double seam encasing the raw edges in a neat little tab. It works well until I get to the corners, which I have been mitering. I can't figure out how to finish the ends the french seams or how to miter the corners without falling back onto zig zag edges, which maybe isn't the end of the world, remembering that I still have to do another mitered corner with the hem. Does anyone have any suggestions?