Is my “hack” to recreate a ludicrously priced pottery barn table runner flawed? (Pic included)

[Koili]

So I have found this runner which I love. But it’s £90! I can’t believe anyone would spend that much for a strip of material. I have found a very similar piece of tartan which is currently on offer for £15/m. Also cotton. I was thinking I would buy the material and make some runners and placemats to create this look I have seen on Pinterest. It seems too straightforward. Am I missing something? I am not handy at all. Is there a reason people wouldn’t do the same? Is pottery barn assuming people
cant be arsed to mark their own even though it’s not that difficult?

You could say the same for a lot of the tat for sale, and ditto ready made meals.

If I wanted a tartan runner, I'd most definitely make my own and spend the £90 on gin

Have you got a sewing machine? How much do you value your own time?

If the answers to the above are 'yes', and 'not much', then crack on, it'll definitely work out cheaper 🙂

I'd imagine a lot of people probably couldn't be arsed! Not a criticism - we all have our priorities! But if you can and you're decent with a sewing machine then go for it! It definitely looks doable to me 👍

Yes make it yourself , if you want a good overhang having it weighted helps , you can sew tiny weights in the hems .

Give it a go....sounds like a good project.
and remember the majority of things are only worth what people are willing to pay for them!

no but my best friend has. I know roughly how to use one. Did textiles at school so definitely a bit rusty

You don't even need a sewing machine. Pair of decent scissors, a straight edge, iron and a packet of wundaweb from the supermarket would sort it in ten minutes including putting the kettle on.

M&S have a similar one for £20 - here

I created a similar runner last year. I went to a local fabric shop , bought an off-cut for about a fiver.. foldeded it in on itself, and put it down the length of the table. No sewing machine .. had I been slightly less lazy I might have used some wonder-web

Looked great … and nobody really looks hard enough to see if the sides are seamed - it’s a “look”, which will get packed away after a few hours

It’s only a hemmed rectangle of fabric so very achievable with the sewing machine.

If you can’t sew, buy iron-on Wonder Web and hem it that way.

As @WinterBerry40 says, little weights will help it hang better. Sew them into the hem or attach some suitable decorations at either end - pine cones or whatever suits your decor/theme.

Oh this changes things….

I would buy this rather than make my own, for £20 it’s much much neater than mine would be and no swearing at the machine.

Would never have thought about the weights. Thanks for pointing out.

Why not save £15/m by not bothering?

There’s a lot for sale for cheaper. It’s Royal Stewart tartan, so a popular plaid that’s not exclusive to Pottery Barn.

Here’s one, also 100% cotton:
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/175992645446

A tenner on Amazon. They probably have even cheaper ones. In fact, there's nothing to stop you simply re-purposing a cheap tartan scarf (you could cut the fringe off or not).
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0DB77JJQV/ref=sspa_mw_detail_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9waG9uZV9kZXRhaWw&aref=NNe6NDvyBf&sp_cr=ZAZ&th=1

https://www.strathmorewoollen.co.uk/product/tartan-table-runner/

Royal Stewart Modern on the dropdown I think.

😂😂😂

We need the laugh react back!

Has matching mats and napkins.

I think this is a lovely way to spend time, and also rewarding to think you put the care into making the runner.

Also you say you're not handy at all.
I always think it's great to go out of your comfort zone, ( just a little challenge not too great) for the sense of achievement afterwards.

I guess they're assuming that if you're not normally crafty you won't invest in the kit and the learning time to make it yourself?

If you already have all that and know how to do it, it has to be a lot cheaper to do it yourself.

I've done this and for it to look good (and not cheap), is more complicated than pp have said.
First will be the weight of op's fabric. Ordinary cotton is very light, so you need quilting batting too and twice the fabric, or a heavy lining fabric. No weights will be needed, and the runner will lie flat and wash perfectly.
I machine quited a runner and placemats over 30 years ago and still bring them out every Christmas.

Unless you have a very small dining table, one metre won't be enough with overhang so just buy the M&S ones.👻

I got some reduced fabricy (paper but with a texture) wrapping paper as our runner one year. It was a fairly narrow bit of paper so the perfect width. Looked lovely. I think it cost me about £3 or £4.

Exactly. Save time AND money!

I have this exact same table runner. I made it in the early 00s.

I do not have a crafty bone in my body, but did it with wonderweb and material from the market.

Can't have cost more than £10.