The short answer is that your runner should be about 12 inches shorter than your table if you want it to sit flat, or about 12 inches longer if you want it to drape over both ends. Everything else is detail. But the detail is where people get it wrong, so here is the whole thing.
Measure the table, not the room
Take a tape measure along the length of your table top, edge to edge. Write that number down. That is the only measurement that matters. Do not measure the room, and do not measure a table you are planning to buy later.
Our runners come in three lengths, all 14 inches wide:
- 48 inches — small square tables, breakfast tables, console tables and sideboards
- 72 inches — the standard six-seat dining table, and the size most people need
- 108 inches — eight-seat and longer tables, and kitchen islands
The two ways a runner can sit
Flat, no overhang. Choose a runner 6 to 12 inches shorter than the table. This is what you want if you use the table every day, if you have a toddler who pulls on things, or if the table has beautiful ends you would rather not cover. A 72 inch runner sits flat on a table between 78 and 84 inches long.
Draped, with overhang. Choose a runner 12 to 24 inches longer than the table, so 6 to 12 inches falls at each end. This reads more formal and is the usual choice for a holiday table. A 72 inch runner drapes nicely on a table between 48 and 60 inches long.
Notice that the same 72 inch runner works on a 50 inch table and an 80 inch table, just differently. If you are between two sizes, think about which look you want rather than which number is closer.
Round tables
A runner on a round table hangs off both sides, which is fine and often looks better than a square cloth. Measure the diameter and add 16 to 24 inches. A 48 inch round table takes a 72 inch runner comfortably. A 60 inch round table can take either 72 or 108, depending on how much drop you want.
Two runners on one table
On a table wider than 42 inches, two runners laid across the width instead of one along the length gives each pair of diners their own strip. Use the 48 inch length for this and lay them perpendicular to the table edge. It is the standard restaurant trick and it makes a wide table feel less empty.
What the width does
All our runners are 14 inches wide, which is deliberate. Narrower than 12 and a centrepiece looks perched on it; wider than 16 and you have effectively laid a tablecloth. Fourteen leaves room for plates on either side of a six-seat table while still holding a candle arrangement down the middle.
Which fabric for which table
Both lengths come in quilted cotton and in velvet. The quilted cotton has a bound edge and a little loft, so it grips a wooden table and does not slide when someone leans on it. The velvet is smoother and reflects light, which suits an evening table and a darker room but will slip more readily on a polished surface.
If the table gets daily use, choose quilted. If the runner comes out for guests, velvet is the one people notice.
Where to start looking
If you already know the colour you want, that is usually the fastest route: blue, green, cream and ivory, white and black each have their own page.
If the subject matters more than the shade, start with floral, which is the largest group we make, or birds, landscapes and wildlife for something less expected. For a specific occasion there are Christmas, Easter and Halloween runners.
Everything is printed after you order it, so allow a few days to make before it ships.
Common table sizes and what fits them
If you would rather not measure, these are the sizes most mass-market dining tables come in, and what each one takes. Check yours against the list, but do measure if you can — older and handmade tables ignore these conventions entirely.
- Small square, 36 by 36 inches — 48 inch runner, draped
- Four-seat rectangle, 48 by 30 inches — 48 inch flat, or 72 inch for a long drape
- Six-seat rectangle, 72 by 36 inches — 72 inch flat, or 108 inch draped
- Eight-seat rectangle, 96 by 40 inches — 108 inch flat
- Kitchen island, 84 by 42 inches — 72 inch centred, leaving the ends clear for stools
The pattern to notice is that the 72 inch length covers more situations than the other two put together. If you are buying a runner as a gift and cannot measure the table it is going on, that is the one to choose.
Runners and placemats together
A runner down the centre with placemats on either side is the standard formal setting, and it works as long as the two do not fight. If the runner has a busy all-over pattern, use plain mats. If the mats are patterned, choose a runner with a quieter ground — a cream or a single-colour design rather than a full scene.
The other arrangement, less common but easier to live with, is a runner with nothing on it except a centrepiece, and no mats at all. On a wooden table that reads better than three competing textiles, and it is what most people with a scenic or landscape design end up doing.
A note on ironing
Runners arrive folded, and the fold lines show for the first day. You do not need to iron them. Lay the runner flat on the table overnight and the creases drop out on their own, because the quilting pulls the fabric back to shape. If you are in a hurry, a warm iron from the reverse side works on the cotton; on velvet use steam held above the surface rather than pressing, or the pile flattens where the iron sat.
From the range
Runners in this range come in six lengths, so the sizing above applies to any of them: