Fancy quilted table runner

I just finished one client quilt and needed another quick project of my own to experiment with. I decided on a table runner since they can be quilted heavily and aren't too large. I wanted to try some tighter designs that I have been collecting on Pinterest.

I fell in love with these Joel Dewberry fabrics online and ordered some. Of course, they don't go with any of my decor, but I couldn't resist. Love the birds!

 

You can see the quilting a lot better on the back. I happened to have some black linen that I had picked up cheap somewhere. How did I not know about black linen? It is wonderful for backing! I have used black cotton before and ended up with loads of little piece of batting poking through. I know I can solve this problem by using black polyester batting, but I really prefer cotton.

I didn't have a single bit of batting come up through this linen. It was great to work with. I'll definitely be using it for backing again!

I marked the perimeter lines with blue water soluble marker and put a couple of dots in to measure out the center design. I got the idea for the center design from Judi at Green Fairy Quilts.

Then I threw in a row of pearls because I think they look so amazing and it is never a bad thing to practice doing those. I put in some tight swirls for contrast and again, more practice. I had done these on another quilt and wanted to work on the consistency of the line and the spacing in between.

I have been dying to try out these Asian feathers from Carla Barrett's blog, Feathered Fibers. I had repinned them from pinterest, but I can't find them on her blog. They were so much fun! I had a little trouble in the inner corners, but I will definitely be using these again. Beautiful!

All I have to do now is repaint my kitchen gray. The light blue walls don't go with my new runner:)