Moda Fabrics William Morris Table Runner - Downloadable PDF

Moda Fabrics William Morris Table Runner – Free Downloadable Quilting PDF Pattern Summary

This free downloadable PDF pattern from Moda Fabrics guides quilters through the construction of a stunning 63" x 81" table runner inspired by the historic archives of the Victoria and Albert Museum. The design draws on the iconic aesthetic of the William Morris 2017 fabric collection, blending richly printed charm squares with a neutral Grunge background to create a visually dynamic, heirloom-quality piece perfect for dining tables, sideboards, or display surfaces.

About the Design

The table runner is built entirely from hourglass blocks, a classic quilting unit that creates a sense of movement and geometric rhythm across the finished surface. Each hourglass block is trimmed to a precise 3½" x 3½" unfinished size, and the deliberate randomization of print placement ensures a scrappy, visually rich layout that honors the intricate botanical and decorative motifs characteristic of the William Morris 2017 collection. The interplay between the bold prints and the understated Moda Grunge background fabric gives the runner a balanced, sophisticated look.

Difficulty Level

This pattern is rated intermediate in difficulty. While the hourglass block itself is a well-established quilting unit, achieving consistent results requires careful cutting of quarter-square triangles, precise pressing, and accurate trimming. Quilters who are comfortable with rotary cutting, diagonal seams, and pressing seams open will find this project very approachable, while newer quilters will benefit from having some foundational piecing experience before attempting it.

Fabric Requirements and Materials

The pattern calls for two specific charm packs and a small amount of additional yardage for binding:

• 1 William Morris 2017 charm pack (style number 7300PP) – provides the printed quarter-square triangles that form the decorative element of each hourglass block
• 1 Moda Grunge charm pack (style number 30150-162PP) – serves as the neutral tan background fabric throughout the runner
• ¼ yard of William Morris 2017 (style number 7307-24) – used specifically for the binding to give the finished edges a coordinated, polished appearance

Charm packs are pre-cut collections of 5" squares, making them an efficient and economical choice for this type of project. Using charm packs also ensures a wide variety of prints from within the William Morris 2017 collection, contributing to the scrappy, richly layered look of the finished runner.

Cutting Instructions

Precise cutting is essential to the success of this pattern. The process involves:

• Using a ruler and rotary cutter to cut all 84 charm squares twice diagonally, yielding a total of 336 quarter-square triangles
• Cutting 3 strips of 2½" x width of fabric (WOF) from the William Morris 2017 yardage for binding

Cutting charm squares on both diagonals to create quarter-square triangles is a standard quilting technique. Because the straight grain of the fabric runs along the short legs of each triangle rather than the long bias edge, this method helps minimize stretching during construction — an important consideration when working with so many small triangular units.

Construction Techniques

The hourglass blocks are assembled in a structured two-step process that ensures consistency across all units:

• Step 1 – Pairing triangles: Each of the 336 quarter-square triangles is stitched into a pair consisting of one print triangle and one background (tan) triangle. The pattern specifies that the print triangle is always placed on the right and the background triangle on the left when stitching, ensuring uniform orientation. This step produces 168 pairs. All seams are pressed open to reduce bulk.
• Step 2 – Completing the hourglass block: Two pairs are randomly selected and stitched together to form one complete hourglass block. The pattern explicitly instructs quilters not to stitch matching prints together in the same block, which encourages a scrappy, varied layout. Se