GATHER ROUND
Decorate your table for a weekend get-together with Alicia Hall's runner hand-dyed with the stones from the hero of brunch – the humble avocado!
TABLE RUNNER
YOU WILL NEED
■ Plain cotton drill fabric: four 8x42cm and one 125x42cm
■ Plain cotton velvet fabric: two 27x42cm
■ Unbleached natural cotton fringing, 2.5cm wide: 85cm
■ Pink sewing thread
■ Soya milk
■ Avocado stones: x6
NOTES
■ Use a 1cm seam allowance.
DYING YOUR FABRIC
Step one Prewash the fabrics and allow to dry.
Step two Next, mix one part soya milk and two parts water into a bowl, and leave the fabric soaking in it for at least 12 hours, stirring it a couple of times. This will mordant the fabric and help the dye permanently stick to the fabric.
Step three Squeeze out the excess liquid and put the fabrics on a spin cycle in the washing machine. Leave to air dry.
Step four To make the dye, fill a large saucepan with five litres of water and all six avocado stones. Simmer for an hour, then turn off the heat and leave the stones in overnight.
Step five Remove the stones, then place the cotton drill and cotton velvet fabric pieces into the pan of dye. Heat it to a simmer, then check the colour of the fabric – the longer you leave it in the dye, the stronger the shade will become. When you’re happy with the results, remove the pieces, squeeze out the liquid and leave to dry. Hang over an old towel to avoid staining the floor. 01
ASSEMBLING YOUR TABLE RUNNER
Step one Once dry, trim to neaten. The frayed edge will become a feature of the runner, so don’t trim it off completely. 02
Step two Place one small cotton drill piece on top of another, aligning the short edges and overlapping the lengths by 2cm. Pin then sew. Repeat with the remaining cotton drill pieces. 03
Step three Align the long edges
