DIY Paint Stick Table Runner

Inspired by a rooftop garden party, I made a table runner for our craft table at The Cream Event NYC using yellow “slats”. After endless trips to the paint store and a shelf stocked with buckets of paint, I was left with a healthy amount of paint sticks. As anybody would, I kept them all. Until this herringbone table runner came to life. You can arrange the stirrers in different patterns and paint them to match you color palette, or create a colorblock or ombre effect across the table!

What you will need:
paint sticks (or wood trim)
primer + paint or stain
felt
glue gun
saw or miter saw
sand paper
roller brush

Start out by cutting the odd end of the paint sticks. For the arrow table runner, you will just need to cut the paint sticks in half. To make a herringbone pattern, you will need one extra cut, making three pieces per paint stick.

Lay the pieces flat, spacing them out a bit so paint won’t stick. Using a large roller brush, start with primer.

I used primer to hide the wood grain. Give one coat paint for now (I used Citrus Splash by Behr). Once they are dry, you can paint the edges. Stack the paint sticks sideways. With a clamp or just holding a few pieces at a time, run a few coats of paint. Let them dry, repeat on the other sides. Try a metallic gold or neon edge!

See Also

A Vibrant Destination Wedding on Kona Beach in Blue & Gold

Once your pieces are painted, you can start playing with patterns. The herringbone pattern needs all pieces (mainly the center ones) to be as close to exact length as possible to ensure there are no gaps in the runner. The arrow pattern is a bit easier, so if the length of the pieces don’t really match, it won’t be noticeable. If you’re feeling handy, you can also cut the pieces at an angle to create a chevron pattern.

With your chosen pattern in place and glue gun in hand, start gluing the wood pieces on a sheet of felt. I used felt because it’s thick enough that the glue won’t bleed through yet it’s not noticeable on the table, but you can use anything here. Trust me when I say gluing the pieces directly onto each other won’t work – it will come apart if you place them on an uneven surface. Glue all pieces in place on the felt. Flip it upside down and cut excess fabric.

I bought sheets of felt at a craft store, and made the runner in tiles of 5 lines each. By making them in tiles, it will be much easier to transport. All you need to do is place them on the table next to each other, like a puzzle. You can also paint each “tile” in different colors to create a colorblock look. Once they were glued in place I sanded them again and gave one last coat of paint. After the wedding, you can take them home and use them as trivets! An all around win-win.