the.com/table runner
A scarf for furniture that's never once asked to do anything useful.
means A long, narrow strip of cloth laid lengthwise down the center of a table for decoration or protection.
from A plain compound of "table" and "runner." "Table" comes through Old French from Latin "tabula," a flat board or plank — the same root that gives us "tablet" and "tabular." "Runner" is from "run," the Old English "rinnan," and was long used for things that stretch out in a long line or slide along a surface — a carpet runner in a hallway, the runner of a sledge. So a table runner is, quite literally, a length of cloth that "runs" the line of the table.
- origin
- Started in the 1700s to protect bare wood from candle wax
- runway logic
- Runs the table's spine, then quits before the edges
- competitive sport
- Eternally outshone by the placemats actually doing the job
- holiday role
- Pulled from a drawer twice a year, fiercely defended forever
damask table runner — decorative textile with intricate woven patterns, used on formal dining tables since 18th century europe
ikebana table runner — japanese silk runner featuring minimalist floral arrangements, traditional in tea ceremony settings
batik table runner — indonesian wax-resist dyed fabric runner with geometric patterns, handmade in java since 1600s