I made this box pleated tablecloth out of a drop-cloth for fall/Thanksgiving. I decided to use drop-cloth since this table is temporary as I’m actively looking for a nice 60″round wood table. But who knows when that will turn up…
Drop cloth is a really good place to start if you’re a beginner seamster. If you mess up or don’t finish(God forbid) the project, it won’t be a big loss. Plus, for budget minded people like me, drop-cloth looks pretty decent.
I used two 9′ x 12′ drop cloths from Harbor Freight. They’re $9.99 each, so for $20 and a couple hours of my time, I get a nicely tailored table cloth.
The first step is to cut out all your pieces starting with the tabletop circle piece. I have a very easy way to do this using a tape measure, a pin, and a pencil. You fold the fabric in 4ths. Then put the pin through the tape measure and fabric at the very tip of the folded fabric. Poke your pencil through the tape measure at the proper distance to make your circle diameter and draw a 1/4 circle. The video below shows this step in detail.
Cut on the pencil line you just drew, and then unfold your fabric to see the perfect circle you created. I also have another video and blogpost, where I show this process full size on fabric not paper…<HERE>
Continue by cutting out the skirt pieces. To figure out the dimensions, you’ll need to figure the circumference of your table. The formula for C=πd, 3.14 x the diameter of your table. Then divide that number by the number of sections or boxes you want. I made 5 sections on my 54″ table, each at 33″ a piece, plus my seam allowance of 3″ on each side. 
Next cut the pieces that go between and behind the box panels. I made mine 9″ wide, which is plenty on a round table. However, if you’re making a table cloth for a square table the fabric behind the box pieces will need to be a little wider because the pleats on the corners will be a little more open. Know what I mean??
After all the pieces for your box pleated table cloth are cut, you create the side seams and the hems in all the pieces. I used iron-on hem tape rather than sewing the seams, so that I wouldn’t have stitch lines on the front of my tablecloth. If I were to wash this tablecloth on a regular basis I would definitely sew a blind stitch on the skirt to make it more stable and long wearing. The hem tape makes this a very low sew table cloth great for beginners.
Now pin all the skirt pieces to the circle piece with the raw edges lined up. Always right side to right side. 
Sew it all together. 
Once all the box skirt pieces are sewn onto the circle, then add the 9″ pieces of fabric behind and between the box pieces of the skirt. 
Take the whole thing to the ironing table and press all your seams well.
My skirt could afford to be steamed, but overall I’m pretty happy with the box pleated tablecloth I made out of drop-cloth. I just need to finish adding the banding at the bottom all the way around, give it a good steam, and I’m just about ready for Thanksgiving.
