How to Display Quilts in My Home

Hang large quilts by adding a sleeve to the back side.

Small quilts can be used as decorative table toppers and are easy to transform into wall hangings with curtain clips. Larger quilts are a different story. Their transformation into wall hangings requires a little effort, but is not difficult to do. You simply have to add a hanging sleeve to the back side of the quilt. Then you can hang it from a curtain or dowel rod that you have mounted to a wall.

Things You'll Need

• Quilt
• Tape measure
• Fabric
• Scissors
• Sewing machine
• Thread
• Hand needle
• Hanging rod

Instructions

Make the Hanging Sleeve

1. Measure the top edge of the quilt. Add 2 inches to the length. This is the length of your hanging sleeve.

2. Determine the width of your hanging sleeve. For rods 2 inches in diameter or less, 6 inches is a safe width. For larger rods, make the width of the strip 8 to 10 inches.

3. Cut the length and width determined from the fabric.

4. Fold each end of the strip under 1 1/2 inches and stitch down 1/4 inch from the raw, or cut, edge.

5. Fold the strip in half, wrong sides facing.

6. Stitch the two sides together along the raw end with a 1/4-inch seam allowance.

Stitch the Hanging Sleeve in Place

1. Arrange the fabric tube so that the seam is on the back side. Finger-press the tube out flatter.

2. Center the fabric tube on the back side of the quilt about 1/4 inch down from the top.

3. Whipstitch the tube in place along both sides of its width. Be sure to leave the ends of the tube open. To whipstitch, catch the back of the tube, the quilt backing and through the batting layer on your needle, then pull up and continue down the length of the tube. Do not stitch through the quilt top. Do not worry that the stitches are visible since they are on the back side of the quilt.

4. Knot and cut thread when the tube is completely whipstitched into place.

5. Hang the quilt by slipping the rod through the fabric sleeve you created on the back side of the quilt.

Tips & Warnings

• You can make the hanging sleeve out of scrap fabric since it will not be displayed.

• Don't leave a quilt hanging for too long. Gravity pulls against the thread and fabrics and promotes early wearing and tearing.

• When displaying a quilt, plan to rotate it every two to three months. This gives the fibers time to rest from the hanging.

• Use safety precautions when using scissors and sewing machines.

• Be careful not to sew all the way through to the quilt top when whipstitching the hanging sleeve in place.

References

• All People Quilt: Making a Hanging Sleeve
• Gloria Hansen: Sleeve for a Quilt
• Pricilla Bianchi: Hanging Sleeve and Quilt Label

Resources

• Amish Country Lanes: How to Hang a Wall Hanging
• Louisiana Folk Life; Exhibiting Quilts; Susan Roach