How to Do a Pictoral Quilt

Many pictures have specific outlines that make them easy to make into quilts.

Pictorial quilts are quilts that, instead of using traditional quilt blocks, use pieces of fabric to make pictures. The image can be almost anything, ranging from a train engine made of geometric shapes to a landscape of mountains or a lake, or a complex image of people, flowers or animals. Pictorial quilts use fabric and thread in much the same way that artists use paints to create light, shadow, outline and texture.

Things You'll Need

• Picture
• Marker
• Freezer paper
• Fabric
• Iron
• Pins
• Sewing machine

Instructions

Making the Pattern

1. Select a picture and enlarge it. You can take the picture to a printing store to have it printed on a single sheet of paper the size of your quilt or you can print it from your home printer on multiple sheets that can be put together like a puzzle.

2. On the enlarged picture, draw your outlines with a marker. Outline each shape, shadow and highlight that will need to be incorporated into the quilt.

3. Lay freezer paper, shiny-side down over the enlarged picture and trace the outlined shapes onto the freezer paper with a marker. Be sure to add pieces in for the background, if necessary.

4. Cut the pieces out of the freezer paper and label each piece so that it can be identified later.

Making the Quilt Pieces

1. Lay the cut pieces of freezer paper, shiny-side down, on top of the fabric and iron the freezer paper to the fabric.

2. Cut out the fabric pieces with the freezer paper attached. Leave 1/4-inch of fabric outside the freezer paper for the seam allowance.

Assembling the Quilt Top

1. Find two pieces that belong next to each other. Use your fingers to fold the the fabric back and crease it where the freezer paper starts.

2. Pin the pieces together with the freezer paper sides together. Fold back a corner of the fabric to be sure that the edges of the freezer paper on both pieces is lined up together.

3. Stitch the pieces together along the crease using a straight stitch on the sewing machine.

4. Iron the front of the stitched piece through the freezer paper to flatten the seam.

5. Repeat Steps 1 through 4 until all the pieces have been stitched together and the quilt top is complete.

6. Peel the freezer paper of the front of the quilt top.

Tips & Warnings

• If the freezer paper is ironed to the back of the fabric, the finished image will be reversed.

• Use darker colors for shadows and lighter colors for highlights. Once the quilt is completely finished, wash to remove any remaining wax from the freezer paper.

• If the pieces of freezer paper do not line up, the finished image will be distorted. Pre-wash all fabric to prevent shrinking.

References

• Pictorial Wall Quilts: Kay Hearland
• Engine Pictorial Quilt: England Design
• Loreen's Pictorial Quilts: Loreen Roths