How to Make a Quilt Frame

Quilting is a skill and hobby steeped in tradition. Historically, all quilts were hand quilted on either a lap frame or a larger frame. A frame was used for keeping the layers of the quilt tight during the quilting process. Hand quilters can purchase beautiful and expensive quilting frames, if desired. However, if you would rather spend money on beautiful quilting fabrics for creating your quilts, here is a way to make a useful and inexpensive quilt frame that will work fine for your hand-quilting needs.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Two 2-by-2 oak boards for the top and bottom of the frame (longer than width of quilt) Two 2-by-2 oak boards for the sides of the frame (36 inches long) Denim fabric Heavy-duty staples Four large C-clamps Two sawhorses Large safety pins

1. Sew a tube to cover the 2-by-2 oak boards that will form the top and bottom of the quilt frame. These cloth tubes must be made to loosely fit around the boards. Attach the tubes to the boards with staples.

2. Attach the side boards to the top and bottom boards using the C-clamps at each of the four corners.

3. Place the frame on the saw horses so that the quilt frame will be at an appropriate height for hand quilting as you sit in a chair.

4. Attach a quilt (that has been prepared to be quilted) to the frame by fastening each quilt end to the top and bottom boards that are covered with the denim fabric. Do this with large quilting safety pins.

5. Wind up the quilt both the top and bottom boards to center it. Check to make sure that the side boards are tightly fastened with the C-clamps. If desired, you could also baste the quilt to the side boards for added stretching while you quilt.

Tips & Warnings

• This frame can easily be taken apart to store when not in use to save space.