Stay At Home Goals - Large Paper Quilt

Donna
by Donna
4 Materials
$30
1 Week
Medium

During this difficult time, we're all looking for the silver lining where we can find it. When our Governor issued stay at home orders, I realized this might be the perfect time - and the kick in the butt - that I've needed to complete a large paper quilt that I've planned for over a year.

The Beginnings


A number of years ago, I saw a lovely Ohio Star quilt that someone had posted on Pinterest. Though I don't sew, I have made a couple of quilt-inspired paper collages using scrapbook paper and photos from magazines. This Ohio Star collage would be the largest project I had ever tried.


Starting with a 24 inch square stretched canvas, I laid out the pattern for my quilt collage. I used the image on Pinterest as my guide.


But then I got a little intimidated and distracted, and this empty canvas sat in the corner for over a year.

Laying Out The Pieces


When our stay at home orders were put in place, I realized it was an opportunity to finally get to work on this quilt. I spent some time studying how the image from Pinterest was laid out. I decided to make the central star out of light pieces, then surround that area with brighter pieces, finally adding darker pieces to form the outer star (you'll see in the finished photo). The corners would be completed with pieces of light paper. Then I would add additional details with stamping, something I've done with all my collages.


So I started the central star with a piece cut from a map, then surrounded it with other light colored pieces of scrapbook paper. When I liked the arrangement, I glued my pieces down in place with acrylic medium, making sure the pieces were adhered completely.

Adding More Color


Next, I worked on my brighter colors. This took more time as the section I needed to fill was larger. Sometimes, I would lay my paper options around my star to see what looked best in a particular area. I mainly stuck to pinks and green colors as part of my overall plan.

Then I completed the outer star shape with darker colors. Here I began repeating colors and papers, but mainly used greens, blues, and purples.

Lastly, I arranged lighter pieces in the corners to complete my quilt design. This involved a lot of cutting, but went pretty quickly. I used a paper cutter, which made things much easier.

The Stamping


I like to use household objects like pen caps and cups for over-stamping my quilt design. I dip these objects in acrylic paint to add more details and colors to my collages. This helps unify the colors of my quilt pieces.

I used smaller objects to stamp some yellow and white dots on my central star, then used larger objects and brighter colors for the surrounding areas.

In the corners, I used a variety of pastel colors and shapes for stamping.

I also added a postage stamp that I had. I always wanted to use this cardinal stamp in something I made.

The Finished Quilt


And here is the finished quilt collage, with all the color arrangement and stamping. I'm very happy with it. My next goal while at home is to frame this quilt for hanging, like I did with this quilt. This is an simple and easy way to frame a canvas for hanging.

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Donna
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  3 questions
  • Ellen Morrison Kelley Ellen Morrison Kelley on May 11, 2020

    I am INSPIRED. Never thought of combining these two crafts. Can’t wait to give it a try. Want to use miniature pieces.

  • Sandy Sandy on May 12, 2020

    So, do you glue them in place or sew them?

  • Deb Deb on May 17, 2020

    Where did you get the pattern to trace on the canvas? I quilt with fabric, but would love to try this for my walls👍

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