Creating A Wedding Guest Signature Quilt: A Step-By-Step Guide

A wedding guest signature quilt is a unique and creative way to capture the well wishes of your loved ones on your special day. Instead of using a traditional guest book, you can have your guests sign squares of fabric that will be pieced together to create a quilt. This quilt will not only be a beautiful keepsake but also a reminder of the love and support of your family and friends. In this paragraph, we will discuss the steps to make a wedding guest signature quilt, from choosing the right fabrics to assembling the quilt after the wedding. We will also offer tips on how to ensure your guests sign in the correct areas and how to display the quilt during the event.

Choosing the right fabric

For a more subtle and elegant look, consider using light-coloured fabrics, such as dusty blue and slate grey, as the base for the signatures. These colours provide a nice backdrop for the signatures and notes of blessings from guests. Alternatively, you could opt for a bolder approach by using rich, fall colours or a mix of colours that reflect the couple's personality and taste.

Another option is to use a variety of fabrics with different patterns and textures to create a unique and eclectic quilt. This can include fabrics with floral prints, geometric designs, or even personalised fabrics with the couple's names or wedding date embroidered on them.

It is also important to consider the weight and type of fabric. Quilting cotton is a popular choice as it is durable and easy to work with. However, you may also want to consider other types of fabric, such as linen or silk, depending on the desired look and feel of the quilt.

Finally, don't forget to pre-wash the fabric before cutting and sewing to prevent colours from bleeding and to ensure that the quilt will be long-lasting and machine-washable.

Quilt design

The first step in making a wedding guest signature quilt is to choose a design and quilting fabric that fits the aesthetic of the wedding and the couple. This could be a simple brick quilt pattern with squares of light-coloured fabric serving as the "paper" for signatures and notes, and rectangular pieces in fall colours as the "bricks". Alternatively, you could go with a Sawtooth Stars design, or choose from any number of free quilt block patterns online, such as a star quilt, a log cabin quilt, or a sampler quilt.

The next step is to decide on the size of the quilt. This will depend on the number of guests, with a good rule of thumb being to make a little more than half as many blocks as there are guests, as couples or families may sign one block together. For example, a wedding with 140 guests might have 72 blocks in the finished quilt.

Once the number of blocks is decided, the fabric squares can be cut out. For a 56" x 64" quilt, cut the white squares at 3.5", and the coloured squares at 4", then cut the coloured squares in half. Sew on two opposing triangles, press away from the centre, and trim even with the white square. Sew on the remaining two coloured triangles, then press away from the centre.

To make it easier for guests to sign, cut 3" squares of freezer paper for each block, and press them to the wrong side of the block with a dry iron. A Pigma Micron pen .05 is recommended for signing, rather than a Sharpie.

Permanent fabric markers

For a wedding quilt, you'll likely want to opt for a black pen, as this will show up clearly against the fabric. However, if you're feeling creative, you could choose a pen that matches your wedding colour palette. Just be sure to test the pen on a scrap of fabric first to ensure it doesn't bleed.

There are a few different types of permanent fabric markers that are recommended for wedding quilts. One popular option is the Pigma Micron archival ink pen, which has a very fine point, making it ideal for writing on fabric. Another option is the Marvy Uchida Fine Point pen, which is also available in black. This pen has been praised for its ease of use and dark colour. If you're looking for something even bolder, you could try the Pentel Gel Roller for Fabric, which creates bold, 1.00mm lines.

To make signing the quilt easier for your guests, you may want to consider stabilising the fabric first. You can do this by ironing freezer paper to the back of each block. This will also help to ensure that the ink doesn't bleed through to the other side.

Finally, be sure to remind your guests not to write too close to the edge of the fabric block, as this may result in part of the message being hidden when the quilt is sewn together. You can do this by marking a clear signing area or using blue painter's tape to indicate the seam allowance.

Preparing the quilt blocks

The first step in making a wedding guest signature quilt is to choose a design and fabric that fits the aesthetic of the wedding and the couple. Consider the wedding colour palette and the home decor style of the couple. For example, if the bridesmaids are wearing dusty blue and slate grey, you could choose a set of coordinating solids such as Kona Cotton Overcast precuts.

Once you have chosen the fabric, cut out all the blocks for the quilt. You can decide on the number of blocks by considering the number of guests and the likelihood of couples or families signing one block together. For instance, if you have 140 guests, you could prepare around 72 blocks.

To make it easier for guests to sign, you can attach freezer paper to the back of each block. Cut 3" squares of freezer paper for each block and use a dry iron to press the freezer paper, shiny side down, onto the wrong side of the fabric block.

Provide guests with permanent fabric markers to sign the blocks. Marvy Uchida Fine Point in Black is recommended as it writes smoothly and shows up dark. You can also provide clipboards to hold the fabric blocks in place while guests are signing.

After the blocks are signed, you can trim them to size. For instance, in one example, the blocks were trimmed to 5" squares. This can be done easily with a square ruler, allowing the blocks to "float" in the sashing.

Putting the quilt together

Once you have all the quilt blocks with signatures and well wishes, you can start putting the quilt together. Firstly, decide on the layout of the quilt blocks. You can group specific friends and family together or place the parents' blocks in the middle, like Courtney did. You can also fill in any extra spaces with your own blocks containing sentimental words, Bible verses, or art.

Once you are happy with the layout, you can start sewing the blocks together. You can add thin borders between each block for aesthetic purposes if you like. Then, piece them all together as you would for a normal quilt.

After the quilt top is sewn, you can decide how to quilt the project. You can send it out to a long-arm quilter, machine quilt it yourself, or hand quilt it. If you decide to hand quilt, you could consider using pearl cotton thread or tatting thread, which is bigger and more decorative, and allows for larger, further apart stitches.

Finally, you can add any additional borders, and your wedding guest signature quilt is complete!

Frequently asked questions