Quiltspiration

Crown of Thorns barn quilt pattern

The Crown of Thorns barn quilt is painted on a 5 × 5 grid. On a 4 × 4 ft board each grid square is 9⅝", and on an 8 × 8 ft board 19¼". It has 41 shapes in 2 colors.

Squares and triangles on a five-by-five grid, a ring around the center with points at each corner.

By Editorial Staff

Crown of Thorns barn quilt painted in cream, hunter green
Painted in cream and hunter green.
Crown of Thorns barn quilt layout on a 4 by 4 foot board with measurements
The layout on a 4 × 4 ft board, with the grid marks in inches from the top left corner. Numbers are the paint colors below.

Measurements for 2, 4 and 8 ft boards

Marks along the edges
BoardGrid squareMarks across the top and bottomMarks down the sides
2 × 2 ft4¾"4¾", 9⅝", 14⅜", 19¼"4¾", 9⅝", 14⅜", 19¼"
4 × 4 ft9⅝"9⅝", 19¼", 28¾", 38⅜"9⅝", 19¼", 28¾", 38⅜"
8 × 8 ft19¼"19¼", 38⅜", 57⅝", 76¾"19¼", 38⅜", 57⅝", 76¾"

Each mark is measured from the top left corner, rounded to the nearest ⅛". Mark both opposite edges, then join the marks with a straightedge and a sharp pencil.

Paint for the Crown of Thorns barn quilt

Two coats of exterior latex on the front, at 100 square feet a quart for each coat (labels say 300 to 400 square feet a gallon). Reds and yellows often need a third coat to cover evenly, so buy the next size up for those. Exterior paint starts at a quart, so on a 2 × 2 ft board 8 oz bottles of outdoor acrylic craft paint go further; what is left is for touch-ups.

Paint by board size
ColorShare2 × 2 ft4 × 4 ft8 × 8 ft
1. Cream52%1 quart (2 oz)1 quart (6 oz)1 quart (22 oz)
2. Hunter green48%1 quart (2 oz)1 quart (5 oz)1 quart (20 oz)
Exterior primerFront, back, edges1 quart (3 oz)1 quart (11 oz)2 quarts (42 oz)

Ounces are what the paint takes; the size is what to buy.

Paint the lightest color first: cream, then hunter green. A darker color covers a lighter one that creeps under the tape, but not the other way round. The full method, from priming the board to hanging it, is in how to make a barn quilt.

The Crown of Thorns as a fabric quilt

The Crown of Thorns quilt block page has the cutting for four block sizes and the piecing steps. Quilts made with it: Crown of Thorns.

Try the colors before you paint

Quiltspiration draws any block in any colors, and gives the cut list when you sew it in fabric.

More barn quilt patterns