How to make a barn quilt
A barn quilt is a sheet of exterior plywood, primed on every side, with a quilt block drawn on in pencil and painted one color at a time between strips of painter's tape. A 4 × 4 ft Ohio Star takes 33 square feet of primer and two coats of three colors, and about a weekend of work with drying time.
By Editorial Staff
What you need for a 4 × 4 ft barn quilt
| For a 4 × 4 ft Ohio Star | |
|---|---|
| Board | Half a 4 × 8 ft sheet of ½" MDO plywood, cut to 48" × 48". MDO (medium density overlay) has a smooth resin face made for outdoor signs; aluminum composite sign board also works and never rots. |
| Primer | Exterior primer for the front, back and edges: 33 square feet, 11 oz. Buy 1 quart. |
| Color 1 | White exterior latex: 67% of the front, 7 oz for two coats. Buy a quart. |
| Color 2 | Barn red exterior latex: 22% of the front, 3 oz for two coats. Buy a quart. |
| Color 3 | Navy exterior latex: 11% of the front, 2 oz for two coats. Buy a quart. |
| Tape | 1½" painter's tape made for crisp lines, two or three rolls. |
| Tools | A 48" straightedge or drywall T-square, tape measure, sharp pencil, small foam rollers and an angled brush, a putty knife for pressing tape edges. |
| Hanging | Two 48" lengths of 2 × 4 or a frame of 1 × 4 for the back, exterior screws, and lag screws long enough to reach the barn framing. |
Paint amounts are worked out from the area of each color at 100 square feet a quart for each coat. Pick any design from the barn quilt patterns for its own amounts at 2, 4 and 8 ft.
Step by step
- Prime every side. Sand the cut edges smooth and wipe off the dust. Roll primer on the front, the back and all four edges; the edges are where water gets into plywood, so give them a second coat. Let it dry as long as the can says.
- Measure and mark. Measure the marks along all four edges from the same corner, and join each mark to the one on the opposite edge with the straightedge. The Ohio Star is a 3 × 3 grid, so on a 48" board the marks are at 16" and 32"; then draw the diagonals of the four side squares. Every pattern page lists its marks for 2, 4 and 8 ft boards.
- Paint the background first. Number the shapes by color. Paint the lightest color first with two thin coats, cutting in along the lines with the brush; darker colors cover lighter ones, but not the other way round.
- Tape the next color. Lay tape outside the shapes you are about to paint, with the tape's edge exactly on the pencil line, so the tape covers the neighboring shape. Press the edge down with the putty knife. A thin coat of the color underneath brushed along the tape edge seals it, so the new color can't bleed under.
- Paint and pull. Roll two thin coats rather than one thick one. Pull the tape while the last coat is still a little soft, pulling back over itself at a low angle. Let each color dry before taping over it for the next.
- Touch up and seal. Fix any bleeds with a small brush. Some painters add a clear exterior topcoat with UV protection; reds and yellows fade fastest in sun.
- Hang it. Screw the 2 × 4s or frame to the back with exterior screws from behind, so no screw heads show on the front. Lift it with a helper and fasten through the frame into the barn's posts or girts, not just the siding. An 8 × 8 ft board is heavy and catches wind; use more fasteners and hang it from a lift or scaffold, not a ladder.
Choosing a design
Simple blocks with big shapes read best from the road: an Ohio Star, Friendship Star or Churn Dash on a 3 × 3 grid has shapes 16" across even on a 4 × 4 board. Blocks with many small triangles, like Bear Paw or Broken Dishes, suit an 8 × 8 board or a closer look. Two or three strongly different colors show up better at a distance than several close ones.
All 39 barn quilt patterns have the measurements and paint for each board size. For the history behind them, see barn quilt meaning.
Try the colors before you paint
Quiltspiration draws any block in any colors, and gives the cut list when you sew it in fabric.