Wholecloth Quilts in Mineral Linen

These Wholecloth Quilts literally shine in Purl Soho’s beautiful new Mineral Linen. The fabric has a soft and rumpled texture that glows with the luster of its subtle metallic finish. We used whole swaths of it to create these quilts, using Mineral Linen’s radiant side for the quilt top and its subtle matte side for the back.

Our four straightforward quilting patterns lend these Wholecloth Quilts additional texture and a tailored finish. Choose Stripes, Grid, Diamond Grid, or Diamond Burst, and also choose from three sizes: baby, crib and throw.

Simple and elegant, the pared-back style of these Wholecloth Quilts really allows the Mineral Linen to shine, just as it was designed to do! -Corinne

Materials

• 2 ¼ (3, 4) yards of Purl Soho’s Mineral Linen. We used Mica, Sterling, Pink Opal, and Warm Silver, shown above from left to right
• One (two, two) 110-yard spools of Gutermann’s Cotton Sewing Thread in a color to coordinate with the fabric. We used color 3170 with Mica and Warm Silver, color 9045 with Pink Opal, and color 9280 with Sterling.
• Quilter’s Dream’s Cotton Batting, Request loft, Craft (Crib, Throw) size.
• Your preferred fabric-marking tool. We used a water-soluble fabric marker.
• Curved safety pins
• A walking foot for your sewing machine

Update, May 2024: You can explore our current collection of beautiful fabrics and supplies on our page of Sewing Tools + Notions!

Sizes

Baby (Crib, Throw)

• Finished Dimensions: 32 x 40 (40 x 52, 50 x 60) inches

Notes

This pattern uses both sides of the Mineral Linen as right and wrong sides, and so we refer to the two sides as “metallic” and “non-metallic.”

Prewash the fabric before starting but not the batting.

When possible, iron the Mineral Linen with the non-metallic side facing up.

Use the walking foot attachment for all machine sewing.

Pattern

Cut

For the Binding

Cut three (four, five) 2 ¼-inch strips from selvage to selvage and then trim off the selvages. Put these aside until the Binding section of the pattern.

For the Quilt Top

Cut one rectangle of fabric to these dimensions:

Baby: 32 x 40 inches
Crib: 40 x 52 inches
Throw: 50 x 60 inches

For the Backing

Cut one rectangle approximately 4 inches wider and longer than the Quilt Top:

Baby: 36 x 44 inches
Crib: 44 x 56 inches
Throw: 54 x 64 inches

Mark

Press the Quilt Top.

Stripes, Grid, and Diamond Burst Designs

With metallic sides facing each other, fold the Quilt Top in half length-wise so that its two long edges meet. Press the fold. This is the Vertical Center Line. For the Stripes design, open up the fold and move on to the All Designs section, below.

Grid and Diamond Burst Designs

Now also fold the Quilt Top in half width-wise, so that its two short edges meet, again with metallic sides together. Press this fold as well. This is the Horizontal Center Line. Open up the folds and move on to the All Designs section below.

Diagonal Grid Design

You don’t need to fold and press the fabric at all.

All Designs

With the metallic side facing up, lay the Quilt Top down on a clean, hard surface, like the kitchen floor.

Using short pieces of masking tape, tape the fabric down to the floor around all four sides, pulling it taut as you tape. First tack down the centers of the opposite sides and then tape along each side from the center out.

Now you’re ready to mark your design. Use your fabric marking tool and a long ruler so that your lines are very straight and even.

Stripes

Mark a line 2 ½ inches to the right of and parallel to the Vertical Center Line. Continue to mark parallel lines every 2 ½ inches to the right of this line until you reach the edge of the Quilt Top. Then mark parallel lines every 2 ½ inches to the left of the Vertical Center Line.

Grid

Mark a line 4 inches to the right of and parallel to the Vertical Center Line. Continue to mark parallel lines every 4 inches to the right of this line until you reach the edge of the Quilt Top. Then mark parallel lines every 4 inches to the left of the Vertical Center Line.

Now, mark a line 4 inches above and parallel to the Horizontal Center Line. Continue to mark parallel lines every 4 inches above this line until you reach the edge of the Quilt Top. Then mark parallel lines every 4 inches below the Horizontal Center Line.

Diagonal Grid

Starting in the bottom left corner, mark a line that runs at a 45-degree angle from the straight edges of the fabric all the way across the Quilt Top. This is Line 1.

Next, mark a line 5 ¼ inches above and parallel to Line 1. Continue to mark parallel lines every 5 ¼ inches above this line until you reach the top left corner of the Quilt Top. Then mark parallel lines every 5 ¼ inches below Line 1 until you reach the bottom right corner of the Quilt Top.

Now, starting in the bottom right corner, mark a line that runs perpendicular to the previously marked lines and ends at the fabric’s edge. This is Line 2. Continue to mark lines parallel to this line every 5 ¼ inches, as you did for Line 1.

Diamond Burst

Starting in the top left quadrant (Quadrant 1), mark a line 3 inches from the center point that runs at a 45-degree angle to the Vertical and Horizontal Center Lines. Do not draw past the marked Center Lines. This is Line 1.

Next, mark a line 3 inches above and parallel to Line 1, again starting and stopping at the marked Center Lines. Continue to draw parallel lines every 3 inches above this line until you reach the top left corner of Quadrant 1.

Now, working in the top right quadrant, mark a line that meets Line 1 along the Vertical Center Line and runs at a 45-degree angle to the Vertical and Horizontal Center Lines. Stop at the Horizontal Center Line. This is Line 2.

Mark a line 3 inches above and parallel to Line 2, starting at the corresponding line from Quadrant 1 and ending at the Horizontal Center Line. Continue to draw parallel lines every 3 inches above this line, matching up the start points with the lines from Quadrant 1, when applicable.

Do the same for the bottom two quadrants.

Baste

Using the non-metallic side of the fabric as the right side of the Backing and the metallic side is the right side of the Quilt Top, make a quilt sandwich. Use the curved safety pins to pin-baste the Backing, batting and Quilt Top together. For instructions on how to do all this, please check out our Pin-Basting Tutorial!

Quilt

You are now ready to quilt your blanket along the marked lines. Here’s how …

Stripes

Sewing along the Vertical Center Line, sew from one edge of the Quilt Sandwich to the other. Lift the needle and foot.

Rotate the blanket 180 degrees and sew along the line running next to the line you just stitched.

Starting with the line next to the one you just stitched, continue to sew along the remaining parallel lines in this manner: When you have finished sewing one line, lift the needle and foot, rotate the Quilt, and sew along the line next to it.

Once you have sewn all of the parallel lines on one side of the Vertical Center Line, sew all of the lines on the other side of the Vertical Center Line in the same manner.

Grid

Begin by following the instructions for the Stripes design, above.

Now, sew all of the horizontal lines in the same manner: Start by sewing the Horizontal Center Line and alternate directions as you sew along all parallel lines running above and below this Line.

Diagonal Grid

Starting with a line that runs through the center of the Quilt (or close to it), sew from one edge of the Quilt Sandwich to the other. Lift the needle and foot.

Rotate the blanket 180 degrees and sew along the line running next to the line you just stitched.

Starting with the line next to the one you just stitched, continue to sew along the remaining parallel lines in this manner: When you have finished sewing one line, lift the needle and foot, rotate the Quilt, and sew along the line next to it.

Once you have sewn all of the parallel lines on one side of the center line, sew all of the lines on the other side of the center line in the same manner.

Now, sew all of the diagonal lines slanting in the other direction in the same manner: Start by sewing the center line and then alternate directions as you sew along all parallel lines running above and below this line.

Diamond Burst

Starting with the Vertical Center Line, sew from one edge of the fabric to the other.

Next, sew along the Horizontal Center Line.

Now, sew along the lines of the innermost diamond shape. Here’s how …

Using a very short stitch length, begin at one point of the diamond. Sew for about 1 inch using this stitch length and then adjust to a standard length. Continue stitching along this side of the diamond and stop when you reach the next corner.

With the needle down, lift the foot and pivot the Quilt so that you are now stitching along the next side of the diamond. Sew along the marked line until you reach the next corner and pivot again.

Continue sewing in this manner until you have sewn all four sides of the shape, stopping about 1 inch from the starting point. Switch back to the shorter stitch length to finish the seam. (This is a neater way to secure the thread ends than backstitching.)

Sew around all of the diamonds in this manner.

When all of the diamonds have been stitched, sew along the remaining marked lines, working one Quadrant at a time.

Bind

Using the metallic side as the right side, use the Binding strips to bind the Quilt with double fold binding. For instructions on how to do this, please check out our Making Double Fold Binding and Sewing on Double Fold Binding tutorials!

Update 2024: You can explore our current collection of beautiful fabrics and supplies on our page of Sewing Tools + Notions!