Hang a Quilt (without sleeves, dowels, or nails) | A Tutorial

Hang a quilt quickly and easily

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Today’s tutorial is the brainchild of my husband Jason. Let’s all partake in a moment of silence for spouses who want quilts displayed on the walls of their houses.

hang a quilt with clothespins

The benefit of hanging quilts this method is that the quilts are easy to change. Swap them out for the seasons or as your tastes or décor evolve. Pull your quilt down for a movie snuggle session and then hang it back up when you’re done! AND! No nails in the walls! This is great for apartment dwellers, or just people like me who hate to patch nail holes and somehow always miss the nail with the hammer…

Using command strips for easy quilt hanging

Okay! Ready to hang your quilts using household materials? Here’s what you’ll need:

  • Clothespins (wood is preferred)
  • Command Narrow Picture Hanging Strips (these come in two sizes, the narrow width is the exact width you need. If you buy the regular width, you’ll have to cut them in half)
  • Level
  • Rubbing Alcohol
  • Quilt you want to hang

The command strips come as two pieces, and they remind me of Velcro. The benefit to using these to other methods is that if you’re not the best at leveling things, it’s okay! You can move the second piece (the one you’ll attach to the clothespin) up or down on the part that is attached to the wall to get everything straight. Plus, each pair of these command strips is good for holding up to 3lbs, so they mean business. We’ve had quilts up on our walls for over 3 months now, and they’re holding great.

Here’s the quick and dirty:

hang a quilt with clothespins

1. Separate strips and press two strips together until they click. Remove one side of the liner and stick to one side of clothespin. Press firmly for at least 30 seconds so that the adhesive bonds.

2. Clean the wall where the quilt will hang with rubbing alcohol. Keeping the two strips still “velcro-ed” together, remove the remaining liner and press the whole thing firmly on the wall for 30 seconds. Repeat with the rest of the clothespins, spacing out your strips to be an even length apart. We like to put one on each end of the quilt, and 1-2 in the middle depending on the size of the quilt we’re hanging.

Number of clothespins to use:

  • throw size: 3-4 strips
  • baby size: 3 strips
  • Wall hanging: 2-3 strips

3. Let the command strips (both on the wall and on the clothespin) cure for an hour. If you hang up your quilt too quickly you risk it falling down because the glue on the command strips won’t have had time to firmly set.

4. Hang your quilt on the wall and admire!

A quick note here: We’ve tested other hook methods, such as command hooks and found none of them held a quilt as well as good old clothespins do. We love the rustic look the clothespins add, but if that’s not your style, consider painting them to match your décor, or source out metal ones. Plastic clothespins tend to be more prone to breakage under stress, so those aren’t recommended.

What do you think? Are you going to try it?

16 thoughts on “Hang a Quilt (without sleeves, dowels, or nails) | A Tutorial

  1. I plan to hang a quilt I make in every room in my house, and more than one in my craft room. This is the perfect method for the craft room display! I’ll be able to change them out so the newest is up. Love this idea!

  2. I’ve been thinking of how I was going to hang quilts in my new house. This is perfect solution and husband-friendly, too! As long as my clothes pins are STRAIGHT across, he’ll approve.

  3. Great’ but if you live in an old house’ with many layers of paint, you may be surprised when you remove the command strip and the las layer of paint comes with it!! Yep, it happens!

    1. Yes, I agree! My very old house is layers of paint and I experience a similar problem. I do get a sample sized jar of paint for touch-ups like these as making holes in old plaster is a bigger problem.

  4. Trying this today… already have the strips from previous picture hanging never thought about using them this wsy… very clever

  5. Thanks for the great idea!! I want to spruce up the walls in our RV and this is perfect. Thanks!!

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