This quilt label maker draws a true-size label on a Letter sheet. Type in who made the quilt and who it's for, add the place and date and a line of dedication if you want one, then print it on an inkjet fabric sheet. Or print it on paper and trace it onto fabric with a fabric pen. There are five styles. Simple and star border suit most quilts; the memorial, Quilt of Valor and signature styles have their own wording and layout, and the signature label adds lines for people to sign.
Make your label
Turn on JavaScript to draw the label. Without it, you can still write a label by hand using the wording guide below.
Print at 100% (“actual size”) and measure the 1-inch square in the corner before you print on a fabric sheet; a test on plain paper costs a lot less than a wasted sheet. The words use your computer's Georgia or Times font, so they can look slightly different on another device. Everything you type stays on this page. Nothing is sent or saved.
Printing on fabric, or tracing
Printing on fabric sheets. Printable fabric sheets are cotton with a paper backing so they feed through an inkjet printer like a sheet of paper. Read the package before you buy: some are sold for crafts and say plainly that they aren't machine washable, which rules them out for a quilt that will be washed. Look for sheets that say they're washable, and follow their instructions for setting the ink. Print one label on plain paper first and hold it to the fabric sheet against a window to check the position. Peel off the paper backing when the package says to, not before the ink has set.
Tracing. Choose “black only” and print on plain paper. Iron freezer paper, shiny side down, to the back of a piece of light cotton so it won't shift, tape the printout behind it on a window or a light box, and trace the letters. Use a pen made for fabric that gets washed. A laundry marker such as the Sharpie Rub-a-Dub is sold for exactly this: its listing says the ink stays permanent through washing and dry cleaning. Many quilters reach for a Sakura Pigma Micron 05 because the fine tip is easier to write neatly with, but Sakura itself lists fabric as “decorative use only” and says the pen is not recommended for fabrics intended to be washed. Save it for a wall quilt, or test it first. Whichever pen you use, write on a scrap of the same fabric, wash the scrap a couple of times, and only then write the real label.
Iron-on transfer paper. Transfer paper prints the design onto a carrier that you iron face down onto the fabric, so the printout must be backward. That is the only time to tick “mirror image”. Fabric sheets and tracing both need the normal, readable label. Follow the transfer paper's own instructions for heat and peeling.
Embroidery. The black-only label also works as an embroidery pattern. Trace it lightly with a pencil or a washable marking pen and backstitch the letters.
What to write
At a minimum: the maker's name, the city and state, and the year. Beyond that, add what you'd want a grandchild to know: the quilt's name or pattern, who it was made for and why, who quilted it if someone else did, and washing instructions if the quilt needs special care. Fifty years from now, the label is how anyone will know who made it. Our guide to how to label a quilt goes through the wording and the four ways to make a label.
| Style | What the label shows | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Simple | Heading, quilt name, made for, message, made by, place and date, inside a thin frame | Any quilt; prints cleanly in black |
| Star border | The same lines inside a navy band of white stars with a red inner line | Patriotic and Fourth of July quilts, quilts for service members |
| Memorial | “In loving memory of”, the name, the quilt name, a message, made by, place and date, with a small heart and a double frame | Memory quilts made from clothing, sympathy gifts |
| Quilt of Valor | “Quilt of Valor”, awarded to, pieced by, quilted by, bound by, and the date and place of the award | Quilts awarded through the Quilts of Valor Foundation |
| Signature | Quilt name and recipient at the top, dotted lines to sign, maker, place and date at the bottom | Group gifts and wedding quilts |
Quilt of Valor labels
A Quilt of Valor label must say that the quilt is a Quilt of Valor, or the Foundation can't award and record it as one. The Foundation asks for the recipient's name, the names of the piecer, the quilter and the binder, the city and state of residence if desired, and the date and location of the award. Simple washing instructions are allowed; religious or political messages are not. The Quilt of Valor style above has a field for each of those, and our Quilts of Valor guide covers the rest of the Foundation's requirements. If you don't know the recipient yet, clear the “Awarded to” box and the label leaves the line out, so you can stitch or write the name in later on a separate strip, or print a fresh label once you know it.
The layout here is our own design. Use it only for quilts you're making for the Foundation's program; for other quilts honoring a veteran, the star border style fits without using the program's name.
Memorial and signature labels
For a memorial quilt, the label is often the part the family reads first. Keep the message short enough to fit at a readable size; the maker shrinks the text to fit and warns you when it gets too small. A 6 × 6 inch label holds a name and dates with two lines of message. If you want a longer piece of writing, such as a poem, print it as its own block on the back.
A signature label works for the people who couldn't sign the quilt itself. A 6 × 4 inch label gives about three lines to sign; 6 × 6 gives more. Prepare the label the same way you'd prepare signature blocks: freezer paper on the back and a tested pen. The signature quilt guide explains how to test pens and set the ink.
Attaching the label
With the ¼ inch turn-under added, cut on the dashed line, press the extra under along the solid frame and hand stitch the label to the backing with an appliqué stitch, catching only the backing so no stitches show on the front. The lower right corner of the back is the traditional spot. You can also cut the label without the extra, fold a backing-fabric triangle over one corner and catch two of its edges in the binding. A label sewn on before quilting, so the quilting runs through it, is the hardest to remove. The binding guide shows where the binding catches a corner label.
Common mistakes
- Printing on a fabric sheet without a paper test. Check the scale and the spelling on plain paper first.
- Washing a label made with a pen that isn't meant for laundry. Test the pen on a scrap through two washes.
- Leaving off the year or the town. Names alone don't tell anyone much fifty years later.
- Using the mirror setting for fabric sheets. Only iron-on transfer paper needs a backward print.
- Choosing a label too small for the words. If the maker warns that the text is small, pick the next size up.
Products on this page
Photos and prices come from Amazon and can change.
Sharpie Rub-A-Dub Permanent Laundry Marker, FineCheck price on Amazon- Sakura Pigma Micron 05 penCheck price on Amazon
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