Scrappy Stars and Lanterns Quilt

Have you ever looked at a low volume fat quarter bundle and thought, "What in the world do I make with that?" Well, do I have the quilt top for you! Today I'm going to show you my low volume background scrappy stars and lanterns quilt, and it is so fun and fabulous. Just keep your eyes moving around the quilt, because there are so many small low volume prints hiding within the top waiting to be discovered.

This design is part of my ongoing love affair with modern quilt patterns that feel fresh, graphic, and totally livable. If you've been following along, you know I'm drawn to designs that use just a handful of fabrics but still manage to feel scrappy and rich with texture, and this one is no exception.

Quilt Top Fabrics

This top may look scrappy at first glance, but don't fret if you don't have a big stash of scraps to dig through for this fun quilt, because it's a fat quarter quilt pattern through and through. That means you can head to your local quilt shop or shop online to gather a lovely bundle of fat quarters and still get that low volume, scrappy look without having to wait for your scrap pile to be enough.

For the stars and lanterns quilt, Riley Blake Designs was generous enough to supply all the fabric for this project. I used a large selection from their Make Modern series, which is all of their gorgeous basic lines, which includes Blossom, stripes, gingham, crosshatch, Swiss Dots, and a variety of other prints that are available on a regular basis, so this is a very repeatable palette if you fall in love with it the way I did.

For the lantern blocks, I went with a pine green, which reads almost like an apple green in certain light. For the star blocks, I went with a navy center and then a fun pop of pink for the flying geese in the sawtooth star blocks. That combination of navy, pine green, and pink against all that low volume background fabric is exactly what gives this top its playful, modern energy.

A Variation I Want to Try

I really think a fun twist on this pattern would be to swap in a navy background for the whole quilt, while still keeping white, green, and pink as the accent colors in the sawtooth star blocks and the lantern blocks. I think that would create the feeling of a midnight sky, with the stars lighting it up, and the lantern blocks, maybe even reworked in yellow instead of green, giving that visual of candlelight glowing on the patio under a beautiful night sky. It's on my list of modern quilt patterns to revisit down the road, so stay tuned.

Grab the Stars and Lantern Quilt Pattern Here

Backing

For the backing of this quilt, I went with the Sparkler blender in a fun mustard yellow. Honestly, it's a real tossup for me on which is my favorite blender line from Riley Blake Designs, it's either going to be Sparkler or possibly Blossom. Both are such a clean, crisp, modern take on a blender print that they really catch my eye, but they still allow the quilt top design to speak for itself rather than competing with it. When you're working with a lot of prints on the front like this one, a quieter backing really lets the piecing be the star of the show.

Quilting

This was the fun part for me, because I get a lot of questions about how I decide what quilting pantograph or design to use on a quilt top. Honestly, for me it's a total gut instinct, especially with client quilts. I'll pull a client's quilt top and backing out of the bag or shipping box and just know, in my gut and in my heart, what's going to be the perfect complement to that particular top. That's exactly what happened here.

The design didn't really come to me until I was pressing the final seam on the quilt top. As soon as I finished, I thought, I think Arches is going to lend just enough curve to the quilting design while still keeping plenty of straight lines to really make this pop once the finished quilt top comes off the longarm frame. I'm so glad I went with Arches.

If you're following along on Instagram, you may have seen that I threw this decision up onto my stories and let you all weigh in on whether Arches was the right pantograph. I gave a couple of other options for what I should quilt on this top, and it's always fun to see whether you all are on the same wavelength and visual mindset that I am. It turns out the majority of you were thinking the same thing, Arches was absolutely the right call for the quilting design. I finished it off with white thread on top and a matching white thread on the back, so the quilting could shine on both sides of the quilt.

This is honestly one of my favorite parts of offering longarm quilting services, getting to problem-solve the perfect pantograph for each individual top, whether it's mine or a client's.

Grab the Stars and Lantern Quilt Pattern Here

Binding

For the binding, I decided to step out of my comfort zone, and I'm really glad that I did. I went with a larger navy and white stripe from Riley Blake Designs' stripe collection, and I do not regret it one bit. It adds such a fun pop of visual impact to the border of this quilt, especially with the scrappy look going on across the whole top. I wanted the binding to feel a little spunky too, and I think the chunky stripe, in such high contrast navy and white, was exactly the right call. It also plays nicely against the solid mustard yellow backing, adding just a little extra punch whether you're seeing the quilt from across the room, folded on the couch, or out and about at a show.

The 2026 Quilt Pattern Collection

If you're loving this quilt pattern, you'll want to check out the rest of the 2026 quilt pattern collection I've been releasing. I've been putting out one new pattern a month, and they all coexist so beautifully together that if you're dreaming of a whole quilt 'home wardrobe' makeover, or want your quilts to feel cohesive throughout your home, this collection might be exactly what you need. Every pattern in the 2026 lineup uses six fabrics or fewer, which gives you a fun, cohesive look across multiple quilts, especially if you end up with four or five of them layered around your living room, family room, or wherever else they get used and loved.

It's such a fun way to build a style that looks homemade, comfy, and cozy while still feeling intentional and cohesive, like you're fully invested in a specific aesthetic. I genuinely don't get tired of seeing these colors together, whether I'm prepping for a trunk show or setting up at a guild meeting. Most of these quilt patterns also include a secondary option, whether that's a scrappy, fat quarter or a low volume friendly variation, so there's always a way to make the pattern feel a little more like your own rather than sticking to the exact same fabric collection every time.

Check out the quilt patterns here

Longarm Quilting and Binding Services

If you're in need of quilting and binding services, look no further, I've got you covered! I offer mail-in longarm quilting services as well as local longarm quilting services here in central Minnesota, and I would love to help finish your quilt tops for you.

Whether you're searching for longarm quilting services for hire close to home or looking for reliable mail-in longarm quilting services you can ship your top off to, I try to make the process as simple as possible. Send me your finished quilt top and backing, let me know what kind of quilting design and binding you're hoping for, and I'll take it from there. I keep a very short turnaround of two weeks or less for quilting, so you're never left wondering when your quilt is coming home.

I love this part of my business because it means I get to work with such a wide range of quilt patterns, modern quilt patterns, traditional favorites, scrappy tops, fat quarter quilt patterns, all of it. Every top that comes through my studio is a little different, and figuring out the right pantograph, thread, and finish for each one is genuinely one of my favorite parts of the job.

Check out information on longarm quilting and binding services here

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