The eight-pointed star is a very common motif in traditional Norwegian arts and crafts. You can find it in weaving, knitting, embroidery, woodcarving, silverwork and other art forms all across the country. It appears again and again in slightly different forms — geometric, symmetrical and timeless.
A small collection of mittens with eight-pointed stars, knitted by Grete, my talented mother-in-law...
The rutevev åkle
Last year, while doing a photoshoot in Stavanger, Norway, I came across a collection of small woven wall hangings. Several of them immediately caught my eye, but there was one in particular I kept thinking about afterwards. It was woven in a traditional technique called rutevev, or square weave, where repeated geometric shapes create larger patterns and motifs.
The wall hanging that eventually inspired the Star Tapestry quilt pattern was a small åkle (pronounced “oh-cleh”). The word originally means bed blanket, and these woven textiles have a long history in Norway. Åkle were used as bedding, wall insulation and decoration, especially in old timber houses and cabins where winters were cold and long. Today, they're mostly used for decorative purposes, often in cabins. Different regions — and sometimes even individual farms — developed their own patterns and colour traditions, and there are many different weaving techniques.
I’ve always been fascinated by Norwegian textile traditions and the amount of work, creativity and craftsmanship that went into them. There is such a rich visual history hidden in old woven textiles, knitted garments and embroidery. I love finding inspiration in these traditions and interpreting them in a different way through quilting.
The Star Tapestry quilt
The fun part about Star Tapestry is that the entire quilt is made from just one type of block — but sewn in three different colour combinations. When the blocks are arranged in the right way, a secondary design appears and reveals the eight-pointed star.
The pattern uses four different fabrics in total, and if you choose a strong contrast between fabrics 2 and 3, the star design will stand out especially clearly. It’s one of those quilts where fabric placement really changes the overall look, which makes it especially fun to experiment with.
The cover quilt is made with the whimsical Persimmon fabric collection by Rashida Coleman-Hale for Ruby Star Society, but I can already imagine this quilt in many completely different directions – soft Scandinavian neutrals, scrappy vintage-inspired fabrics, bold solids or earthy cabin colours.
If you want to see more versions of Star Tapestry, I’ve also written a blog post featuring the beautiful pattern tester quilts. And if you’re curious about the fabrics used in the cover quilt, you can read more about the Persimmon version in a separate blog post as well.
The Star Tapestry pattern is now available in the shop as a PDF download pattern in four sizes: Baby, Throw, Twin and Large Bed.