Sewing a patchwork quilt: A wonderful project that even beginners can quickly celebrate their first sewing successes with. Includes simple instructions for DIY sewing!
Patchwork is such a delightful sewing technique! Are you in the mood again to really sew a great patchwork quilt yourself? These quilts make a very special gift for family, friends, or yourself.
And the best part: it's quite easy to sew! With my tips & tricks, you can create a beautiful, unique quilt in just a few hours. And it will look like it was done by a pro! ;)
My patchwork quilt is sewn quite simply from a panel and long strips of fabric. Instead of batting and a cotton backing, it features a cozy cotton fleece backing. This is easier to sew and keeps you really warm and snug!
Reading tip: Patchwork accessories – tips, tricks & usage
Sewing a patchwork quilt: The best tips & tricks
Let’s start with the tips! Naturally, I have quite a bit of experience in sewing quilts and patchwork blankets. I just love giving them as gifts and imagining how the recipients can snuggle up in them. Or how the quilts will one day decorate the living room or nursery.
Because, let's be honest: a self-sewn patchwork quilt always looks high-quality and beautiful, even if it isn't perfect – and let's be honest: it never is!
And hey, it doesn't have to be! With this quilt, you are expressing: You are important to me, I am thinking of you, and I love you. There is no place for perfection there.
Nevertheless, the new patchwork quilt should of course be as beautiful as possible. To ensure that goes well, I have simple step-by-step instructions for you, with which you can also sew patchwork quilts for children, for example.
The good thing is: there are no size requirements! You determine the size of the finished quilt all by yourself. And your staying power, of course. :)
My first tip is one I follow myself very often:
Tip No. 1: Sewing a patchwork quilt from a panel
Don't know what a panel is? A great thing, that much is certain! A panel is a cut of fabric with a motif, which usually comes with coordinating fabrics.
The panel sets the theme for your quilt: If you want to sew a patchwork quilt for a baby, a children's motif is obviously ideal. Often there are matching solids or small-patterned so-called "low-volume" fabrics that go perfectly with the panel.
The cool thing about a panel is that you directly give your quilt a perfect "centerpiece." And you can already check a large part of the quilt top off your list. :)
Tip No. 2: Washing & ironing
Make sure to wash and iron all fabrics before processing. This is important because cotton fabrics in particular have a shrinkage rate of a few percent. After washing and drying, you should iron the fabric with steam. This allows it to be cut as accurately as possible.
Cotton is often still a bit "crinkly" inside if it isn't ironed. Do the test and cut some un-ironed cotton. Afterward, iron it and see what has changed. :)
For small projects made of cotton fabric, this can make a huge difference.
By the way, during pre-washing, you can also see right away if fabrics bleed: If they don't, you can confidently sew black and white together! This creates strong contrasts!
Tip No. 3: Trimming after every seam
If you are sewing your patchwork quilt from strips, you should check once after ironing and opening the seam allowances, especially at the corners, whether everything is still straight. This is best done with a patchwork ruler and rotary cutter.
Tip No. 4: Pulling is forbidden!
Yes, you read that right. Even cotton warps! We often distinguish (especially when sewing clothes) between elastic and non-elastic fabrics, meaning woven fabrics and knits.
Yet even cotton fabrics have a certain elasticity. If you are sewing a strip quilt, you might notice that the different fabrics also have different levels of elasticity.
To prevent anything from warping, lay the fabrics loosely on top of each other and pin them. Then nothing can go wrong.
Tip No. 5: Proper ironing
After every seam, you should iron the seams. First, the seam is smoothed from the right side. Then, iron the seam allowance open. Do this with steam.
You will notice that the quilt feels much more "like a whole" than when un-ironed.
Some patchworkers, such as Thea Schmalfeldt from the Hamburg Patchwork Guild, swear by ironing the seam allowances to one side. She says this makes the seams more durable.
It's best to try out what works best for you.
When ironing, please make sure to work evenly and also not to pull on the fabric now. It is best to guide the iron with light pressure over the fabric and then let it cool down.
If you fold the warm, ironed fabric too quickly, the creases will be particularly permanent and difficult to remove. :)
It is important that you iron the fabrics along the grain, not diagonally. Then the risk of anything warping is relatively low.
Tip No. 6: Every combination is the right one!
Even if you choose fabrics that don't seem to match harmoniously at first glance: when joined together into a quilt top, a completely new image emerges! Because the fabrics "influence" each other, they often even tell stories!
The more randomly you bring fabric strips together, the more surprising the result. Give it a try!
It is great if you then "unite" the fabrics with a quilting pattern.
Dare to be wild. Because one thing is clear: it is your quilt; you decide how colorful you want to get!
By the way, the Gustav Klimt fabric was so sacred to me that I decided to keep the selvedges visible. In some places, you can even see the dots on the fabric edges quite nicely. Do you know their secret?
Tip No. 7: Movement through directional fabric
With a fabric that only works in one direction (e.g., floral fabric where the blooms and stems dictate the direction), you can bring movement into your patchwork quilt.
If you sew the fabric strips together so that the pattern runs all the way around, it gives your quilt a very interesting sense of movement! Definitely give it a try!
Tip No. 8: Grey mice against variety of colors
If you, like me, like working with many colors and fabrics, you need a sewing thread that can handle it. Because you surely don't want to change the thread color after every strip.
My tip: Use a medium-grey all-purpose thread! It is barely noticeable in the seam shadow and adapts to many colors.
Patchwork expert Thea Schmalfeldt from the Patchwork Guild also recommends, if it fits, trying a medium-brown thread. She says it looks particularly subtle.
If you are sewing black and white or other strong contrasts, Thea recommends always orienting yourself to the darker fabric when choosing the thread color.
Tip No. 9: Stockpile bobbins
It is super annoying, especially with long seams, when the bobbin thread suddenly runs out. And then you have to wind it again first...
My tip: Before you start, wind enough bobbins in the color of the top thread. Then you can quickly swap the bobbin and keep on creating! :)
Tip No. 10: Easily cutting strips
You can easily cut the strips for the patchwork quilt in multiple layers. This is very precise and saves a lot of work. You can cut both along the grain and at a right angle to it. But please not diagonally (due to elasticity).
I quarter the fabrics, iron them, and then align the fabric fold with the markings on the cutting mat.
When everything is lying well, I cut 7 cm wide strips for the quilt and binding (the fabric strip at the edge) using the patchwork ruler.
Tip No. 11: Sharp needle, cool babe
No joke: A new, sharp needle is worth a lot when patchwork quilting! And such a quilt is a project where the needle has to do quite a bit of work.
So that my sewing machine needle doesn't run out of steam (I am impatient and hate it when I have to stop in between), I now sew my patchwork quilts (and most other sewing projects) with Super Universal Needles* from Schmetz in size 80.
They last forever, cost barely more than the "usual suspects," and make very nice stitches.
Tip No. 12: The solid sets the pace!
Sounds mysterious, but it isn't at all: If you include solid fabrics, so-called "solids," in your quilt, you should be aware that these solids define the image more than the colorful printed fabrics. Simply because they appear optically more massive than a multi-colored print that is "broken up" by a pattern.
So be careful in your choice of solids and make sure they don't "drown out" your beautiful prints... :)
Tip No. 13: Not perfect is the new perfect!
If you ask a passionate patchworker, they will tell you: there is no perfect patchwork quilt. Every project that consists of many individual parts has a small weak spot somewhere. Or a larger one.
So: Who cares? Stand by the little flaws of your quilt and enjoy that it is precisely those little blips that make it unique! :)
Sewing a patchwork quilt: What do I need?
Besides an ironing board & iron (important!), you need the following basic sewing accessories:
- Patchwork panel* or a large rectangular piece of fabric for the center
- Fabric strips*, 7 cm wide & as long as possible
- Cotton fleece* in the desired size
- Erasable marker* or chalk pencil
- Sewing thread*
- Rotary cutter*
- Fabric scissors*
- Patchwork ruler*
- Sewing machine
- Pins*
- Temporary spray adhesive*
Sewing a patchwork quilt: Which fabric is the right one?
Suitable are all non-elastic fabrics such as:
- Cotton woven fabric*
- Linen fabrics*
- Canvas*
- Decorative fabrics*
- Batiste* (e.g., Tana Lawn from Liberty)
Important: The fabric used should be washed before sewing so that it no longer shrinks. Otherwise, a patchwork quilt can warp significantly and then be anything but beautiful. :)
Reading tip: Wash fabrics before sewing
Sewing the back of the patchwork quilt: Out of what?
That is very simple: Instead of a 3-layer technique, a so-called quilt sandwich, consisting of the top (the upper side), a batting, and a cotton backing, I use a wonderfully soft organic cotton fleece in this tutorial.
There are several reasons for this
- it is much easier to sew - especially for beginners who usually struggle quite a bit with three layers
- an organic fleece is an ideal alternative, especially for children, because it often comes into direct contact with their skin
- cotton fleece is easy to wash and dries quickly, and
- cotton fleece feels wonderfully soft and cuddly and keeps you nice and warm.
I found my cotton fleece* at Hemmers and coordinated it with the colors of my patchwork top. Before sewing, the fleece fabric should be washed once, as it then becomes denser and firmer. It may also shrink a little.
Where can you buy patchwork fabrics?
I have found what I was looking for for many patchwork projects with the patchwork fabrics from Stoffe.de and Hemmers*. I am incredibly fond of the canvas fabrics* from Nähcafé am Wasserturm. I am completely thrilled with how great these fabrics are to work with. The fantastic thing about the selection at the sewing café is that many fabrics can be combined with each other. Therefore, ideal for patchwork projects.
Simone's Etsy shop is generally a real goldmine. There you will also find beautiful backing fabrics with extra width* and panels* that you can use for the center of your patchwork quilt.
If your fabric is not wide enough, you can also straighten the edges and join them into one large piece of fabric with a horizontal or vertical seam.
Sewing a patchwork quilt from fabric scraps
Fabric scraps are ideal for processing in a patchwork quilt. It is important that you wash the fabrics beforehand. If you have many small scraps, you can wash them in a mesh bag, for example. Then nothing gets lost in the washing machine.
Sewing a patchwork quilt: Which stitch, which thread, which needle?
Let's talk in this section about a few basic materials that you should have on hand when sewing the patchwork quilt.
Which stitch is suitable?
For a patchwork quilt, I usually choose a 2.5 or 3.0 mm long straight stitch when it comes to joining the fabric pieces. For topstitching, I use a 3.5 or even 4.0 mm long stitch.
You can also work perfectly with decorative stitches. Wave patterns or many other decorative stitches are well-suited to highlight parts of your quilt.
Which thread is suitable?
You can sew with both polyester and cotton thread. Both have their merits. Cotton threads often feel more natural, the quilts then become softer. Polyester threads are usually more durable. I find cotton threads particularly charming for quilts because they feel more "traditional" to me. I prefer Silk Finish Cotton by Mettler*, which is also well-suited for topstitching and embroidery. For the same reason, I also love cotton batting.
Which needle is suitable?
Because quilt layers are often joined with temporary spray adhesive, I find coated sewing machine needles particularly helpful. But even when no spray adhesive is involved, the black-coated needles glide very easily and finely through the thick fabric layers and conjure up beautiful seams. I use the Super Universal needles in size 80* for my patchwork quilts (and for just about every project made of medium-weight woven fabric).
Which foot is suitable?
A straight stitch or zigzag foot is the tool of choice for sewing patchwork quilts. However, they often also have problems transporting the thick fabric layers. If that is the case, you are doing everything right with a walking foot. It helps you to cleanly sew even thick fabrics and many fabric layers.
An edge stitching foot is also very well-suited for topstitching.
Reading tip: Sewing machine feet and their use
Quilting in the ditch: How does that work?
If there is already "a lot going on" on the fabric, i.e., it is colorfully printed, I often just quilt in the ditch. For this, I place the sewing foot on the fabric so that the needle pierces exactly into the seam between two fabric pieces.
"Stitch in the ditch" is what that is called. If you hit the seam line exactly, nothing of the seam itself is visible.
If you have conjured up a multi-colored quilt top, i.e., a colorful patchwork quilt top, then you can topstitch with a neutral thread, e.g., medium gray or medium brown.
Quilting a patchwork quilt with the sewing machine
This is the easiest way to join a quilt top with the backing. Basically, you should do this, because otherwise the top side will always detach from the backing when using the quilt and it will not form a single unit.
Another advantage of quilting with the sewing machine: You can quickly and effectively set accents with seams. Often, simple lines or waves really make your patchwork quilt shine!
Sewing a baby patchwork quilt
This tutorial is also very well-suited for a quick baby patchwork quilt.
The base area for a baby patchwork quilt can be 70 x 100 cm. If you want to sew a play quilt, you can also use 100 x 100 cm or 140 x 140 cm as a basic measurement.
Sewing a patchwork quilt from old clothes
A beautiful way to sustainably recycle old clothes and create lasting memories is sewing patchwork quilts from shirts, jeans, jackets, blouses, or dresses. Patchwork quilts can also be conjured up from cool printed T-shirts if the shirts are reinforced with fusible interfacing beforehand.
This is what the finished patchwork quilt looks like!
Do you want to know more about quilting in the USA, about patchwork tools and sewing simple quilts? Then feel free to click through the links and take a look at the follow-up articles.
Questions? Suggestions? Feel free to write something in the comments!
Happy simple sewing,
your Sabine
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