How to Sew a Small Quilt at Home for Beginners

Materials & tools you'll need

Step 1 — Choose your fabrics and cut the pieces

Start with a pile of fabric and pick the ones you want in your quilt. A rose pattern is one example, and it's nice to have the same pattern in a second colour too. Cut your fabric into pieces 4 inches by 6 inches (about 10 cm by 15 cm). A rotary cutter, ruler, pen and scissors together help you get every piece exactly the same size.

Step 2 — Pin and sew the pieces into strips

Pin the pieces together, leaving about 1 centimetre for the seam allowance. Then sew them together along the lines with a straight stitch. Press each seam flat, and iron the whole strip so it's nice and flat. Press by simply pressing down on the seam. Finish all of your strips this way.

Step 3 — Pin the strips together in order and sew the rows

Line up your strips and decide which strip comes next in the pattern. As long as you follow the diagonals, it's much easier to decide which strip goes next. Place the next strip directly on top of the one before it, find the middle piece, and check that the seams line up. Put a pin through on a diagonal, and keep doing that all the way to the ends.

Take it to the sewing machine and sew along the line from one end to the other, lining the edge up with the foot of your machine. Once the seam is sewn it sticks straight up, so take it to the ironing board and press the whole seam down and flat, then iron the whole thing briefly so the seams are all nice and flat. You'll see the difference. Repeat for the next strip, and the next, until your quilt top is the size you want.

Pinning like this is a bit tedious, because you're always taking pins out and putting them in, but it's worth it. It speeds things up in the long run, because you double-check your work as you pin. If you just grabbed the next strip and started sewing, you could end up with a strip upside down, or the wrong strip altogether.

Step 4 — Layer the quilt

A finished quilt has three layers: the quilt top, a back fabric, and a piece of canvas muslin. Cut the muslin and give it a quick iron. Line the layers up with lots of space around the quilt top, and pin them together. Start in the middle row, then pin all the corners. To keep everything together, sew a rough, basic stitch all the way around the edge, then trim the extra fabric closer, to within an inch or a couple of inches.

Step 5 — Stitch through all three layers

Before you stitch, go around and clip off any extra thread that shows through. Once you've sewn over the top, those threads are a little more difficult to get out. Then stitch on top of everything, through all three layers, along the seam lines. Start in the middle: sew on the middle seam line, follow exactly on the line straight down to the other end, and keep it nicely centred. Then repeat for the rest of the lines. When you turn the quilt over, you can see the lines on the back fabric.

Step 6 — Trim and finish the edges

Take a serger around the edge of the quilt, using the width of the foot from the seam all the way around. This cuts off the excess and finishes the edge, which also makes it easier to bind at the end.

Step 7 — Make and attach the binding

Cut about three strips, each 3 inches wide and really long, to cover up the serged edge. Fold each strip in half and iron it, then fold it in half again and iron it, so you're left with a really long piece of binding. Sew the binding along one side of the quilt, then flip the folded side over the top and pin it in place all the way around the edges.

Step 8 — Add a label and stitch the binding down

If you'd like to add a label, fold it in half and pin it near one of the corners, so you remember where it goes. Then topstitch the binding down all the way around, catching the label as you go. Choose a zigzag stitch and make it just a little less wide, then keep the line where the two fabrics meet right in the middle of the line on the foot of your machine. When you reach a corner, turn. Then you have your finished quilt, and a small quilt is still a cute one.

Frequently asked questions

What size should I cut the pieces for a small quilt, and how much seam allowance do I leave?
The pieces in this quilt are cut 4 inches by 6 inches (about 10 cm by 15 cm), using a rotary cutter, ruler, pen and scissors to get them exact. When pinning the pieces together, leave about 1 centimetre for the seam allowance.

Why should I pin the strips together before sewing?
Pinning is a little tedious, but it saves time in the long run. You check your work as you pin, so you're much less likely to sew a strip upside down or grab the wrong strip. Find the middle piece, check that the seams line up, and put a pin through on a diagonal.

How do I press the seams when making a quilt?
After sewing a seam, it sticks up, so take it to the ironing board and press the whole seam down and flat. Then iron the whole piece briefly to make sure all the seams are nice and flat. Pressing makes a clear difference to how the quilt top looks.

How do I finish the edges of a quilt?
In this quilt the edges are trimmed and finished with a serger, which makes binding easier. Then cut about three long strips 3 inches wide, fold each in half and iron, fold again and iron, sew the binding along one side, flip the folded side over the top, pin it all the way around, and topstitch it down.

What do I need to sew a small quilt?
You will need an assortment of fabrics, a back fabric, canvas muslin, thread, scissors, a rotary cutter, a ruler, a pen, pins, a sewing machine, a serger and an iron. A label is optional.

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