One Block Baby Quilt {Tutorial}

I love making baby quilts. They’re simple. Bright. Fun. And generally, quick to make.

Today, I am sharing a quick little baby quilt tutorial on how to make my 36” square ‘One Block Baby Quilt’.

One Block Baby Quilt Head

You can work on this quilt in an afternoon and it will be ready to gift the next day. Really, it’s that quick and easy. Best of all, the centre block is large which makes it perfect to showcase any cute baby fabrics you may like to use… like these giraffes in my centre panel. Aren’t they fun?

Here’s how I made my quilt:

The one big block measures 30” square. I then added a 3” border all around to finish at 36” square. Perfect baby size, yes?

Fabric Requirements:
A Fabric (blue): 3/8 yard
B Fabric (green): 1/4 yard
C Fabric (white): 3/4 yard (includes border)
D Fabric (centre panel): 18 1/2” square


The first step is to create some half square triangles.

From the green and the white fabrics, cut 1 strip (of each) measuring 6 7/8” x Width of Fabric (WOF).

From these strips, cross cut (4) 6 7/8” squares. You will now have 4 squares of green and 4 squares of white.

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Cut each square diagonally – from one corner across to the diagonal corner to create half square triangles (HSTs).

You will now have 8 green and 8 white HSTs.

Sew a green to a white triangle (along the long edge). Press to the dark side. Trim. Now do this for all of the remaining triangles to create 8 green and white HST blocks.

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Still with me? Yes? Good. Let’s keep going.

Now let’s move onto the blue fabric.


Cut (2) 6 1/2” strips x WOF.
Cross cut these to create (8) x 6 1/2” squares.


image

The centre panel is 18 1/2” square. If you have a generous FQ, then perhaps you can trim and use this, otherwise cut an 18 1/2” square from some yardage.
Okay, we’re all ready to assemble.

Find a space on the floor to lay out all of the pieces. Use this diagram to help you position the pieces in the correct order.

OBBQ - Design




When I made mine, I sewed all of the 5 components to create the top row and then all of the components to create the bottom row.
I then sewed the 3 components to create the pieces which would be attached to either side of the centre panel.
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Press all of the blocks and then lay them out on your flat surface again.

Sew the 2 side strips (above) to either side of the centre panel. Press.

Sew the top row to the top of the panel piece and the bottom row to the panel piece. Press.

You should now have a large 30” square block. Yay!

The borders are just a matter of cutting (4) 3” x WOF strips of the white fabric.

Sew a strip to either side of your block. Trim and press.

Sew a strip to the top and bottom of your block. Trim and press.

You should now have a completed 36” square baby quilt top.

Sandwich the backing, batting and quilt top. Pin baste and quilt as desired. I went with a simple meandering design.


Binding:


I used the remaining green fabric and cut (4) 1 3/4" x WOF strips. Join the binding strips together end to end with 45-degree seams, then trim the seams and press them open.

Starting about halfway along one side of the quilt and leaving a tail for joining, sew the binding to the right side, mitring the corners as you go. Stop approximately 6 inches from the starting point and join the ends of the binding neatly with a 45-degree seam. Trim the surplus and finish sewing the binding to the quilt.

Fold it to the back and slip-stitch it in place along the seam line, folding under the raw edges as you go. I like to use a ½” seam when sewing the binding as I prefer the look of the wider binding.

How did you go? All finished in an afternoon?

This would block would make a great large quilt too, don’t you think? 3 rows of 3 blocks a nice wide border and you’d have a quilt big enough for a queen size bed.

4 comments

  1. Fantastc! Thanks for sharing, Anorina.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Fabulous! Perfect for a little baby to play on and be kept entertained with the big bold patterns and colour.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Love it, thank you for the tutorial. My daughter's friend is having a baby in April 2015, think I'll make this...

    ReplyDelete

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