How to design a quilt: a beginner’s guide

1. Decide what it’s for, and how big

A baby quilt, a throw for the sofa, a bed quilt: the use sets the size, and the size sets how many blocks you need. Pick a size to aim for first. A throw is about 60″ × 72″; the others are in Standard quilt sizes. You don’t have to hit it exactly: whole blocks rarely land on a round number, and borders make up the difference.

2. Choose a layout

The layout is how the blocks are arranged. Three classics cover most quilts: side by side, with sashing between, and on point. Here’s one block in each:

Same nine blocks, three sizes. Quilt layouts explained shows the others: alternating, columns, half drop and medallion.

3. Choose a block, or two

For a first design, choose a block you’d enjoy sewing many times. Fewer pieces means faster progress: a Nine Patch or a Sawtooth Star rather than a Mariner’s Compass. Two blocks that alternate, one busy and one simple, often look better than one block repeated, and the simple one is quick to make.

Look at the blocks people love, then try your own: How to design your own quilt block starts from a sheet of graph paper.

4. Work out the numbers

Count how many blocks fit across and down inside your target size, leaving room for the borders. With 12″ blocks and borders adding 12″ each way:

If the count doesn’t come out well, change the block size, the borders, or add sashing. When you alternate two blocks, odd numbers across and down put the same block in all four corners; with 4 across, the corners differ, which is fine too.

5. Choose the colors by value

Give each fabric a job (background, dark, medium, light and a small accent), and make sure they go clearly from light to dark. The pattern shows where light meets dark, so check it in gray before you buy:

How to choose quilt colors and Value and contrast go further.

6. Frame it with borders

Borders finish the design and bring the quilt to size. A narrow border in the accent, then a wider one in a dark, is a reliable frame: the narrow one stops the blocks running into the wide one. Wide borders are also a good place for quilting to show. For something more, try pieced borders.

7. Check it before you cut

1. Draw it, to scale, on graph paper or on screen, and color it in. Step back and squint: you’ll see what people see from across the room.

2. Make one test block in your real fabrics. Pin it up and look at it for a day.

3. Work out the fabric: the yardage for each fabric, plus the backing, batting and binding. How much fabric do I need for a quilt? shows how.

Common first-design mistakes

• Starting with a block that has hundreds of pieces. Save it for the second quilt.
• Picking a block size that doesn’t divide evenly, so every cut is an awkward sixteenth. Choose a size your block’s grid divides into whole eighths.
• Fabrics all of the same value. The design disappears once it’s sewn.
• Forgetting the seam allowance: blocks are cut ½″ bigger than they finish.