5x5 Quilt Tutorial

Sweet and Simple

If I can do it, pretty much anyone with basic sewing skills can! I've made 2 of these now, and both took about 2 hours.

If you're using 5 different fabrics, you'll need 1/3 yd (12" l) of each (assuming the fabric is 45" w). That will be more than enough so that you can trim them down to the exact size you need. For backing, you'll need 36" w x 50" l piece, but I'd get a little more than that and trim down. So let's say 1 1/2"yd (54 in"). You'll need the same amount in batting.

1. Cut your swatches: 5 swatches from 5 fabrics (25 swatches total), each measuring 10"h x 7.5"w.

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2. Lay out your swatches so that each pattern is represented only once in both the horizontal and vertical rows.

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3. Starting in the top left and working your way across, stitch pieces together using a 1/4" seam allowance to create a horizontal strip. When finished, turn over and press the seams to the LEFT. Repeat to complete all the horizontal rows.

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4. Pin the top row to the 2nd row, aligning all seams, then stitch. Continue until all rows are stitched. When finished, turn over and press all the seams DOWN.

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5. On a flat surface lay out and smooth down a 38"w x 50"h piece of cotton batting. I used a thin organic cotton batting. On top of that, lay out and smooth down a 38"w x 50" cut of the backing fabric FACE UP. On top of that, lay out and smooth out the quilt topper FACE DOWN. Starting in the center of the quilt and working your way out, pin as shown in the image below.

5a. Stitch 1/4" from edge of the quilt topper beginning at the green dot and work your way around to the red dot. *be sure to back tack at the start and finish.* This will create a small opening, through which you can turn your quilt inside out.

5b. Before turning inside out, after stitching, trim the excess seams to be flush with the quilt topper (1/4" from seam).

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6. After turning the quilt inside out through the opening, flatten the seams with your fingers and press, making sure that from the top side, you do not see the backing fabric. Use a tool such as a bone folder or a pencil to push out the corners neatly. As you press, pin along the edges to keep your fold in place.

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7. When you come to the opening, you will need to press the edges in and pin closed. Hand stitch the opening so that it is closed.

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8. Lay out the quilt again and smooth it out so that all layers are evenly distributed. Starting in center and working outwards, pin through all thicknesses at every seam intersection as shown below.

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9. Topstitch 1/4" along the entire edge of the quilt. Topstitch 1/8" to the RIGHT of each VERTICAL seam. Finally, topstitch 1/8" BELOW each HORIZONTAL seam.

10. Voila! You're finished!