This baby quilt is small enough to whip up in an afternoon. It comes with a free PDF applique pattern to print, and a video showing my favourite (can't mess it up) applique method!
Finished size is 24" x 24", perfect for a tummy time blanket for any royal baby you know! Great shower gift too!
We donate this size baby quilt to the local hospital for premature babies, check your local hospital to see if they have a similar charity!
Materials (All fabrics should be cotton, if possible)
- 24" square piece of background fabric
- 4 - 6.5" squares of contrasting fabric for corner triangles.
- 1 - 10" square of gold fabric for crown applique shape
- 1 small strip/scrap of colourful fabric for circle applique shapes
- 1 small strip/scrap of colourful fabric for the diamond applique shapes
- 26" square of fabric for backing
- 26" square of batting (any kind, I prefer cotton batting)
- 2 packages of double fold bias tape for binding
Tools/other materials
- Fabric scissors
- Paper scissors (to cut out applique shape)
- Printer (to print applique pattern)
- Iron
- Sewing machine
- 505 Basting Spray (or any other fabric spray temporary adhesive)
- Glue stick (regular school glue such as Elmers)
- Hand Sewing needle
- Thread
Preparing your Fabric
First thing to do is to iron out all your fabrics, no wrinkles or creases will ensure a better finished product.
Now you need to print out the applique shapes included with this pattern.
Click the link HERE to open up the PDF. When printing, make sure your printer does not scale the image, this will ensure the proper size for your applique.
After printing your applique, place them onto your fabric (right side up) and cut out the shapes. The 1/4" seam allowance is already on the printed shape, so you simply cut out the shape as is.
You should end up with 1 crown, 1 large circle, 2 small circles and 4 diamonds.
The Triangle Corners
We are going to be using the 'snowball' technique to create the triangle corners on our quilt.
Using a hot iron, press the 6.5" squares in half, right sides together. When you open the fabric back up, a crease line will be easily visible across the square.
Now we place the squares in the corners of our quilt. Right sides of the fabric together. You need to place them in a way so that the crease line is going diagonally across the the fabric (see picture). Pin the squares down and sew on the creased line.
Once sewn, use scissors and trim off the excess fabric (see picture). Now open up the triangle corners and press seams. Repeat for all four corners.
Applique
My applique process uses two of my favourite sewing tools, basting spray and a regular glue stick. Both products will wash out of your quilt completely the first time it is washed, so do not hesitate to use them. If you are using a lot of spray baste, you may want to be in a well ventilated area so you do not breathe it in. Having a window open was sufficient for the small amount I use on this quilt.
To start, take your shape, for example, the crown. With the wrong side of the fabric up, use your glue stick and spread glue all around the edges. Now, fold a 1/4" of the fabric over and stick it down with the glue. Keep going until all edges of your shape have a 1/4" folded in.
With your background fabric smooth and ready nearby, it is time to apply some spray baste. I like to put an old towel on my work surface to protect my table, then with my applique pieces wrong side up, I spray the basting glue onto the fabric. Then, take your applique pieces and stick them where you would like them on your background fabric. You can follow the title picture as a guide to place your pieces in the correct spot. The great thing about spray baste is that it is not permanent, feel free to peel it up and re position if you need.
When your applique pieces are in the spot you want them to be, thread your hand sewing needle and sew all around the edges to permanently attach them to your quilt. I sew a hidden stitch on my applique (basically enter your needle slightly on the back of the applique piece, and do not go through the top of your applique). You could also machine applique with your sewing machine.
Quilting this Baby Quilt
My favourite way to baste projects is to use 505 Basting Spray. You can use any temporary basting spray you like, as long as it is temporary and will wash out in the washing machine.
To start, press your backing fabric, spread it out on a clean hard surface, wrong side facing up. Now using masking tape, secure it to your surface.
Apply your spray basting glue, and lay your batting on top. Smooth out the batting so there are no wrinkles.
Take the wrong side of your quilt top and apply the spray basting glue, then flip it over and place in on top of the batting. This creates a sandwich effect of three layers, which become your quilt.
For quilting this quilt, I decided to straight line quilt around the edges. I quilted 5 lines, an inch and a half apart start from the outer edge. Then, leaving a large square in the center unquilted, I echoed the applique design. For the triangle corners, I echoed the triangle shape inside twice.
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