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50+ Free Easy Quilt Patterns for Beginners

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If you are a beginning quilter looking for free and easy quilt patterns, check out this list of my favorite beginner quilting patterns!

In this list, you’ll find a ton of ideas for easy quilts made from simple shapes or pre-cut fabric, like layer cakes and jelly rolls, too!

If you are a beginning sewist or quilter looking for free and easy quilting patterns, check out this list of my favorite beginner quilt patterns!

Easy Quilt Patterns for Beginners

Anyone can learn to quilt, you just need to know where to start. And in my opinion, the best way to learn how to quilt is to start with an easy pattern designed for beginners.

In the list below, you’ll find 50 free and easy quilt patterns that I’ve specifically chosen to help you learn how to make a quilt. The patterns have plenty of detailed instructions and photos to guide you through each step, from start to finish.

How to Make a Quilt

If you are new to the world of quilting, all of the different cutting and sewing steps can seem overwhelming. So before we get to the patterns, why don’t we briefly talk about how to make a quilt?

Quilts are made from a patchwork top layer, a middle layer of warm batting, and a bottom layer of backing fabric. The quilt patterns you see in the list below will show you how to cut and sew beautiful quilt tops.

Here are the 7 steps to make a quilt:

  1. Pick a quilt pattern. You can choose one of the free and easy quilt patterns I’ve collected in the list below.
  2. Choose the fabric. You’ll want to shop for high-quality quilting cotton that will wear well over time.
  3. Cut the fabric. Following the pattern instructions, cut out the fabric pieces with a rotary cutter, mat, and ruler.
  4. Piece the quilt top. Sew the fabric pieces together according to the directions in the pattern. Make sure to sew an accurate 1/4″ seam allowance!
  5. Assemble the “quilt sandwich”. Once you’ve finished the top, add a layer of batting and the quilt back.
  6. Quilt the layers together. Using a walking foot or free motion foot, quilt through all layers of the quilt sandwich.
  7. Trim and bind the quilt. After quilting, trim the layers so they are even and square. Sew on binding to encase the edges.

What Makes a Quilt Pattern Beginner-Friendly?

The best quilt patterns for a beginner should use simple shapes, be easy to assemble, and come with detailed instructions.

Simple shapes: The easiest quilt patterns are made from simple shapes like squares and rectangles. Squares and rectangles are easy to cut and sew, since you don’t need to worry about curves or bias edges.

Precut fabric: Some quilt patterns are designed to use bundles of precut fabric, called charm squares, jelly rolls, and layer cakes. Using precut fabric will save you a lot of time that you would have spent preparing and cutting fabric.

Larger patchwork pieces: Quilt patterns made with larger fabric pieces will be faster to sew than those made with a lot of small pieces. Larger pieces mean fewer seams to sew, and fewer points to match, too.

Detailed pattern: Look for a pattern that includes step-by-step instructions with plenty of photos to guide you through the process. Some will even include a video tutorial.

What’s the Easiest Quilt Pattern for a Beginner?

One of the easiest quilts for a beginner to make is a simple patchwork quilt. A square patchwork quilt is made from fabric squares that are sewn together in a simple grid pattern. You can cut squares from your own fabrics, or start with a precut fabric bundle called a “charm pack” or “layer cake”.

Another easy quilt for beginners is called a strip quilt. A strip quilt is made by sewing long strips of fabric together to create a striped effect. You can cut strips from your own fabric, or start with a precut fabric bundle called a “jelly roll”.

Essential Supplies for the Beginning Quilter

After you pick out your pattern, you’ll need to gather your materials. You don’t need a lot of fancy tools, but you do some basic quilting supplies. Here’s what I recommend:

  1. Rotary Cutter
  2. Omnigrip 6″ x 24″ Ruler
  3. Self-Healing Cutting Mat
  4. Straight Pins
  5. Iron and Ironing Board
  6. Sewing Machine

Can you quilt with a regular sewing machine?

Yes, you can piece a quilt top with a regular home sewing machine. You can do straight-line quilting with a walking foot attachment or free-motion quilting with a free-motion quilting foot.

Where to Buy Quilting Fabric and Precuts

One of my favorite parts of the quilting process is selecting fabrics. I recommend searching out a local quilt shop if you can, since they’ll have the best selection and the experience to guide you.

But if you’d like to shop online, I find that Amazon.com has one of the largest selections of quilting fabrics and precut bundles.

Easy Quilt Patterns for Beginners

Have questions? Join the Facebook Group!

We hope this article was useful for you! If you have any additional questions, feel free to join my Facebook Group. We created this group for you to share pictures, ask questions, and help each other out.

More Quilting Projects

For more quilting patterns and ideas, check out my other posts:

What’s Next?

Pin this post: Save this tutorial to your Pinterest boards so that you can come back to it later.

Leave a comment: We love to hear your feedback. Tell me in the comments below!

Share on Instagram or Facebook: When you make this project, share it on social media and tag me @sarahmaker_. We love to see what you make!

Georgia Hammett

Tuesday 18th of April 2023

I was just given a throw quilt with 7 pieces; a pattern pieces against a solid side. The pattern pieces, look like stairs some a larger pieces (3), 2 medium size pieces and then 2 small square. What is this pattern called?

Sarah Stearns

Thursday 20th of April 2023

Hi Georgia, it's hard to say without a picture. Does it look like a variation on courthouse steps, maybe? I bet if you post a picture in a quilting FB group you'd get some helpful ideas.

Sara

Sunday 15th of January 2023

Great job Sarah! Very beautiful quilts. Hope you continue to share your special creativity with us. Thanks, Sara I.

Lisa

Thursday 8th of December 2022

Thanks for sharing beautiful patterns I will use it in my upcoming quilting project

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Sunday 23rd of October 2022

[…] a quick-set top drop-in bobbin with a clear case cover, a detachable wide table for working on large quilting projects, a free arm for stitching around pant hems, cuffs, collars, etc., and a storage tray for keeping […]

Suzanne

Sunday 19th of September 2021

I have never quilted before and want to make a quilt for a queen size bed. I want to make it out of shirts and jeans that belonged to my fiancée, which passed away in June. I will have to hand sew it. Can you please help me with a very simple pattern? He was the kind of man that loved simpler things and this will give me another way to keep him with me.

Sarah Stearns

Tuesday 21st of September 2021

Hello Suzanne! One of the simplest quilt patterns would be a simple square patchwork design. A queen-size quilt can be up to 90" by 100", so you could do a 9x10 grid of 10" squares.