Easy quilt patterns for beginners, ranked

Ranked by seams

A seam here is one line of stitching from one end to the other, however long. We counted them from each pattern’s own cutting chart and steps; the tally is shown below the table. We do not give hours, because time depends on you and we have not timed anyone sewing these. Fewer seams and fewer pieces means less to cut, press and keep straight.

How the counts were made:

• Jelly roll race: 39 joins in the strip, then 5 long fold-and-sew seams (44).
• Lap quilt: 7 rows × 5 seams, 6 row joins, 4 border seams (45). Easy baby quilt: 8 rows × 5 seams, 7 row joins (47).
• Coin quilt: 4 strip sets of 10 strips (36 seams), 8 columns joined from 3 segments each (16), 7 column joins, and 10 border seams (69).
• Rail fence: 14 strip sets at 2 seams (28), 10 rows × 7 seams (70), 9 row joins and 10 border seams (117).
• Fat quarter brick: 8 rows of 6 seams and 8 offset rows of 7 (104), plus 15 row joins (119).
• Nine-patch throw: 18 blocks × 8 seams (144), 7 rows × 4 seams (28), 6 row joins and 10 border seams (188). Disappearing nine-patch: 20 blocks × 11 seams (220), 5 rows × 3 seams (15), 4 row joins and 10 border seams (249).

Border seams are 4, plus one for each time the border strips are joined end to end; binding is not counted. Counting the seams will not tell you everything. The race quilt has the fewest seams, but its first pass is about 60 feet long and the strip needs careful handling, so it is a beginner project that is not small.

What each one teaches

• Easy baby quilt: an accurate quarter-inch seam and pressing rows in opposite directions so the seams nest, with no border to measure. Practice the seam first with how to sew an accurate quarter-inch seam.
• Lap quilt: the same squares, plus measuring through the center and adding borders.
• Jelly roll race: sewing long seams without stretching and keeping a strip untwisted.
• Coin quilt: strip sets, cutting segments and building columns so no print sits beside itself.
• Rail fence: the strip-set method, which saves cutting; the zigzag needs three fabrics with clear contrast.
• Fat quarter brick: using fat quarters and joining offset rows with no seams to match.
• Nine-patch throw: matching seams, with the pressing that makes them nest.
• Disappearing nine-patch: cutting a finished block into quarters, turning two and resewing them.

Pick by what is on your table

• A jelly roll: the race quilt or the coin quilt. The coin quilt page explains the difference.
• Fat quarters: 8 make the baby quilt and 14 make the brick quilt.
• Charm packs: the disappearing nine-patch uses 100 charm squares.
• Nothing yet: start with the baby quilt from yardage you choose yourself.

The precut fabric guide explains what is in each precut.

Before you cut

Read how to make a quilt for the whole process, then quilting supplies for beginners for the short list of tools. If you are still choosing a sewing machine, our sister site StitchTested has a beginner machine guide. All of our free patterns are in one place at free quilt patterns, and the sizes are calculated and cross-checked on each page rather than sewn here.

You might also like

• Quilt patterns by precut: start from what is on your tableOur free precut patterns sorted by bundle, with the number of rolls, squares, packs or fat quarters each takes and the finished size.
• Precut fabric guide: jelly rolls, layer cakes, charm packs and moreWhat's in a jelly roll, layer cake, charm pack and the rest, drawn to scale, plus which free patterns use each one.
• Quilt block libraryEvery block on the site in one visual index, grouped by grid, with a line on each.
• Quilting supplies for beginnersThe short list of tools for a first quilt, and what can wait.