What makes a good scrap quilt?

The goal with this type of quilt is variety. You want to be sure to include lights, brights, darks, neutrals, big prints, muted prints , etc. It's not just the variety of fabrics that make a scrap quilt sparkle but also careful placement of design and colors.

What size scrap for quilts?

Here are some examples: Fabric is cut into 1 ½”, 2 ½”, 3 ½” or larger strips. Fabric is cut into 2 ½” squares for postage stamp quilts or hexies. Fabric is cut into 5” squares. Any pieces smaller than 5” are discarded.

How do you make a scrappy quilt look good?

How to Make Your Scrap Quilt Look Good If you don't love a fabric enough to use it in another project, you are not going to like it in a scrap quilt. ... Try to choose a direction. ... Large scale prints can be tricky. ... Also tricky - prints with a lot of contrast. ... Try to pair up fabrics within the quilt that you like together. More items... Dec 22, 2022

How do I choose a color for a scrap quilt?

Quilts made using this recipe accommodate any color, so think in terms of light and dark instead of specific color placement. When choosing fabrics, don't try to coordinate fabrics for the whole quilt. Instead, choose fabrics or colors for one quilt block at a time .

How to pick fabrics for a scrap quilt?

You may have heard the quilters maxim, Color gets all the credit, but value does all the work, and boy, does it bear repeating in terms of scrap quilts. The best, most sparkling scrap quilts prioritize a fabrics value how light, medium or dark it is over color and print every time .

What is the Kawandi scrap quilt method?

The traditional Kawandi is a hand-stitched quilt, made from scrap fabric, including old saris. One unique aspect is that it is assembled from the outside in. The edges are turned under and stitched together, and batting is laid inside. Then quilting proceeds in a spiraling line, about a finger width apart .

What is the greatest investment in quilting?

Time. In some ways time is the greatest investment that you will make in your quilting but it is often the most misunderstood. Your time is valuable, you have a finite amount and can't make any more, but so many people use it poorly.

What is a scrap quilt?

Scrap Quilts are quilts, usually pieced, that are made from a wide variety of fabrics, in various colors and designs . The quilt may be made from one Bloc design or different designs.

What are fabric scraps called?

Carbage or cabbage, and more rarely garbage , is the name given to the bits of fabric left over from cutting out an item.

What are quilt codes?

The Underground Railroad Quilt Codes* Secret messages in the form of quilt patterns helped enslaved people escape the bonds of captivity in the Southern states before and during the American Civil War . Slaves could not read or write; it was illegal to teach a slave to do so.

What do you do with old quilts?

Ways to dispose of your old duvet Donate it to an animal shelter. Donate it to a homeless shelter. Compost it. Take it to a textiles recycling scheme. Save it for your next move. Use it as a camping base. Make your own cushions. Jan 24, 2024

How do you store fabric scraps for quilting?

Bins, boxes, and baskets work great for storing scraps too, and can easily be stored on a bookshelf or other storage unit . something opaque would be nice and hidden in a shared space! If you don't have a lot of room for drawers or baskets, you could keep your scraps separated with ziploc bags.

What is scrappy quilting?

Scrap Quilts are quilts, usually pieced, that are made from a wide variety of fabrics, in various colors and designs . The quilt may be made from one Bloc design or different designs.

14 Scrap Quilt Patterns to Help Use up Your Fabric Stash (2024)

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Quilting Patterns

Stacy Fisher

Stacy Fisher is an expert on crafting, sewing, and frugal finds, sharing her knowledge of hands-on DIY creations, finding freebies, and budgeting. Stacy was a guest on "The Dr. Oz Show" and featured in Woman's World Magazine. She has nearly two decades of writing and editing experience.

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Published on 02/07/22

14 Scrap Quilt Patterns to Help Use up Your Fabric Stash (2)

A scrap quilt is the perfect way to create something new from what you already have, and these scrap quilt patterns will have you digging into your fabric scrap pile so you can create a quilt from fabric that you already have on hand. There's a quilt here for every skill level, and most are beginner-friendly. A quick look at the pattern will tell you what skill level is required.

No matter what size scraps you have, you should be able to find the perfect quilt pattern here to put your scrap stash to good use. There are patterns here that use the tiniest scraps to create something beautiful, while larger special pieces of scrap can be used to show off the fabric.

Tip

After you've decided what pattern you'll make, you'll need to choose fabrics for your scrap quilt. There are a lot of ways you can go, depending on just how scrappy you want it to look.

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Scrap Stash Plus

This modern plus quilt makes it easy to show off your fabric scraps. This quilt uses 2 1/2 inch strips that you should be able to easily find amongst your scraps. There's a whopping 8 different quilt sizes included in this pattern, from baby all the way up to King. There's also a lot of great tips here for organizing your fabric scraps.
Scrap Stash Plus from Quilty Love, Free
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Hidden Garden

The Hidden Garden quilt pattern is perfect for showing off some larger scrap pieces. There are no sewing curves with this pattern: It uses raw-edge applique to attach the scraps to the background.
Hidden Garden from Suzy Quilts, Free
See Also
20 Free Quilt Patterns for All Skill Levels 75 Free Easy Quilt Patterns for Beginners - Scattered Thoughts of a Crafty Mom 50+ Free Easy Quilt Patterns for Beginners Free Modern Quilt Patterns for Beginners and Advanced Quilters
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The Stacks

What a scrap-busting quilt this is! This modern scrappy quilt pattern is only available as a queen size, but it would be easy to scale up or down depending on how many rows and columns you'd like to have. This is a unique scrap quilt that also happens to be perfect for beginners.
The Stacks from Karen Griska Quilts, $5
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Controlled Chaos

The Controlled Chaos scrap quilt is much more than a free pattern. There's a whole tutorial here that takes you through the whole process of choosing colors, making the blocks, putting together the quilt, and finally topping the whole quilt off with some big stitch quilting.
Controlled Chaos from Shiny Happy World, Free
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Patchwork

Now, this is a scrappy quilt! Made entirely out of 2 1/2 inch squares, you can go wild using just about every scrap you have on hand. All different colors are used making it the ultimate scrappy quilt. There's a tutorial in addition to the pattern that will help you put it all together.
Patchwork from Sew Can She, Free
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Four Square

This free quilt pattern calls for 5-inch charm squares, but there's no reason you couldn't replace those with your scraps. This quilt has a lot of white space in it, making it great for showing off those precious scraps of fabric you've been saving.
Four Square from Coral + Co., Free
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Happy Scrappy Baskets

See Also
98 Free Quilt Patterns for Beginner to Experienced Quilters
Baskets are traditional in quilting, but this one mixes it up by filling them with a colorful burst of scrap fabric squares and triangles. This pattern proves that you can still have order in a scrappy quilt.
Happy Scrappy Baskets from Coriander Quilts, $9.95
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Fat Quarter Fancy

This pattern calls for fat quarters, but scraps would work beautifully here, too. It really features the scraps and only calls for a little over a yard in background fabric. This makes a throw-sized quilt that everyone will be fighting over.
Fat Quarter Fancy from Sew Can She, Free
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Star Value

Get scrappy with this free quilt block pattern that's available in five sizes, giving you a lot of flexibility to change the size of the star based on the amount of scrap fabric you have. You can make this totally scrappy or organize your stars by color. Besides the free pattern, there's also a tutorial to help you patchwork the stars.
Star Value from Happy Quilting, Free
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Stacked Squares

Stacked Squares is a scrappy quilt pattern that is designed by placing low-volume colors in some areas and bright colors in others. Depending on what scraps you have, this might be the perfect quilt for you to make. Five sizes are included and there's a whole tutorial to help you put everything together.
Stacked Squares from Happy Quilting, Free
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Grandma's Window

This pretty quilt is completed on-point, making this an intermediate level quilt to make. Different sizes of squares show off different fabrics. You could choose certain colors or just use everything you have to make it even more scrappy.
Grandma's Window from Under the Shamrock, $9.95
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Plaid-ish

Create the look of plaid with this free scrappy quilt pattern that comes out to be 64 inches by 82 inches. You can easily scale the size up and down by adding or subtracting blocks. In addition to the pattern, there's also a free coloring sheet available, so you can plan where you'll be putting everything.
Plaid-ish from Kitchen Table Quilting, Free
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Feel the Tide

Dig into your scrap basket and choose whichever fabrics you love to use in this Feel the Tide quilt. This is a beautiful quilt with a unique design that you're going to love. Only one size is available, an over-sized throw size that would be perfect for cuddling up under.
Feel the Tide from Thimbles and Needles, $9.90
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Exploding Heart

This 72-inch by 72-inch quilt features an exploding heart, and scraps would really make it interesting. This is an advanced beginner pattern that includes detailed instructions and advice on colors if you'd like to go a little less scrappy.
Exploding Heart from Slice of Pi Quilts