Here’s an easy way to make a “3×3” quilt, which can be a fun and easy gift to make for a friend or family member. Here’s a pic of how mine turned out, and step-by-step instructions of how I made it!

Supplies:

• 3 Yards of Cotton Fabric: I used – 1 ½ yards Printed (for the front) and 1 1/2 Solid (for the back)
• 2 Yard of Quality Quilting Batting
• Thread – Matching the fabric of your choice
• Scissors
• Yard Stick – or a 12 inch ruler (works but it takes more time)
• Marking Pencil – Washable Marking Marker (Crayola washable markers work well for this also)

Getting Ready

Place the solid or back piece of fabric right side down and measure to make sure that it is 3X3

Next you will do the same for the batting – 2 – 3X3 pieces

Do the same thing for the Printed or top piece of fabric

At this point, you will have 2 pieces of fabric and 2 pieces of batting that all measure 3X3

Step 1 : Place bottom (Back) piece of fabric face down – lay your quilting right on top of it – than lay your top (front) piece of fabric face up on top of the batting – pin in place – sew all around the edge using a 1/4 inch seam allowance.

Once you have it pinned all the way around, for the next step you will be making the inner squares of your quilt

Step 2: Measuring the Inside Squares

Using your yard stick measure and line 4 inch squares (or you can do more squares if you wish) – I marked the back it was easier to see than trying to see a line on the print

Step 3: Following the Lines

Sew each line – now you have a piece of fabric that has 4 inch squares

Step 4: Binding

The total length will be 12 ½ feet to 13 feet long. Taking the extra fabric:

Cut 4 inch strips out of the fabric that you used for the back of your quilt

Cut 2 inch strips out of the fabric that you used for the front of your quilt

Starting with the 4 inch strips you will need to sew them together – Place them together so that they form an upside down L and sew at a 45 degree angle – Cut leaving a ¼ in seam allowance – discard

NOTE: when doing this with solid colored fabric be careful seam is always on the same side

Following the above steps, repeat with the 2 inch strips:

Next You will need to sew the two strips of fabric together – placing them face up to face up sew along edge leaving a ¼ inch seam allowance (pictured below):

Next you will be turning that long strip of fabric right side out and folding it in half – (it may help if you iron this down flat) and sewing it onto your quilt

Pin the fabric onto the back side of your quilt with the printed fabric down starting in the middle of a side

When you get to the corner stop about ¼ of an inch from the end and fold the fabric back over itself

Then fold the fabric back so that it looks like this:

Once you get back to the beginning of your strip flatten both ends out and cut at a 45 degree angle measuring to fit your quilt (you will have excess fabric) fold back into half and pin to quilt

Starting at the middle of the side again sew the binding onto the quilt leaving a ¼ inch seam allowance

When you get to a corner – unpin the corner, fold it over, and sew until it is about a ¼ inch from the edge of the quilt.

Turn to a 45 degree angle and sew right off the corner of the quilt – cut thread – fold the corner back the way it was and start again leaving a ¼ inch seam allowance.

Repeat until you get back to the beginning.

Now that the binding is sewn onto the back of your quilt – cut off any excess fabric and batting

Remove all of the pins and fold your binding around to the front of your quilt

Pin the binding down – taking notice of the corners as you pin

When you come to a corner – flatten the fabric and fold so that it looks like a V.

Sewing on the top of the quilt – sew all the way around the edge of the binding leaving about an 8th of an inch.

Now you have completed your quilt! Here are the final results: