Our 8 Best Beginner Friendly Quilt Patterns

We’re lucky. Today when we take that initial step to become a quilter, we have the internet there to answer every single one of our questions. Want to find patterns for beginners? Tools? Tutorials? It’s all at our fingertips.

It wasn’t always this easy.

Quilting has a long tradition of being passed by word of mouth, from woman to woman. While the internet is certainly the most technologically advanced way to do that, it definitely continues that tradition. It’s easier now for a quilting newbie to find the information they need.

But that doesn’t mean it’s easy.

Quilting for beginners can still be very daunting. There’s a lot to learn: how to select and purchase fabric, whether to buy a pre cut quilt kit, or picking a pattern--not to mention stitching the whole thing together. Don’t even get started on binding the quilt.

Of course, the other difficulty when beginning--any artistic endeavor, really, but especially quilting--is that skill lags behind creativity. When I first began quilting, my mother told me to stitch nine patch quilts until I understood enough to do something more complicated. I couldn’t imagine anything more boring than that (and I love nine patch quilts).

So, today I thought I’d introduce you to some quilt kits for beginners that aren’t nine patch! They’re great for quilters just beginning their journey and can introduce new techniques and ideas.

They’re not just for beginners, though. These quilts are also great for experienced quilters with a deadline! Some of these quilts can be finished in just one day. So, if you’re looking for a great Christmas gift that you can get done quickly, read on!

Hashtag

For those who appreciate the more modernist facets of quilting, then Hashtag is awesome! This simple quilt has a lot of the staples of modern quilts: generous white backgrounds, a non-traditional pattern and so much more.

This is a deceptively simple pattern. It’s based on a traditional hashtag design, but it has a twist: the layered strips add three dimensionality that make the quilt look way more difficult than it is. The generous white space will also allow you to experiment with different quilting designs.

The pattern is also available by itself if you’d like to select your own fabrics. This is a good one to do that with. A jelly roll and some backing fabric will be everything you need!

Gumball

Gumball is another great, beginner-friendly pattern. The great part about this quilt is that it’s offered in multiple colorways. Think Pink is great because, in the month of October, we’ll make a donation to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure with proceeds from the purchase!

Gumball is another deceptively simple design. The combination of several shades of color and the non-repeating pattern make the quilt appear more difficult than it really is. You’ll need to make half-square and quarter-square triangles and different squares. That’s it! Easy as pie.

Square Dance

Square Dance is a little bit more challenging than the previous two. It features cat’s cradle blocks arranged to create concentric squares on point. Alternate rows feature smaller squares on point. It’s a lot simpler than it looks!

Especially because of Creative Grid’s Cat’s Cradle XL ruler. This ruler makes short work of cat’s cradle blocks and eliminates a lot of the errors common when doing them by hand.

There’s also just the pattern, if primary colors don’t fit your fancy. Unfortunately, a package of precuts won’t cut it for this quilt. You’ll need to buy your own fabric, but this is a great project with very clear color dynamics if you want to explore doing that.

Savanna

OK. Hear me out. Savanna may not look like a beginner-friendly quilt pattern. Curves are definitely an advanced technique, and I wouldn’t recommend a beginner attempt one unassisted. But “unassisted” is the key word there.

This quilt kit is designed to use Creative Grids Curves for Squares ruler. The Curves for Squares ruler makes cutting these subtle curves easy. You do need to make sure that you have a good, sharp blade in your cutter so you can make as many cuts at once as possible.

Weaving the Rails

While a lot of the quilts in this post are easier than they appear, Weaving the Rails is just as easy as it looks. Blocks of three strips oriented differently from block to block. That’s it. It can’t really get any simpler than this one.

This is another great pattern to practice selecting your own fabrics with. The tight, geometrical design lends itself to a variety of color schemes--monochromatic, complementary and triadic color schemes would all look great!

Blue Willow

Blue Willow appeals to the traditionalist in all of us, and it just doesn’t get any simpler than this pattern.

Churn Dashes are one of the simplest blocks to make, and the variations in Blue Willow are no exception.

The key to this quilt is the contrast between the fabric patterns. The subtle variations there keep the pattern fresh even though the blocks themselves couldn’t be simpler! The kit features shades of blue batiks, but this is another great pattern to explore selecting your own fabric with!

Strippy Double Diamond

Strippy Double Diamond is another beginner-friendly strip kit. The pattern features rectangular strips, with some split and reversed. Of course, this kit is especially easy because it’s pre cut. All you have to worry about is the assembly, so if you’re just starting out and want to learn some stitching basics, then this is the quilt for you!

Scrap Crazy

Scrap Crazy is the beginner quilt kit. Seriously. It doesn’t get any simpler than this and it comes in so many colorways, your head will spin. My particular favorites are Iceberg and Homemade, which is made from Tula Pink’s fabric line of the same name.

These scrap crazy quilts are made entirely with Creative Grids’ 8” Scrap Crazy ruler. Stitchin’ Heaven also offers the Scrappy Helper tool, which makes these quilt kits even simpler. An experienced quilter can finish this quilt in a single day--it’s that simple!

There you have it: eight quilting designs for a beginner. Some of these patterns do require a little bit of experience sewing, at the very least, but I’m confident that a novice quilter can easily complete them.

Happy Stitchin’!