I had all the time in the world before kids… Feeling productive was me taking a break from sewing to empty the dishwasher. How times have changed! If only emptying the dishwasher was acceptable as the only chore I had for the day. Lol. Dreams!!

Now I rarely have time to sew. Unless I set the kids up in front of something media related (which doesn’t keep their attention for long), or just decide to ignore the bickering and fighting that seems to be their recent awesome way of communicating… I really only have time to sew when they are asleep… And most of the time I want to spend that time just relaxing with Shawnikins and a pointless movie! Can you relate?

But I miss the feeling of accomplishment that quilting brought me. I keep telling myself that once the kiddos are in school I’ll have that time to find my quilting life again. I’m looking forward to it… but I don’t want the kids to grow up, EVER… still, I’m looking forward to doing the things that I love again. Uninterrupted! (wink)

So if you are already at that stage of life (kids in school), and want to create something awesome… A quilt perhaps!!! I totally recommend this Nine Patch Patchwork Quilt Pattern! It’s easy, quick, and the results are awesome! This quilt is probably one of my most highly complemented quilts, and it was my VERY FIRST QUILT EVER, so you can make one too!!!

NINE PATCH PATCHWORK QUILT PATTERN

Materials Needed:

• At least 9 different Patterned Quilting Fabrics (I think I used about 20)
• Coordinating Sashing Fabric (I chose white quilting fabric)
• Coordinating Thread
• Cutting Mat
• Rotary Cutter
• Sewing Ruler
• Sewing Machine

Method to sew the NINE PATCH PATCHWORK QUILT PATTERN:

This Nine Patch Patchwork Quilt Pattern has 5 nine patch blocks across and 5 nine patch blocks down. So that is 25 nine patch blocks total! Love math!

So 25 nine patch squares means you will need to cut 225 squares to create this quilt! You can do it!! It seems like a lot but in the quilting world it’s not. Just double, triple, heck quadruple up your cutting speed by layering your fabrics on top of each other when cutting them out! Yes you can do that!

 NOTE: Always use 1/4 inch seams when sewing fabric together unless otherwise noted!

NINE PATCH BLOCK

Step 1: Cut out 225, 4 1/2 inch by 4 1/2 inch squares of your patterned quilting fabrics.

Step 2: Sew 9 different patterned fabrics together to create a nine square block. Like this…

• Sew 3 squares together (side by side) – make 3 of these
• Sew your 3 strips of 3 squares together, to make a 3 by 3 square block!
• Repeat to create 25 of these blocks in total

You will now have 25, 12 1/2 inch by 12 1/2 inch blocks!

SASHING

Step 3: Create your Quilt Sashing! Sashing is the fabric used to border you quilt blocks. In this case it’s the white fabric that is around each of my nine patch blocks.

To create this sashing I used 2 1/2 inch wide strips of white fabric.

• Start by adding sashing to 2 sides of your first nine patch block. So the sashing would measure 2 1/2 inches by 12 1/2 inches (the height of your nine patch block).
• Sew your next nine patch block to the sashing on one side.
• Sew a 2 1/2 inch by 12 1/2 inch sashing to the side of that nine patch block… and so on… till you have 5 nine patch blocks bordered by 6 sashings.

• Measure the length of your nine patch block quilt all the sashings. Mine is 72 1/2 inches long. Add a couple of inches to that measurement just encase (it’s better to be longer and cut off the fabric later, than to be too short! wink
• Create a 2 1/2 inch by 74 1/2 inch strip of sashing. Don’t worry… you don’t need one continuous strip of fabric… you can patch your strip together with the sashing fabric that you are using. I think I used 3 pieces of sashing fabric to create this 74 1/2 inch long strip.
• Repeat this step and make 6 of these 74 1/2 inch strips!!
• Sew your long sashing strips between your strips of nine patch blocks and small sashings, As well as to the top and bottom of your quilt!
• DONE!

If my verbal explanation of sashing is confusing you, here is a YouTube Sashing Tutorial that will make it so much clearer for you! Your welcome! wink (I learn better with video too). Maybe one day I’ll create my own YouTube tutorials!

To complete your quilt…

Step 4: Create a quilt sandwich and baste it.

Step 5: Quilt your quilt sandwich together. I opted to quilt straight lines on the sides of each seam (called outline quilting). Which is one of the easiest ways to quilt on a regular sewing machine. And a great way to start off as a quilter! You can see the quilting better on the back of the quilt as I used white thread. Like this…

Step 6: Bind your quilt! I created a super easy quilt binding tutorial here!

You made the Nine patch patchwork quilt pattern!! YAY!! Now pour yourself a glass of wine and snuggle up under your new quilt and watch that pointless movie! LOL! Movies are so much better when you are all cozy in your very own quilt! Life is great!

I hope this little Nine Patch Patchwork Quilt Pattern inspires you to create one too! This quilt now has many uses. mostly used in Ivy’s room on her bed, but is known to make its way downstairs to snuggle on the couch, or as a blanket in the back yard to play on. Don’t worry about getting your quilts dirty. They get cozier and more beautiful every time you wash them!

Until next time, enjoy the process of making your first quilt (like I did)… and create beautiful things every day!

XO JCL

P.S. I did make a small blog post about this quilt years ago, when I was experimenting with the blogging world. You can check that post out here! LOL.

P.P.S. All of my projects are sewn on a Brother Project Runway PC420PRW 294-Stitch Professional Grade Computerized Sewing Machine.