How to Read a Quilt Pattern
When you first start quilting, it can feel a bit overwhelming. Even if you’re very familiar with sewing, reading a quilt pattern can be an altogether new experience! While I do my best to write patterns that are easy to follow and understandable, most patterns have some level of assumption built in. So, whether you’re new to sewing entirely or just new to reading quilt patterns, let me give you a quick primer on reading quilt patterns!
General Tips
Read through the entire pattern before starting. I know this may sound silly or obvious, but at least 50% of pattern questions I receive could be answered by a quick read through before getting started!
Print the cutting instructions. Or the whole pattern! But having a physical copy of the cutting instructions can be very helpful to keep your cuts straight.
Carefully stack and label pieces as you cut. This will make the rest of the process much less frustrating!
Assumptions
While all patterns try to limit assumptions, there will always be a few! Here are some you may not be familiar with.
Fabric for quilting is general cut first in width of fabric (WOF) strips. Width of fabric means the dimension from selvedge end to selvedge end. For quilting cotton, this tends to be somewhere between 42” - 44”. Many people (including me) cut WOF strips from yardage folded in half - just like it comes off of the bolt. Each strip is then subcut down to the appropriate pieces.
We generally assume that fabric is being cut with a rotary cutter and acrylic ruler. Most people find that cutting with scissors is too time consuming and imprecise for quilting!
Seam allowance is very important in quilting! The general seam allowance required to make quilt math work is ¼” (which is smaller than a common 3/8” garment sewing seam allowance), though a scant ¼” will always produce better results. Don’t be afraid of a scant seam allowance - they’re really not that compliated! My patterns will tell you if they require a scant seam allowance or not.
My patterns (and most quilt patterns produced in the US) use imperial measurements. It is not recommended to try to convert these measurements to metric measurements, as quilting uses very precise measurements.
Pressing and ironing are not the same thing. It’s very important to press after every seam (unless directed otherwise), but ironing can cause some major warping issues with your project.
Sections of a Quilt Pattern
How a quilt pattern is organized will depend on the designer. However, many quilt patterns tend to follow the same general layout with the following sections:
Introduction & Fabric Requirements
This is where you will find some general information about the pattern - the inspiration behind it, any tutorial links that might help with specific techniques, etc. This section will usually also explain any definitions and assumptions around seam allowance, pressing, and more.
Most designers (myself included) have some overage calculated into their fabric requirements to account for imprecise fabric shop cuts, small mistakes, and some shrinkage for those who prewash (though this can be hard to calculate, and it’s always possible if you prewash that you could wind up a bit short on fabric).
Cutting Instructions
Cutting instructions should be clear and straightforward. However, pattern writers have to communicate a lot of precise information in what is usually a fairly small chart, so it helps to have a clear understanding of how cutting instructions tend to be written.
I write cutting instructions using the following format:
This means that you should cut one 4” wide strip along the width of fabric. Then, you’ll want to lay this strip out on your cutting mat and cut four 4” squares out of it. Finally, you can cut the remainder of the strip down to a 2 ½” wide strip and cut four 2 ½” x 6 ½” pieces from it.
Now, sometimes we will need to do something a bit more complex. Let’s say a pattern calls for long strips that need to be sewn together. This may be communicated in the cutting chart as follows:
This means you would cut six 2 ½” wide by WOF strips, then sew them all together. You’d then press the seams, and cut two 2 ½” x 108 ½” strips.
The Morgana Quilt pattern, releasing 2/13/23
Occasionally cutting instructions are a little bit more complicated to allow for maximum fabric efficiency and minimal waste.
In the example on the left, we will be subcutting the pieces listed out of each fabric strip. Since each strip produces one of each piece listed (A14, A7, and A9), we will have four of each of those pieces total. In the example on the right, we’ve split the cutting of E3 pieces across multiple different WOF strips. This allows us to get all 40 pieces total without wasting the remnants of the 6 ½” x WOF strip.
Oftentimes, fat quarter friendly patterns will also include a cutting diagram, which will show you how to cut out each piece for maximum space effeciency.
Assembly Instructions
The bulk of any quilting pattern will contain the actual sewing instructions. This section should provide clear instruction about each step, along with diagrams and (if needed) indications of how many blocks to create and their unfinished sizes. If blocks aren’t measuring correctly during these steps, it’s time to check your seam allowance! And if you’re struggling with techniques in these sections, there is a wealth of content on youtube that can demonstrate almost any quilting technique. You can also always reach out to the pattern designer for help!
Coloring Page
Most quilt patterns include a coloring page to help you try out some color options for your quilt. I suggest trying out the Recolor app or QuiltInk (if the pattern you are making has been uploaded to QuiltInk) to make this process easier!
Finishing Instructions
Quilt patterns can tend to be pretty sparse on the finishing instructions, because everyone likes to finish their quilts a bit different and most people already have go to methods. However, if this is your first quilt this can be a bit frustrating! If you’re new to quilting, I highly recommend this video series to get started with the basting, quilting, and binding steps.
I hope this helps you walk through your first quilt pattern!