Terrific Tiny Quilts: Quick Projects, Excellent Gifts

Every now and then, I love to work on a small quilting project. Sometimes it is nice to not have to pull out a ton of fabric or wrestle with a huge quilt top! By definition, a mini quilt is one that measures less than 24” in length and width. Today let’s take a look at those especially tiny quilts.

Photo: Dresden plate mug rug by Fussy Cut

Not only are tiny quilts fun to make, they are very functional. What kind of quilts can you make?

Here are just a few ideas: snack mats and mug rugs for food and cups, name tags for work or quilting events, potholders and oven mitts for the kitchen, coasters for the coffee table, decorations for home and gifts.

Photo: Flower hot pad by Patchwork Notes

Why would you want to make a mini quilt, or a tiny one in particular?

1. Instant gratification. They don’t require much time to make! Plenty of quilters wish that they had more time to sew. Creating a small quilt is a great way to use your valuable free time.

2. Budget friendly. Little quilts do not require a lot of material or supplies. You can easily make them out of your scraps! If you are short on cash, dig into your leftovers and scraps for fabric and batting. It is also a fun way to use up those bit and pieces of your most favorite fabrics that you cannot bear to let go.

3. Functional artwork. Bring patchwork and fabric into your everyday life! Most of the time quilts are only used when curled up on the couch or in bed. When you sew mini quilts, you can use them all over your home. If you are a fabric lover like me, nothing beats seeing your favorites sewn into functional items (like coasters, potholders, and snack mats for the kids’ after school treats) spread across the house!

4. Learn new techniques. Is there a pattern or technique that you’ve wanted to try? Make a small quilt! Give those new techniques a try on a small scale without having to commit to a large project. For example, I love the look of ticker tape and wanted to give this new-to-me technique a try. After one afternoon, I had a cute little ticker tape mug rug! I had fun learning something new and ended up with a cute gift for a friend.

5. Try advanced blocks and patterns. Stretch your skills by making a mini out of your favorite, advanced block. Instead of committing to making many blocks, use just one to create a stunning tiny quilt.

Photo: Name tag by Me? A Mom?

A great tip for finishing up your tiny quilts? Use a single fold binding to finish it up! This creates a nice thin binding that frames the small quilt nicely. A regular, double fold binding looks bulky on such a small piece of work. Check out this tutorial from the Mama CJT blog for more info.

Photo: House hotpads by A quilt is nice

Head on over to the Craftsy pattern section, there are so many patterns for mug rugs, snack mats, pot holders, and mini quilts. How about you? What is your favorite type of tiny quilt?

Come back to the Craftsy blog tomorrow to discover a free quilting pattern you’re going to love!