Jigsaw puzzle quilt

Last summer I started sharing some of my favorite quilts that I have made. Then I got distracted. Because you know, that happens. And then I realized I forgot one of my absolute favorites. So today, I give you the jigsaw puzzle quilt.

I made this for a good friend who was having a baby. We were living in Italy at the time, so it is made using scraps I had lying around. This pattern is great for a scrappy quilt (like this one) or it also looks really cool when you use three or four dedicated fabrics in matching colors and patterns.

The jigsaw puzzle quilt is one of those great quilt patterns that look super complicated, but it’s actually really easy. It even takes less planning than your average quilt, though you need to have the space to lay it out and keep it there until it’s done. Want to learn how to make it? Well, read on.

The base of the puzzle pieces are “H” shapes, made up of two rectangles and a small square. For a 6 inch block, the rectangles measure 2 1/2″ x 6 1/2″ and the squares are 2 1/2″ x 2 1/2″. Make sure you don’t use all you fabric for the H’s, because you’re going to be cutting more squares to fill in the blank spaces. The H’s get placed in rows, alternately horizontal and vertical.

Once you get your H’s where you want them, then you can start filling in the ends of the puzzle pieces. (If you are familiar with jigsaw puzzles, they end up being like the pieces that have two holes and two connecting parts.) The square you put in the space in one block will match the rectangles in the block directly next to it.

So fill in all the holes with the appropriate fabric squares. There will be some blank holes around the edge, and you can either decide on random fabrics to fill them or designate one fabric for these edges.

These actually end up being blocks of two rectangles and three small squares. To complete a block, sew together the squares, then sew to the rectangles. Believe me, it looks like nothing until you get it all together, but then it’s awesome.

Once the blocks are all sewn, then sew them into rows and the rows into the quilt top. I tied this quilt with embroidery floss, but it would also look really cool on the back if you quilted along the inside of the puzzle pieces.

Here are some pictures I found on Pinterest of jigsaw puzzle quilts that are done with a color or pattern theme, instead of scrappy. Really, no matter how it is done, it’s way cool.

Happy sewing!