Free Jelly Roll Quilt Pattern – How to turn fabric strips into a log cabin quilt

Jelly roll quilts are some of the quickest and most satisfying quilts in life to make. They have earned themselves thousands of devotees around the world and it’s easy to see why. If you’ve not come across them before, Jelly Rolls are a pack of pre-cut strips of fabric which are all the same width, making them easy to cut quickly into a batch of shapes which you can them mix together in all sorts of clever ways to make a speedy quilt. As all the measuring has been done for you, you get to dive straight into the sewing! There are dozens of Pinterest boards and blogs dedicated to Jelly roll quilt patterns so we knew we had to feature one here on Gathered for you!

This log cabin quilt using a jelly roll was designed by Jo Avery and was first featured in Love Patchwork and Quilting magazine.

You could also use offcuts of fabric from past projects if you wanted to make this quilt as a new year stash buster. If you are brand new to quilt making, our guide to quilting for beginners will show you the ropes, or if this has got you in the mood for some granny square action of the crochet hook variety, dive into our free granny square patterns.

Try using Strips in gradually lighter shades of the same Colour for a modern ombre colour scheme.

Free jelly roll quilt pattern

Fabric requirements

• Central fabric 3½in square
• Print fabric 2½in strips, 3yds in total
• Backing fabric 3½yds
• Binding fabric ½yd

Finished size

59in square approx

You will need

• Fabric – For the quilt top, backing and binding
• Batting – 63in square
• Basting spray – Optional
• Sewing machine
• Thread
• Basic quilting kit

Cutting out

Step 1

From the binding fabric cut six (6) 2½in x WOF strips.

Piecing the quilt

Step 1

Prepare the backing fabric by cutting the yardage into two equal lengths. Remove the selvedges and sew together along the length with a ½in seam allowance. Press well and trim to 63in square.

Step 2

Lay the batting onto a flat surface and place your backing, right side up, on top. Peel back half of the backing and spray layers with basting spray. Carefully lay the backing fabric back over the batting, smoothing out any wrinkles. Repeat with the other side. Alternately, you can secure your batting with safety pins but these will need to sit on the batting side so you can easily remove them as you work.

Step 3

Fold your backing/batting in half, towards the backing, then fold in half again so that you can see a centre cross on your batting side. Mark this with a pencil or removable pen.

Step 4

Fold your 3½in square in half and in half again, right sides together, and line this up with the centre cross on your batting. Pin the square in place, right side up.

Step 5

Take your first 2½in strip and place right sides together with one side of the square, lining up the edges exactly. Pin then sew in place (fig a).

Trim the strip in line with the centre square and finger press the seam open (fig b).

Step 6

Lay your next strip along the next edge of your square, moving clockwise and including the edge of the last strip (fig c).

Pin, sew and trim to line up. Continue placing strips around your square in this fashion until the centre square is surrounded (fig d).

Step 7

Begin your next ’round’ using a different coloured strip and start at a different corner of the square (this well help prevent distortion as your quilt grows). Pin and sew strips, trimming to size as you go. Roll the excess batting/backing so that it fits in your machine throat (fig e).

We made each round a different colour, sewing together smaller strips where longer pieces were needed and mixing prints of the same colour within a round (figs f & g).

Step 8

Keep going until you have completed fourteen rounds. Trim your batting and backing to square up (fig h).

Step 9

Prepare the binding by sewing the six strips end to end to form one long length. Fold along the full length, wrong sides together and press. Use this to bind the quilt.If you’re new to quilting, never fear! Check out our guide to How to bind a quilt.