Stitch your way through September with these panel quilt ideas

Panels are a great way for fabric designers to highlight their favourite illustrations on a larger scale than often offered in their collections. 

Adding one to your quilts, pouches, cushions and more will make an easy yet impactful addition to any project. Some panels are designed for specific projects, such as advent calendar panels or large-scale whole cloth quilt tops. 

Panels may also be printed as multiple squares or rectangles, giving you more options on what to make. 

Here, Paula Steel will show you how to add sashing to create a quick and easy panel, and a twist by adding stars to the sashing. 

How to sew with fabric panels 

Cutting out

Step 1

Take a look at your panel before you begin. Panels can be a combination of shapes, most commonly including rectangles and squares. Decide which elements you want to cut, and use the following method to neatly cut from the panel.

Step 2

Place a quilting ruler on top of the panel, and measure the size of the area you would like to cut out (Fig A). Keep in mind that you will need to add a ½in seam allowance to your desired finished size for each piece. Sometimes printed areas do not have perfectly square edges, so plan to cut them out slightly larger to allow for trimming.

Step 3

You can mark areas you want to cut with a removable fabric pen, then cut out roughly with scissors, leaving a generous seam allowance. This allows you to avoid cutting through any adjacent areas by accident.

Step 4

Then square up the pieces, using your quilter’s ruler and rotary cutter. Make sure to centre any motifs, adding a ¼in seam allowance around each edge.

Step 5

Adding sashing

One of the simplest ways to use a panel in a quick quilt is to add sashing and corner squares to create a larger quilt top (Fig B). Decide on the finished height of sashing you would like. As a guide, the height should be around a quarter of the finished size of your panel squares.

Step 6

Round the height of the finished size to the nearest ¼in. For example, a finished panel square of 6in would look proportionate with 1½in finished sashing. This would mean cutting 2in x 6½in strips for sashing, adding the ½in seam allowance.

Step 7

Cut corner squares to the same size as the sashing strip height. For example, when using a 2in x 6½in sashing strip, you would cut 2in squares. This would give a 1½in square finished size.

Step 8

Creating stars in the sashing

Follow the process in steps 10-14 to add some extra wow factor by creating small stars at the corners of your sashing, or skip to steps 15-18 to sew the blocks together for a quick and simple finish.

Step 9

Cut eight squares of fabric for each star. The squares should be half the finished size of the sashing, plus ½in. So for 1½in finished sashing, you would cut 1¼in squares. Draw a diagonal line on the wrong side of each square.

Step 10

Place one square RST at one end of a sashing strip, so the marked diagonal goes across the corner (Fig C).

Step 11

Sew along the line and trim, leaving a ¼in seam allowance (Fig D).

Step 12

Press open. Repeat steps 10-11 to sew a square across the other corner at the same end (Figs E–F).

Step 13

Repeat steps 10-12 with three more sashing strips. These will surround one sashing square to form a star (Fig G).

Step 14

Repeat the same process to add star points to all the sashing strips at both ends, or just the strip ends where you want the patchwork star to appear.

Step 15

Sewing the blocks

Lay out the panel squares into rows, with the sashing pieces and corner squares between the squares and around the outer edge, as shown in Fig B. If you added star points, make sure that they are all surrounding the same square.

Step 16

Sew the panel squares into rows, with the vertical sashing pieces in between and at either end.

Step 17

Sew the horizontal sashing pieces together in rows, with the sashing squares in between and at each end.

Step 18

Sew the panel rows and sashing rows together, carefully matching seams to complete your sashed quilt top (Fig H).

How to sew a panel quilt pattern

Step 1

You will need:

• Download Triangle Templates A–C to make the panel quilt pattern.

Finished size:

• 60in square

Notes:

• Seam allowances are ¼in, unless otherwise stated.
• Press seams open, unless otherwise instructed.
• Press fabrics well before cutting.
• WOF = width of fabric.
• RST = right sides together.
• WST = wrong sides together.
• HST = Half-square Triangle.
• HRT = Half-rectangle Triangle.

Fabrics used:

Panel is the Projects with Purpose Panel by Ruby Star Society.

Making the quilt

Step 1

Cutting out

From the panel cut:

• Eleven (11) 7½in feature squares. Refer to steps 1–3 of the instructions above for tips on cutting out your squares.

Step 2

From the background fabric cut:

• Four (4) 7½in x WOF. Subcut eight (8) Triangle A, four (4) 7½in squares and sixteen (16) 4in x 7½in.
• One (1) 8in x WOF. Subcut four (4) 8in squares.
• Four (4) 4½in x WOF. Subcut thirty two (32) 4½in squares.
• Three (3) 4in x WOF. Subcut twenty four (24) 4in squares.
• Six (6) 2½in x WOF. Sew together into a long strip and then subcut two (2) 56½in x 2½in and two (2) 60½in x 2½in for the borders.

Step 3

From the navy fabric cut:

• One (1) 4½in x WOF. Subcut eight (8) 4½in squares.
• One (1) 8in x WOF. Subcut four (4) 8in squares.
• One (1) 7½in x WOF. Subcut eight (8) Triangle B and eight (8) Triangle C.

Step 4

From the pink fabric cut:

• Two (2) 4½in x WOF. Subcut eighteen (18) 4½in squares.
• One (1) 8½in x WOF. Subcut one (1) 8½in square and six (6) 4½in squares.

Step 5

From the yellow fabric cut:

• One (1) 8in x WOF. Subcut two (2) 8in squares.
• Seven (7) 2½in x WOF for binding.

Step 6

Half-square Triangles

Draw diagonal line on the wrong side of a 4½in background square and then place RST with a pink 4½in square.

Step 7

Sew ¼in from either side of the line, then cut along the drawn line to make two HSTs.

Step 8

Press open and trim each HST to 4in square (Fig 1).

Step 9

Repeat steps 6-8 to make a total of forty eight (48) pink/background HSTs. Repeat again using navy/ background squares to make a total of sixteen (16) HSTs.

Step 10

Using the same process as in step 6, use navy and background 8in squares to make a total of eight (8) HSTs. Trim these large HSTs to 7½in square.

Step 11

Sew the HSTs in matching pairs, creating a large background triangle in the centre (Fig 2).

Step 12

Triangle blocks

Place a navy Triangle C RST along the right-hand edge of a background Triangle A. Note that the trimmed point of Triangle A should be at the top and the background triangle will show below the trimmed point of Triangle C (Fig 3).

Step 13

Sew the triangles together along the edge.

Step 14

Press towards the darker fabric so that the seam doesn’t show through the fabric.

Step 15

Repeat to add a Triangle B to the left edge (Fig 4).

Step 16

Make a total of eight triangle blocks.

Step 17

Star blocks A and B

Arrange four pink/background HST pairs with one panel feature square and four 4in background squares (Fig 5).

Step 18

Sew the units in rows, then sew the rows together to make one Star Block A.

Step 19

Repeat steps 17-18 to make a total of six Star Block A.

Step 20

Arrange two navy/background HST pairs, one panel feature square, two Triangle Blocks and four background 4in x 7½in rectangles (Fig 6).

Step 21

Sew the units in rows, then sew the rows together, matching seams, to create one Star Block B.

Step 22

Repeat steps 20-21 to make a total of four Star Block B.

Step 23

Cut your 8½in pink square along both diagonals to make four triangles.

Step 24

Place the first triangle RST at the top of the 7½in panel square, lining up the raw edges and centring the point. Sew in place (Fig 7).

Step 25

Repeat steps 23-24 to add a second triangle to the bottom of the square, and press both triangles open.

Step 26

Then sew the remaining triangles to either side (Fig 8).

Step 27

Take your two 8in yellow squares, and cut each along one diagonal to make a total of four triangles. Follow the same process in steps 23–16 to add the triangles to the centre square (Fig 9). If needed, trim to 14½in square.

Step 28

Arrange your large navy/background HST pairs and four 7½in background squares with the Economy Square, as shown in Fig 10.

Step 29

Sew the units in rows, then sew the rows together to complete the block.

Step 30

Quilt top assembly

Arrange your blocks, referring to the Layout Diagram. Sew the outer blocks together in columns.

Step 31

Sew the centre Star Block A’s together in pairs, then join to the top and bottom of the Economy Star Block.

Step 32

Sew the three columns together. Then sew a 2½in x 56½in border strip to top and bottom of the quilt.

Step 33

Sew a 2½in x 60½in border strip to either side to finish.

Step 34

Quilt and finish your quilt, as preferred.

Make quilting projects quick and easy with panels

There’s no better way to whip up a quilt in no time at all than to use a panel! Plus, there’s the bonus of having lots of eye-catching designs to mix and match across the quilt, so you’ll add plenty of interest to even the simplest of designs. Our tutorial starts you off with a simple Sawtooth Star pattern, but it’s easy to make any panel your own! 

Discover more quick quilting wins like panels

If these panel quilt ideas aren’t enough for you, why not try sewing something speedy with Jelly Rolls? We’ve got loads of ideas for Jelly Roll quilting projects – start by browsing our round-up of 20 Jelly Roll quilt patterns and get started today!