Earlier this year, on instagram, I noticed there was a #scrappylogcabinQAL and a movement to #sewmystash2015. I had been stashing sunny yellow fabrics for almost a year to make my daughter some sort of quilt. I thought, why not combine the two hashtags and sew my daughter a log cabin quilt from stash? Yes!
I was contemplating using square log cabin blocks, but found that they didn’t give me the twin sized quilt I wanted or they ended up with an odd number of blocks along the side, which didn’t suit the layout I wanted to use. I realised that a rectangular block would work much better, so that’s what I went with. My blocks are 10″ x 11″ finished (sewn together).
My final layout was 6 blocks by 8 blocks, and they are arranged in the configuration commonly known as Sunshine and Shadows. Boy, there are some configurations out there – this was the hardest part of this quilt, deciding which to go with. And then deciding which way to gradate the colours. Dark against light, light against light, phew. I finally settled on my version as I felt it made the ‘stars’ pop the most.
Light to dark vs dark to light in the grey fabrics. I was also contemplating using a HRT instead of a plain centre rectangle in these mock ups:
I’ve put together an information sheet on this quilt should you wish to make this 60″ x 88″ twin log cabin quilt.
I did a few things that made it really quick to put this quilt together.
Normally when chain piecing I like to leave about a half inch between blocks in the ‘chain’ and then cut them apart with my ruler as a guide, lined up along the length of my block. This is painful.
With this quilt, when I chain pieced I butted my blocks up right next to each other, like this:
Then when I cut them apart it only took one cut instead of two, and many times I just used scissors and eyeballed it.
I did NOT trim the blocks back with each round. I just trimmed the final blocks to 10.5″ x 11.5″
I only ironed after each round, not after each individual log. I finger pressed the seams within each round. When I did iron, I pressed all my seams to the side. It was super quick to iron them like that.
These blocks came together so quickly using this method – it was so gratifying.
It would be remiss of me not to point out that this method will lead to some inconsistencies in your blocks – you can see below that my greys aren’t lining up from block to block. I don’t mind and I know my daughter doesn’t care, so I was happy with the trade off.
Once the top was finished I basted and did some fairly quick quilting.
I used a decorative straight stitch to sew anchoring lines between all the ‘stars’ (along the light grey grid) and around the edges. Then I decided to tie the quilt within these lines, using a decorative star pattern dotted around various spots within. The star stitches work in nicely with the starburst pattern and the quilt is very soft and cuddly given the low density quilting.
The binding was scrappy and I used a zig zag stitch to machine sew it to the quilt – my first time ever. Again, not perfect, but super functional and I don’t believe it takes anything away from the busy design.
So there you have it! A twin sized, rectangular log cabin quilt, whipped up in a jiffy.
If you’d like this pattern in a PDF download, pop your details in below. You’ll receive the PDF as well as occasional updates and a discount on any new patterns I release. You can always unsubscribe if it’s not your cup of tea.
Wishing you all a wonderful weekend with a few (or maybe many?) moments of sewing.
Your quilt is GORGEOUS! Your fabric placement makes such a beautiful geometric pattern. Thank you also for the tutorial. Log cabins had never appealed to me before, now I see how much of a difference color placeent can make.
This is beautiful Kirsty! Love the grey and yellow colour combo!!
That is awesome Kirsty. Love the decorative stitches, makes it extra special 🙂
Another winner Kirsty! I love the yellow and grey together! For some reason it reminds me of those old fashioned photo corners you see in photo albums of the the forties and fifties! And the decorative stitches are a pretty alternative to the straight line quilting which is so popular at present!
Thank you for another great tutorial! I love this quilt
Oh, I love it! I’ve always loved log cabin quilts and the fact that there are so many possibilities and now you added rectangles to the mix! Genius! I love the contrast of the yellow and black, it really looks cheerful and chic at the same time! Thank you for all the sewing tips and measurements!!
Genius Kirsty. I am a fan of log cabins but haven’t made one for ages. I love the idea of the rectangular log cabin, although I may come unstuck if I actually have to concentrate that early on, ha! As always your instructions are really helpful and succinct. Congratulations on another gorgeous quilt. (No turquoise/aqua!)
As ever I am in awe … that is a beautiful piece of work Kirsty.
Your fabric selection is outstanding! Beautiful job on so many aspects. I’m glad you chose to do such a loose quilting/tieing on the quilt. I prefer a lofty feel, and it does add to the warmth factor. I hope your daughter treasures it.
Julie @ Pink Doxies
This is so pretty! I love the way the gold center pops out from the background! It’s perfect, and thanks for sharing your process! It’s very inspiring!!
I love your colors and especially how the dark yellow fabrics come together to form a secondary pattern Great graphic!
That quilt is just…ah! So awesome. and I think the machine binding give it a modern hip vibe.
Oh it’s lovely. Thanks for the tutorial.
This is absolutely gorgeous!! I love, love, love the colors together. I think it’s so cool how someone can put colors together that you’ve never thought about & it just works. It’s amazing to me how you can see an outfit, quilt or anything made out of certain fabrics & you think that it looks ok but then someone does the same thing in different colors & it’s just WOW!! You really did a great job on this quilt! It’s beautiful! 🙂
Lovely and making it so easy with the measurements and tips!! Thank you.
Can’t wait to try it…it is simple beautiful!!
Thank you so very much for posting this detailed tutorial. It’s been all the rave over at College Of Quilts. So thankful and putting it on my list of quilts to make. Blessings!
I fell in love with your quilt the first time I saw it. This will be my next project. 🙂 thank you for sharing the detailed information.
Love it! I can’t wait to make my own.
Absolutely love it! I really want to make one but i have a jelly roll so mine would be 2-1/2″ not 1-1/2″ and not sure it would look as pretty
I have been addicted to log cabins for all my quilting life. I love the way you have captured the greatness but made them do what you want them to. I like all of your ideas, the others make them really circle with the hst. Something to think about for the next one. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks Nanette, I’ll keep that in mind. I love a good log cabin, too, in all the shapes!
I did everything (twice) to get a pdf of this quilt pattern but did not receive it. Any suggestions?
Hi Nelva, I’m sorry that you are having problems. The file should download automatically to your computer when you confirm your subscription. Your computer will have a default folder it uses for downloads, and hopefully it’s in there. I will email it to you, too, so you will have it regardless. Happy sewing!
I received your e-mail with the pdf tutorial but I need to know the amounts of yardage you used for the quilt. and what size where the rectangles? I am new at quilting and don’t know how to figure yardage for a pattern. thank you for any information you can give me on this. I really love it!
Beautiful quilt and colors! I love the modern “take” on the classic log cabin. And, I appreciate you not trying to be perfect in matching seams and sewing the binding. I enjoy my quilting hobby so much more if I let go of “doing it perfectly”. Thank you for the PDF pattern.
Thanks Anita! I’m glad you enjoyed the pattern and my relaxed attitude to seams with this one. Sometimes matching is important, but with this one, I’m happy to let it slide 🙂
I can’t wait to get the instruction in the email. I have a nephew that is struggling, and this would be a nice quilt to make for him to give him comfort.
What a lovely sentiment, Rebecca. Good luck with your sewing!
I haven’t made a log cabin quilt. This pattern looks ideal.
Tried to get the pdf as it states above, but not so lucky. Any help?
I made this for my son & his wife for Christmas. It really turned out well
I made this for my pastor, who left a temporary position at the church where I work for a permanent position. I used dark to light shades of yellow for the crosses and dark to light blue for the borders, alternating strips of solid and patterned fabrics. It looked very dramatic! I have a picture if you would like a copy…
lovely looking quilt. sometimes log cabin design can look very disjointed but this has a lovely motif design.
This is the prettiest Log Cabin design that I have ever seen. Thank you for sharing.