I get it, cutting 100s of two-inch squares isn’t for everyone. But everyone (well almost) has a stash of fabric that they want to find a way to use up. My hope is that after reading through this blog post you will be able to create your own scrappy quilt using whatever size squares you would like!

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To start off with, it’s important you first understand the block we are making. It is a very simple nine-batch block. All it involves is laying out nine squares of the same size in three rows and three columns, in any color combination you would like. This can be made using any size square you are comfortable using.

To figure out how many squares you will need for your quilt, you must first decide on the quilt size you want to make. Here are some standard sizes:

Baby	Crib	Throw	Twin	Double/Full	Queen	King
30″ x 40″	36″ x 52″	50″ x 65″	70″ x 90″	85″ x 108″	90″ x 108″	110″ x 108″

*I have always used Suzy Quilts as a resource for sewing/quilting questions, which is where I found this size information that I use for a reference for most of my quilts. I encourage you to read her full post about it! The Ultimate Guide to Quilt Sizes by Suzy Quilts

Remember that there is no rule that says your quilt HAS to be any certain size. Once you know the measurements of the quilt size you are working towards, you can start to work on the actual size it will end up being and what it will take to get there. 

Next question – what size squares do you want to cut?

You can be a little crazy like me and do something small like 2″ or go a little bigger with something like 5″ which also means less seams and a quicker finish! Just remember that when cutting out your squares, you will have a 1/4″ seam allowance on all edges so your finished square will be 1/2″ smaller in size than when you cut it out. 

Now we are going to create one of your nine patch blocks to see how big each will end up being so that you can ultimately figure out how many you will need to create your quilt at YOUR size!

Let’s go through an example of the quilt I created with 2″ squares so that you can understand how I got there.

1. Take the finished size quilt you are aiming for and divide by the total size of the FINISHED block you will have for both the height and width.

50 / 4.5 = 11.1111

65 / 4.5 = 14.4444

2. Clearly, we aren’t going to use those numbers to cut out squares. Now, round either up or down. For this one I rounded down:

11 blocks across

14 blocks down

Finished quilt size = 49.5″ x 63″

Lastly, we need to figure out just how many squares you need to cut for your quilt. This starts with figuring out how many blocks total you will need:

11 blocks x 14 blocks = 154 total blocks

Now, we know that each block has nine squares in it. So that means..

154 total blocks x 9 squares = 1386 total squares

Depending on how you plan to layout your block, the way you calculate this could change. Blocks like the gray and green one pictured about have 5 squares of one color and 4 of another. The math for that would look something like this:

154 total blocks x 5 main squares = 770 squares

154 total blocks x 4 background squares = 616 squares

From here, sew all your blocks together and quilt however you would like! If you need any help with finishing tips, check out the original pattern write up.

What if I’m not using my fabric stash?

If you aren’t making this from a scrappy stash and are wondering how much fabric you will need for your size check out the Quilter’s Paradise quilting calculators. I have used this for all of my fabric calculating needs and find it very helpful!

I hope you find this tutorial helpful and that it can make all of your scrappy quilt dreams come true! If you have any questions at any point in the process please don’t hesitate to reach out by sending an email to hello@thehomebodyco.com. When you do make your own scrappy quilt, I’d love it if you tag @thehomebodycompany on Instagram so that I can see what you create!