Fast Four Patch Quilt Tutorial

One of my most popular, quilt tutorials: an easy, fast, beginner-friendly Fast Four Patch Quilt. Perfect for a scrappy look and showing-off cute fabric. It’s a great project for new quilters.

If you are brand-new to quilting, be sure to check out my Beginning Quilting series for all the basics on supplies, cutting, piecing, and quilting!

Four Patch Quilt Tutorial:

This is one of my favorite go-to quilt patterns for a quick baby quilt. It works really well to show off a main ‘focus’ print contrasting with a variety of prints in scrappy four-patch blocks. The quilt shown here finishes at 40″ x 56″. I have fabric requirements, cutting and piecing instructions for Throw, Twin, Queen and King sizes below.

If you would prefer a printable PDF version of this pattern you can find one here.

For this four patch quilt I used the Riley Blake collection Trendsetter. (available 2014 and now out of print)

This four patch quilt design is great for showing off a big print and then pairing it with a variety of fabric that contrast well. I chose the big toile-looking print in Mint for the ‘background’ squares and then used the navies, corals and a few of the mint pieces as the contrast. (I personally chose to avoid the other light-background fabrics in the four patch blocks as they didn’t contrast as much with the light background print.)

Finished four patch quilt: 40″ x 56″

Fabric Requirements for your Four Patch Quilt:

• 1 1/4 yard background print
• At least 8 different 1/8 yards for contrasting four-patch blocks (you can use more if you want)
• OR a couple of packages of 5″ precut squares
• 2 ½ yards backing fabric (If you are careful with the width of the backing and it is wide enough, you may be able to get by with 1 3/4 yards)
• 1/2 yard binding

Cutting your Four Patch Quilt:

• From background print cut 5 strips 8 ½” x width of fabric. (If you cut very carefully, you should be able to get 5 squares per strip. It’s okay if they include a tiny bit of selvage that will end up in the seam allowance.)
  • Sub cut into 17 squares 8 1/2″ x 8 1/2″.
• From four-patch prints cut 72 squares, 4 1/2″ x 4 1/2″
• From binding fabric cut 5 strips 2 1/2″ x width of fabric

Match 72 squares up into contrasting pairs. Sew squares together using a 1/4″ seam.

You can ‘chain’ them through quickly without even cutting the thread. Press seam to one side.

Match each pair with a contrasting pair and sew together to create 18 four-patch blocks. Press seam to one side. These blocks should come out as 8 1/2″ x 8 1/2″ unfinished.

Layout quilt blocks into seven rows of five blocks each. Start with a four-patch block in the first row and an 8 1/2″ square block in the second row. (see photo.)

Sew squares into rows, pressing seams toward the 8 1/2″ square blocks. This will create nesting seams when you go to sew the rows together and make the assembly much easier as well as matching up points. Sew rows together and press seams all the same direction.

Layer quilt top with batting and backing and baste together. Quilt as desired. I pieced my back using prints from the collection.

I had fun showing off some of the focus prints on the back and adding the Swiss dot in Navy worked so well as the binding. Yum. Quilting by Sew Shabby Quilting. For Binding sew 2 1/2″ x wof strips end to end. Binding tutorial here.

And voila! A super quick – and very cute – four patch quilt!

Here is a previous version of this simple four patch quilt design. It’s a great one for using up fabric and showing off fun prints. 

Here are the fabric requirements for your Four Patch Quilt:

• 2 3/4 yard focus fabric – cut 9 strips 8 ½” x WOF and cut into 44 squares 8 1/2″ x 8 1/2″
• 10 different 1/4 yards of fabric – cut into 176 squares 4 1/2″ x 4 1/2″ for 44 four-patch blocks
• 5/8 yard binding
• 5 1/2 yard backing

Make 44 four-patch blocks. Lay out quilt 8 rows across by 11 rows down, alternating focus fabric and four patch blocks

• 3 1/2 yards focus fabric – cut 11 strips 8 1/2″ x WOF and cut into 55 squares 8 1/2″ x 8 1/2″
• 13 different 1/4 yards of fabric – cut into 220 squares 4 1/2″ x 4 1/2″ for 55 four-patch blocks
• 3/4 yard binding
• 6 yards backing

Make 55 total four-patch blocks. Lay out quilt rows 10 squares across by 11 rows down alternating focus fabric and four-patch blocks.

• 6 3/4 yards focus fabric – cut 23 strips 8 1/2″ x WOF and cut into 112 squares 8 1/2″ x 8 1/2″
• 14 different 1/2 yards – cut into 452 squares 4 1/2″ x 4 1/2″ for 113 four-patch blocks
• 1 yard binding
• 11 yards backing

Make 113 four patch blocks. Lay out quilt rows 15 squares by 15 squares alternating focus fabric and four-patch blocks.

(King size alternate: if you’d rather have borders to eliminate some of the piecing:

• 5 yards focus fabric – cut 17 strips 8 1/2″ x WOF and cut into 84 squares 8 1/2″ x  8 1/2″
• 13 different 3/8 yards of fabric – cut into 340 squares 4 1/2″ x 4 1/2″ for 85 four-patch blocks
• 2  3/4 yards border fabric
• 1 yard binding
• 11 yards backing

Make 85 four-patch blocks. Lay out quilt rows 13 squares x 13 squares alternating focus fabric and four-patch blocks.. Cut 10 border strips 8 1/2″ x 42″ for outside quilt border.)

If you would like a printable PDF version of this pattern you can find it here for $2.50.