Color-Wheel Quilt In Liberty Of London
Purl Soho founder Joelle Hoverson’s Last-Minute Patchwork + Quilted Gifts is at least ten years old (!), but the projects inside are still as fresh as ever. The super popular Color-Wheel Quilt looks just as amazing as it did in 2007 and remains one of our most quintessentially “Purl Soho” projects.
Sadly, Last-Minute Patchwork + Quilted Gifts is no longer in print, but happily, we now offer the Color-Wheel Quilt Pattern all on its own! Its new incarnation includes templates and step-by-step instructions… Saved from the obscurity of out-of-print books!
The Color-Wheel Quilt uses 52 different prints that run the rainbow, and if you’re talking about color and prints, there is no fabric better than Liberty of London’s Tana Lawn. We’ve put together a beautiful selection in our Liberty Color-Wheel Bundle, so full of fresh energy and joy, we’ll probably be talking about the Color-Wheel Quilt for another ten years!
Designed by Joelle Hoverson.
Materials
- Main Fabric: 7¼ yards of 45-inch wide cotton (for background, binding, and quilt back). We used Moda’s 200-count Natural Muslin, 45 inches wide.
- Color-Wheel Fabric: 52 different-color cottons, at least 4 x 12 inches each. We used Purl Soho’s Liberty Color-Wheel Quilt Bundle.
- Two large spools of thread. We used 274-yard spools of Gutermann’s Cotton Sewing Thread in color 1040.
- Thinnest loft cotton batting. We used Quilter’s Dream’s Cotton Batting, Request loft, Twin size.
- A hera marker
- A straightedge ruler
- A walking foot for your sewing machine
- Optional: Template plastic
- For our Color-Wheel Quilt Pattern, please email customerservice@purlsoho.com and we’ll send a free PDF right over to you!
Update, May 2024: You can explore our current collection of beautiful fabrics and supplies on our page of Sewing Tools + Notions!
Size
Finished Dimensions: Approximately 56 inches square
Update 2024: You can explore our current collection of beautiful fabrics and supplies on our page of Sewing Tools + Notions!
Could I just have the pattern and templates, as I have plenty of materials of all colours that I can use.
Gwen Nankervis
Hi Gwen,
Thanks for writing in! The pattern for this lovely quilt can be found in Joelle’s Book Last Minute Patchwork + Quilted Gifts.
Happy sewing!
Cassy
Beautiful. I’m wondering, I know how to sew but never made a quilt. Approximately, much time should it a take for a newbie to complete a project like this? Thanks!
Hi AS,
Thanks for writing in! This lovely quilt appears in the “12 hours or more” chapter of Joelle’s book. This means that we estimate that it will take in excess of 12 hours to complete. That said, every person works at a different pace and thus it is difficult to estimate how long it might take an individual to make any given project.
I hope that this helps!
Cassy
This quilt is breathtakingly amazing…. There are no words to express how inspired I am!
I have just taken up sewing again so I vow to get good enough to one day attempt this gorgeous pattern.
Thank you!
This is a beautiful quilt. I wasn’t sure what is included in the bundle when I went to the ‘buy now’ page, is it just the fabrics, does it include the pattern, threads and batting, do you have to buy the book separately?
Thank you!
Hi Elisabeth,
Thanks for writing in! The bundle linked here is for the Liberty Color-Wheel Quilt Bundle in Fat Sixteenths. To complete the project, you will need to purchase the bundle as well as all of the other materials listed in the Materials section including Joelle’s excellent book!
Best,
Cassy
I have all the things to make this quilt. It is my next project. However, you are pretty adamant about pre washing. Can I pre wash the Liberty Squares without tremendous fray? I have had a lot of trouble pre washing precuts. Maybe just rinse them? Also it will be a challenge keeping them in order, but I can make a key I guess. . .
Hi Lauren,
Thanks for writing in! We do suggest washing and pressing all of the fabric. If you are concerned with fraying, I would suggest washing the smaller Liberty pieces in a lingerie bag on the gentle cycle. This should minimize fraying. To keep the fabric in order, I would suggest laying the fabric out in the order that you wish and taking a photo with your phone or camera! That way, you can reassemble once the pieces are washed.
I hope that this helps and happy sewing!
Cassy
I absolutely love this pattern! I’ve made two of these quilts and have the color wheel sewn together for a third.
I’m hoping to make this as a functioning full-sized quilt with some drop on the sides so I can tuck it under a mattress. Any suggestions on how much additional white fabric it would take to widen/lengthen the quilt a bit?
Hi Nancy,
Thanks for writing in! For a queen size quilt of about 90 x 108 inches, I think that you will need about 3 times the amount of muslin. You may want to subtract the yardage that you would use for the back from the the yardage that you will calculate for the overall quilt and purchase a roughly 3 yards of 110 inch wide muslin (for a 90 x 108 quilt) so that you do not have to piece the back together. In my estimation, you will subtract 9 yards from the overall amount to do this!
I hope that this helps!
Cassy
Is this a novice project? If not, is there one here that is? Thanks!
Hello Erin,
Thank you for reaching out! I would say this project is a bit more advanced. If you are looking for a first time quilt project I would check these patterns out Our https://www.purlsoho.com/create/2015/07/06/learn-to-sew-a-patchwork-quilt-kit/ or for step up from the basics Our Modular Blocks Quilt.
I hope this helps and Happy Sewing!
-Marilla
Hello! I have been admiring this beautiful quilt for several years but don’t know if I have the courage or skills to make it! On a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being for very advanced quilters only), how difficult would you say this quilt is to make?
Thank you!
Hi Maureen,
We’re so glad to hear you’ve had your eye on this beauty and would be happy to give you an idea about the difficulty! It’s hard to provide a number, but I would say this is a 6 or 7 depending on how many techniques you’re already familiar with in quilting.
You can transfer the template to a template plastic to help make things easier, but you’ll then have to precisely cut out strips to form the color arcs. After your strips are cut and arranged, you’ll have to chain piece them together. We have a tutorial for chain piecing right here!
Looking ahead you’ll also have to baste the quilt, which we have a tutorial for in the pattern as well, use a hera marker to mark the top design, use a walking foot to machine quilt, and finally, piece and attach the binding.
I hope that helps give you a better idea of what to expect and encourage you to give it a try if you’re feeling ambitious!
All the best,
Zha Zha
Thank you Zha Zha! I really appreciate your comprehensive answer. It is kind of above my skill set but this quilt is so beautiful, I think I might give it a try!