Free Cathedral Window Quilt Pattern

We love Cathedral Window blocks - they're a fab way of incorporating your favourite patterned fabric.

This gorgeous Cathedral window quilt pattern quilt by Jo Avery, uses this fab technique to make a brilliant super-size quilt.

Raid your fabric stash and let's get making!

Your free Cathedral Window Quilt Pattern

You will need

Two packs of 6in charm squares (with at least 30 squares in each) or 60 x 6in squares of fabric
Cotton fabric for background 10yd (9m)
Light card or cartridge paper 18in square
Batting 60 5in squares
Matching cotton thread
Variegated perle cotton No.8 in pink, orange, green and turquoise (optional)
Binding fabric ½yd
Basic sewing kit
Sewing machine

Finished size

54in square approx

Notes

Fabrics used: Kona Solids in Natural for the background and Chicopee by Denyse Schmidt for Free Spirit.

If you're new to the world of quilting, check out our quilting for beginners guide.

How to sew a Cathedral window quilt

Step 1

Making your Cathedral window blocks

From the background fabric, cut 36 x 19in squares. Using the card and background fabric squares, prepare 36 Cathedral Window blocks, following Steps 1–6 from our How to make Cathedral Blocks guide

How_to_make_Cathedral_Window_quilt_pattern_step_A

Step 2

Once two blocks are prepared, lay the next block alongside and pin and sew as before.

You now have a strip of three blocks. Make two more strips of three blocks.

Lay two of the strips side by side, open out adjacent flaps, pin and sew along the length of the rows using the folded line as a guide.

Press the flaps open.

How_to_make_Cathedral_Window_quilt_pattern_step_B

Step 3

Sew the remaining strip to the previous two, so that you have a square made up of nine blocks.

Step 4

Filling your Cathedral windows

Using a matching thread, hand sew the corners of the folded-out flaps together.

Don’t sew the flaps at the edge, as you will need to attach more blocks later, but keep the pins in and add an extra pin closer to the intersection.

How_to_make_Cathedral_Window_quilt_pattern_step_C

Step 5

Place one of the batting squares on the wrong side of a charm square.

Gently press the edges of the fabric around the batting, but don’t press at the corners.

Prepare twelve charm squares in this way.

How_to_make_Cathedral_Window_quilt_pattern_step_D

Step 6

Place one of these, right side up, on one of the pressed-open flaps on top of the seam and pin through all the layers (background, batting and charm square).

Begin to turn the edges of the flaps around the charm square, pinning through all layers to secure it in the window.

Fill all twelve windows.

How_to_make_Cathedral_Window_quilt_pattern_step_E

Step 7

Using matching thread, neatly topstitch the flap edges down, overlapping at the corner points and working from one window to the next.

Now make three more nine-block squares following the preceding steps.

How_to_make_Cathedral_Window_quilt_pattern_step_F

Step 8

Assembling your Cathedral window quilt

Lay two of the nine-block squares side by side and open out adjacent flaps.

Pin together and sew along the fold line.

Press open the flaps and hand sew the corners of the flaps together.

Leave one flap unsewn but still pinned so it can be attached to the other half of the quilt later.

How_to_make_Cathedral_Window_quilt_pattern_figure_01

Step 9

Prepare three more charm squares and fill the available windows. Pin and sew as before.

Step 10

Repeat this process with the two remaining nine-block squares.

Step 11

You now have two halves of the quilt completed. Lay these side by side with the still-pinned flaps next to each other.

Open these out and pin and sew together along fold line. Remove pins and press open. How_to_make_Cathedral_Window_quilt_pattern_Figure_02

TOP TIP

When machine-sewing the flaps together, ensure none of the other flaps get caught and open up as they’re fed through.

Step 12

Now hand sew all the corner intersections (and so remove all flap pins) and fill the remaining windows as before.

It can be quite hard manhandling the quilt through the machine for these last few windows, but persevere because you are almost finished! How_to_make_Cathedral_Window_quilt_pattern_step_G

Step 13

Turn over and sew down the remaining flap edges around all sides of the quilt. Pin and sew as above, but with empty windows.

Step 14

Finishing your Cathedral window quilt

Add some hand quilting now if desired. The quilt shown was hand quilted in straight lines around each window, using either pink, orange, turquoise or green perle thread.

Bind your quilt to finish. How_to_make_Cathedral_Window_quilt_pattern_step_H

Use your Cathedral window quilt to decorate your home

Cathedral window quilts are classically beautiful and look great in every home. The technique is very versatile and can be used to create quilts, cushions and much more.

Discover more Cathedral window patterns

You’ve created your own Cathedral window quilt; why not make a pincushion using the same technique?

Head over to our how to make a Cathedral Window Pin Cushion tutorial.

A colorful, intricately patterned pincushion with green tassels sits atop folded fabrics on a rustic wooden surface. Several decorative pins with pearl-like tops are inserted into the cushion, while a few more pins rest nearby.