Watercolor Quilt Pattern With Easy Mitered Windows

By Janet Wickell

Quilting Expert

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Make a Watercolor Style Quilt

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Make a Colorful Watercolor Quilt - Janet Wickell

Make a Colorful Watercolor Quilt. Photo Credit: Janet Wickell

Updated March 18, 2016.

Use my watercolor style cat quilt pattern to make a 33-1/2" x 39-1/2" quilt.

Three appliqued cats are inspecting a flower garden outside the watercolor style windows, but keeping an eye on the butterflies that have drifted indoors.

The quilt blocks are similar to attic windows, but with four mitered frames instead of two, and they're filled with floral scraps in the watercolor style. Create more contrast and depth by using frame fabrics with a bit more color value differences than mine.

Sew all patchwork with an accurate quarter inch seam allowance.

Materials for the Watercolor Cat Quilt

Fabrics

Floral scraps: 5/8 yards of assorted fabrics
Medium light frames: 5/8 yard
Dark frames: 5/8 yard

Applique

Cats: 3 very dark prints, approximately 9" x 9" each
Butterfly: 3 prints, approximately 3" x 3" each

Finishing

Backing: 1 yard
Batting: 36" x 42" thin batting
Binding: 160" double-fold binding

Cutting Chart

Watercolor Windows

Floral Squares: cut 108 2-1/2" x 2-1/2" squares, assorted

Dark Strips: cut six 3" strips across the fabric's crosswise grain

Medium Light Strips: cut six 3" strips across the fabric's crosswise grain

Cats & Butterfly

Cat and butterfly appliqué pieces do not include a seam allowance.

Cut 1 crouching cat from dark fabric.
Turn the pattern over and cut a mirror image crouching cat.
Cut 1 standing cat from dark fabric.
Cut as many butterflies from template as desired. or cut butterflies from a printed fabric, leaving a seam allowance. Turn under edges and applique to the quilt.

PDF Cat and Butterfly Templates

Standing Cat & Butterfly

Crouching Cat

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Make the Windowsills for Your Watercolor Cat Quilt

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Cut and Sew Mitered Seams - © Janet Wickell

Cut window frames, mark seam intersections on short edges. Photo Credit: © Janet Wickell

Cut and Mark Your Windowsills

If these techniques are new to you, it's a good idea to assemble one block before cutting all of your fabric.

Use the 3" wide medium-light fabric strips to create the top and left frames. Rotary cut a top frame that's 12-1/4" along its longest edge and create a 45-degree angle at each end.
Cut eight more top frames.
Use the same technique to cut nine side frames from the remaining medium-light fabric strips. Each side frame should have 45-degree angled ends and measure 14-1/4" along its longest edge.

Repeat for the remaining frames, cutting nine tops and nine sides from the dark strips.
Mark seam intersections on the reverse side of each strip, near the ends of short sides. It's easy to do that by measuring and marking 1/4" inward near corners on the short bottom, then along angled side edges.

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Sew Watercolor Windows for the Cat Quilt Pattern

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Watercolor Quilt Pattern - © Janet Wickell

Two of the floral composite blocks, each made with twelve 2-1/2" squares arranged to blend from light to dark, or frome one color to another. Photo Credit: © Janet Wickell

Use Watercolor Techniques to Create the Windows

Arrange the dark and medium-light frames on a design wall or in any area where you can step back for a good look at them. You'll have three frames across and three down--refer to the picture on page 5.

Place 12 floral squares within each rectangular opening created by the frames -- three squares across and four down. You may need to overlap some squares to fit them into the frames.

Step back. Do you like the arrangement of the squares? Is there a better layout? Shift the squares around until you're satisfied with each window's appearance.

Use straight pins to secure patchwork during all sewing steps.

Sew the Floral Squares Together

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Sew the Watercolor Quilt Blocks to the Frames

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Attach the Watercolor Windows to the Frames

Begin sewing at the marked intersection of the dark frame, with the frame on top as you sew. Stop sewing when you reach the seam intersection on the opposite side--where the slit appears in the seam used to connect the frames. Leave the unit in the machine and keep the needle down.
Raise the presser foot and pivot the unit. Match seam intersections on the ends of both patches and then match edges along its entire length. Continue sewing, ending the seam at the marked intersection. Backstitch and remove from the machine. Press seam allowances towards the frames.
Sew the medium-light top and dark side frame to the rectangle, in the same way, beginning the seam at the top left side of the upper sill. Press new seams towards the frames.
Sew the unsewn diagonals to connect dark and medium-light frames, beginning at the point where seams meet on inner edges.
Repeat all steps to assemble nine blocks.

Assemble the Cat Quilt

Arrange the blocks into three rows as shown on page 1.
Sew the blocks in each row together. Press seam allowances in adjoining rows in opposite directions, then sew rows together, matching seam intersections carefully. Press the quilt.

Appliqué the Silhouette Cats and Butterflies

Decide how many cats you would like. Make templates as needed for the appliqué technique you plan to use, then prepare the fabric for applique. Flip templates over to create mirror-image cats.
Decide how many butterflies you would like and create templates as needed for the applique technique you've chosen. The simple shape can be cut and appliqued from one fabric. An easy and colorful alternative is to cut butterflies from a printed fabric and applique them to the quilt.
Appliqué shapes to the quilt by hand or machine.