19 Scrappy Pieced Doll Quilts

Trying to use up the never-ending Pile O Scraps!!! Okay that is impossible to do! You end up with more scraps after cutting the backing fabric, and binding (if you use binding), and smaller scraps after using larger scraps, so the scraps keep on coming, lol! That's okay, because sometimes you need a mindless scrappy project to sew and sewing scrappy quilts, whether large or small is just satisfying. I do use up some scraps (even if it doesn't appear so) and making these doll quilts for a charitable cause is also something to feel good about as well. 

My quilt group makes doll quilts all year, anytime and we turn the doll quilts into the person who collects the doll quilts. Near Christmas time the doll quilts are given to a local woodworking group that we quilters partner with, who are busy all year making cute little wooden rocking doll beds. They give little girls a rocking doll bed with a fabric doll and a quilt. The woodworkers also make small wooden toys for the boys, but if they prefer a doll, they can have that instead and visa versa a girl could request a wooden toy instead. 

Periodically I make the doll quilts to use up all kinds of scraps I have. One year I made 75 doll quilts. I made 19 this time. I like to make the quilt 9" x 12", which is slightly larger than the suggested size of 8 1/2 x 11 (the size of a standard computer/typing paper). I have seen the quilts placed long way over the width of the doll bed, yet when sharing the doll quilts, most hold them up like a piece pf paper with the height being the long way, which to me never made any sense, so I make them like this and a bit larger, so the little girl can wrap her doll up in the quilt if she wants to.

I backed each one with flannel to make it soft and just sewed the quilt top and backing right-sides-together and left an opening to turn the quilt. I then topstitched all around and quilted it with a simple diagonal serpentine stitch from corner to corner. That is enough to hold it together. I did not add any batting as these have a bit more drape to them and batting would add a bit of stiffness (and cost). 

The pieced heart I had made awhile ago, so I appliquéd it on a piece of fabric and sewed more scraps around to make this doll quilt.

I used this backing for the quilt above and one other quilt.

Yellow flannel backing was used for a few of the quilts.

This flannel with stars was used as backing for a few quilts.

I used this flannel for a few backings.

This flannel I used for one backing.

This was not flannel, but used it as a backing. It was from a fat quarter I had won at my quilt group.

This flannel backing was used for one quilt. I quilted this one first and did straight line stitching and a bit more stitching, but then changed to the diagonal X serpentine stitching in the others as it was simpler and faster.

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33 Doll Quilts + 14 More= 47 Doll Quilts Made!

Hello dolly! I made these doll quilts to donate to my quilt group who teams with the woodworkers who make doll beds. Each Christmas they give a simple doll, a wooden doll bed and a handmade doll quilt to young girls (and a wooden toy of some kind to the boys). 

I wanted to use up the mountains of scraps I had, so I just made free form or crumb quilts, crazy quilt style and used up UFO blocks too by adding a few strips to them. I made 33 quilts. But then before I went to the quilt group to deliver these, I had time to make another 14 more, so ended up giving them 47 doll quilts in all. Also, I gave a  handmade doll I had and a stuffed sheep in case they could give that to one of the children.

Stack of 33 doll quilts.

These were quilt blocks to begin with and I added strips to make them larger.

More 9-patch quilt blocks with added strips.

A stack of crazy quilt style doll quilts.

Crazy quilt doll quilts, using up my yellow and orange fabric scraps.

More yellow and orange scraps made crazy quilt style.

As usual, barely made a dent in my scraps! But these all went to a worthy cause, so that should make some kids happy.

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65 Quilted Doll Quilts & 5 Knit Doll Blankets

I went through my UFO's last month and found a lot of miscellaneous quilt blocks, partial blocks, pieced units, applique and some mug rugs I started making, and thought I should turn all of those blocks and units into doll quilts for the charity that my quilt group makes doll quilts for. At Christmas time the woodworkers group who makes 500 doll beds throughout the year to be donated teams up with us quilters who make doll quilts and then along with a simple rag doll each little girl gets a bed, a doll and a quilt or blanket (I also knit blankets).  I got a jump start on this for Christmas 2018, by making 65 doll quilt and 5 knit blankets for a total of 70! Yay!

Using scraps and the finished or partially finished units and blocks, I sewed strips around what I had to make it large enough (approx. 9" x 12") for the quilt top. I added a backing and in most cases I sewed them together pillow style and birthed them through the opening. In the case of nearly finished mug rugs, I had to add scraps of fabric and batting (some were already quilted) around the mug rug to make it large enough. Some I added binding to. I highlighted the best ones below. Here is the stack of quilts (looks like The Princess and the Pea bed):

Here is one I knit.

The center part I was playing with an idea for a quilt block contest a few years ago by adding some machine stitches. So I added strips around the center piece and quilted it.

I had a few of these "doll" applique blocks with wool fleece hair. I made a wall hanging years ago of several dolls and had a few leftover, so I used the leftover ones to create a few doll quilts.

A bird house block with added strips around to make it larger.

The star is a leftover block from the first twin size quilt I made my son when he was around 12 years old.

I was making a herringbone block with various strip widths and used the leftover sections in the center of this one by sewing them together and then added strips on the sides.

I was playing around one day and wanted to fuse hexagons and blanket stitch around them to make a Grandmother's Flower Garden block, rather than piece them together. It worked well for a block, but I doubt I would do a large quilt like that, but on smaller blocks it was fun. So I added strips around the hex flower to make it large enough for a doll quilt.

In the center are 2 string units that I pieced together and then added strips around to make it large enough for the doll quilt.

I attempted making one of the Exploding Pineapple blocks that Jenny from Missouri Star was showing a video tutorial on. Well it looks easier to do than I thought. Mine was not very even. Maybe I need practice? Or perhaps I will just stick with the traditional method for making a pineapple block.

Another applique doll in her Christmas dress.

Crazy pieced yellow, gold and orange scraps.

Scraps of square units leftover I put together.

Just scrap strings.

A Churn Dash block I added strips around.

Another Churn Dash block.

I do love Churn Dash blocks, but only had these 3, so they got turned into doll quilts.

The center crazy pieced section was starting off as a mug rug, but I added more strips to the sides to enlarge it to a doll quilt size.

This doll quilt is a bit larger than the others and made of leftover squares.

This also is larger and made of leftover squares.

Another larger doll quilt of squares leftover.

I made a baby quilt recently (haven't posted it yet) and after sewing strips and cutting them to the sizes needed, I had little bits of sewn pieces that I just put together in no particular pattern. I was able to get 3 doll quilts made from the scrappy leftovers of the baby quilt. I sewed a faux binding (really a border) all around and then sewed it pillow style and birthed through the opening and pressed and then quilted them. Good way to practice quilting all sorts of designs.

I have knit 4 more doll blankets this month so far too. This is a great project to get rid of miscellaneous yarn, or scraps of not only fabric, but batting scraps too. I even use scraps of flannel instead of batting if I can. It's a win-win for all.
Happy Stitching!
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