I have a sewing friend that has never made a quilt.
 

I have a sewing friend that has never made a quilt. She need to make a quilt for a family reunion, which is in July. May I please have some suggestions for a quilt she can make?

Will the quilt commemorate the reunion? Be raffled off to someone at the reunion?

If it's to commemorate the reunion, then a signature quilt is nice. There are different patterns, but I would choose a simple one since it's her first quilt. Maybe signature squares surrounded by sashings and a border.

Otherwise, for a first quilt, I often suggest rail fence as it's relatively easy, relatively forgiving, and teaches some basics about quilting. Even easier would be a jelly roll quilt, which has no matching of seams.

Turning twenty; yellow brick road; rail fence; warm wishes; square in a square; are just a few of the hundreds ( thousands) of beginner quilt patterns. Have her visit quilterscache.com and browse beginner blocks ( I recommend fairly large blocks to start with) and see what appeals to her. Browse Craftsy and Pinterest, if she already knows how to sew it's not going to be too difficult for her to make her first quilt-- the hardest thing to learn is that 1/4" seam, since in apparel and home dec, crafty sewing we always use a 5/8" seam ... which is more than twice as wide as a quilt pattern seam. So, first things first she needs to practice some blocks to learn that straight 1/4" seam ( rail fence) is great for that. Once she has that 1/4" seam down the skies the limit for what she can make.

I agree that making the 1/4 inch seam will be the most challenging thing for your friend. I sewed all my life but only started quilting when I retired 7 years ago. I could not believe that a 1/4 inch seam would hold anything!

I would guide her to a rail fence or Warm Wishes. Each works very well for a beginner. Or the Double Slice Layer Cake. I lean towards the rail fence. It looks really good and goes pretty quickly, though the other two do also. You might show her each online and see which appeals to her.

Dina

A lot also depends on what size quilt she wants to make. I'm a rank amateur, but the only pieced-block quilts I've made have both been Log Cabins. If she's sewn all her life, I'm betting on her being able to accomplish almost anything, keeping in mind that the most important thing is accurate cutting. I still struggle with that myself.

Take 5 is another easy quilt. Nothing has to be matched up.

Curious..why does she NEED to make this quilt? Group idea?, her idea? How big? Pictures or signitures or just fabric? So many possibilities/variations...

Lots of great suggestions on here.

for a new beginner I'd suggest a block quilt. My daughter rarely makes a quilt but when she does its a block quilt, she likes to back them with fleece so they are soft. Its the easiest and most forgiving

Thanks for your response. I will ask her these questions.