smaller sized jelly roll quilt - can it be done?
 

I keep looking at the jelly roll quilts and a while back i attempted one but it was just too overwhelming to me. ( i did save it though in case i want to try it again!) but my question is would it be possible to make a smaller version (more like a lap size) using strips from my stash? I am talking about the one where you sew all the ends together and keep sewing and sewing and sewing and cutting them in half and then sewing them together again until its done. they all look so large and i was thinking it might make a cute one for a charity quilt but it would have to measure roughly 36 -40 inches square before adding borders to it. I am trying to figure out if i would cut the strips shorter and not use as many? any ideas would be appreciated.

Anything goes so try it and let us know how it turns out. You can always add borders if you want it bigger.

It would be cute!

jump right in and give it a try.

You can make the quilt any size you want. I made one of these and found it fun. But it is one long strip and takes some getting use to keep it all together. Do like the end result.

I did some calculations and the original with 40 strips comes out about 50" x 64"
This is using 40 strips at 40" long.
I tried other combinations by reducing the number of strips and they all come out much longer than you want
the closest was 31"x62" if you reduce the number of strips to 25. Seems the math and length works against precise sizes that is unless you want to do one the closest size you want and then trim some off the bottom.
This might not be a bad idea as you could use the strip to add to the backing fabric for a creative touch.
Smeone may have a better way to calculate but my grade school math just doesn't make it work. I might tend to just sew the long strip together and rather than double back for the next strip to cut it off at the size you want and add the other trips.

It's tough to dictate the finished size. The best I could come up with is 640" of 2 1/2" fabric. This would sew up in these rounds (considering finished size of 2" for length), with a finished size of 32" x 40". I'd start with some extra length, because when I did this I found it difficult to get clean cuts when I ended a seam. I had to straighten my edges.

Round 1 4" length x 320" width
Round 2 8" length x 160" width
Round 3 16" length x 80" width
Round 4 32" length x 40" width.

If I needed 36" x 40", I think I would make the above, and then add two additional strips.

If you wanted it smaller, why not cut the strips smaller (say 2 1/2" by 25 or 30"). That way you could use all 40 of the fabrics to get a variety of colors. Then you could use the cut off part to make a doll quilt, or use it in a scrappy quilt.

How about doing the 31 X 62 with 25 pieces just as you suggest, and then sew the remaining pieces together and add them to the quilt top down one side of the length? I am not a math whiz either, but estimating 15 more strips sewn together @ around 41" + 21" by 2"(when sewn), should add about 14" of width. 45" x 62" is a nice size quilt.

Is the effect you want to have the occasional changes in fabric in some of the rows?

I ask b/c the strips are what...40 inches long? You want a 40 inch square, why not just start sewing strips together along the length? That's what I would do...sew 2 40 inch long strips together, sew another set of two, etc, then sew those to each other to make foursies, and then together again to make groups with 8 rows...till you have a big enough piece. To me that seams easier then doing the jelly roll race quilt.