Bowl of Cherries: Free 3 Yard Quilt Pattern

Sew a fast and easy throw quilt with just three yards of fabric! This free quilt pattern was inspired by one of my favorite artists – Mary Engelbreit. Her illustrations captured my heart way back in the 1990’s and I love them still.

The Bowl of Cherries 3 Yard Quilt Pattern was inspired by the piece that is probably Mary’s most iconic, Chair of Bowlies. The sentiment is precious to me… that life can delight us in unexpected ways if we embrace imperfection and learn to laugh. You can shop Mary Engelbreit calendars, gifts, artwork, and craft supplies through the Mary Engelbreit website. Mary even gave us a coupon code… Use code SEWCANSHE to get 10% off.

This easy quilt contains 24 cherry quilt blocks that are sewn together in log cabin style. Hence, I call it my ‘Cherry Log Cabin’ quilt block. Each block is 9” x 9” wide after sewing. I added a whimsical pieced outer border to the quilt that echoes the polka dots, stripes, and other small patterns found in Mary’s art. The finished size of this throw quilt is approximately 46” x 64”.

This blog post has been converted to an optional PDF that’s optimized for printing. Find it here. The free Bowl of Cherries 3 Yard Quilt Pattern is included in the blog post below and is totally free to read, print, and sew! Just hit CTRL +P on your computer to print. The PDF download is inexpensive and optional. Did you know you can get ALL the Optimized for Printing PDF files organized in a library for you to access anytime you want? Check it out.

What size quilt does this free pattern make?

Most 3-yard quilts are not very large because they don’t use a lot of fabric. This pattern makes a darling throw quilt that is 46” x 64”. Three yards will be enough fabric for the quilt back. You’ll need more fabric for the quilt binding and backing.

As I mentioned before, the cherry quilt block is a log cabin variation. This variation uses strips of varying width to place the motif off-center. It is pieced together just like a log cabin block.

How to Choose the Right 3 Yards of Fabric for this Quilt

All my 3 Yard Quilt Patterns make it easy to pick your fabric. First, find a beautiful ‘focus fabric’ in your stash or local quilt shop. This should be a fabric that sings to you – or that makes you think of the intended recipient of the quilt. My focus fabric for the Bowl of Cherries quilt is a red and pink floral print. I found this fabric in the Nomura Tailor fabric store on my recent textile tour of Japan.

After you have chosen your focus fabric, pick a coordinating fabric and a background fabric. The focus fabric must contrast well with the other two fabrics. My neutral colored coordinating fabric is called Medium Dots Light Gray from Tilda. The whimsical dots add the perfect touch to the sweet pink and red flowers in my focus fabric. Mary Engelbreit artwork often contains dots, too! I picked a cream colored solid fabric to go with the other two prints.

If you follow these instructions for choosing your fabrics, you can’t go wrong, and you probably already have the right 3 yards of fabric in your stash to make a beautiful quilt.

If you are a ME fan like me, you’ve noticed that she uses a lot of black in her illustrations. I considered using Moda’s Glitter Grunge in Black Dress as a coordinating fabric as well. What a bold beautiful quilt that would have made! You can have so much fun with this quilt pattern by changing the fabrics.

Bowl of Cherries Free Three Yard Quilt Pattern

This free quilt pattern includes instructions for my 9” x 9” (finished) Cherry Log Cabin Block. The quilt contains 24 quick and easy quilt blocks and a fun pieced outer border.

The finished throw quilt is approximately 46” x 64”. It’s perfect for snuggling on the couch, hanging on the wall, or sewing a sweet baby quilt.

You will need:

• 3 one-yard cuts of fabric (a main focus fabric, one coordinating fabric, and one background fabric)
• a rotary cutter, acrylic ruler, and cutting mat
• sewing machine
• thread (I suggest thread matching the lighter fabric)
• ironing board and iron

To sew the quilt top into a finished quilt, you will also need:

• 3 yards of backing fabric (or enough to piece together a 51” x 69” or larger quilt back)
• a piece of quilt batting at least 51” x 69”
• 1/2 yard of fabric for the binding

Cutting:

Important note: This free pattern squeezes as much as possible out of each yard of fabric. The width of each piece must have 42” of usable fabric. Most fabric printed in the last 5-10 years will work great because it’s 44” wide, including the selvages so it is 42-43” wide after you cut off the selvage. Please measure the width of your fabric pieces before getting started to make sure and follow the cutting charts below carefully.

Fabric A is your focus fabric. From this fabric, cut:

• 24 strips 1 1/2” x 5 1/2”
• 24 strips 1 1/2” x 4 1/2”
• 24 strips 2 1/2” x 7 1/2”
• 24 strips 2 1/2” x 5 1/2”
• 18 squares 2 1/2” x 2 1/2”

Fabric B is the coordinating fabric. From this fabric, cut:

• 5 strips 3 1/2” x WOF” for the inner border
• 24 squares 4 1/2” x 4 1/2”
• 35 squares 2 1/2” x 2 1/2”

Fabric C is the background fabric. From this fabric, cut:

• 24 strips 2 1/2” x 7 1/2” (see layout chart above)
• 24 strips 2 1/2” x 9 1/2” (see layout chart above)
• 53 squares 2 1/2” x 2 1/2”

Quilt Piecing

Use a 1/4’’ seam allowance and a regular stitch length such as 2 – 2.5.

How to Sew the Log Cabin Cherry Quilt Block

1. Sew a 1 1/2” x 4 1/2” Fabric A strip to the top edge of a 4 1/2” Fabric B square.

2. Sew a 1 1/2” x 5 1/2” Fabric A strip to the left edge of the block.

3. Sew a 2 1/2” x 5 1/2” Fabric A strip to the bottom edge of the block.

4. Sew a 2 1/2” x 7 1/2” Fabric A strip to the right edge of the block.

5. Sew a 2 1/2” x 7 1/2” Fabric C strip to the top edge of the block.

6. Sew a 2 1/2” x 9 1/2” Fabric C strip to the left edge of the block.

Repeat to make 24 blocks.

Assemble the Bowl of Cherries 3 Yard Quilt

1. Sew 2 Log Cabin Cherry Quilt Blocks together, rotating the blocks as shown.

Repeat to make 12 pieces.

2. Sew 2 pieces together, to make a row with 4 blocks.

Repeat to make 6 rows.

3. Arrange the 6 rows in a column. Turn the even numbered rows upside down to create the illusion that the cherries are jumbled up. Sew the rows together

Make and Sew the Inner Border

1. Piece together the six 3 1/2” x WOF” Fabric B inner border strips to make one long strip. Press the seams open. Cut the inner border pieces from this long strip.

2. Cut two 3 1/2” x 54 1/2” strips and sew to the side edges of the quilt top.

3. Cut two 3 1/2” x 42 1/2” strips and sew to the top and bottom edges of the quilt top.

Make and Sew the Pieced Outer Border

1. Sew six 2 1/2” squares together as shown to make a Border Piece A.

Make 16 of Border Piece A.

2. Sew five 2 1/2” squares together as shown to make one Border Piece B.

3. Sew five 2 1/2” squares together as shown to make one Border Piece C.

4. To make each side border, sew together five Border A Pieces. Make 2.

5. Attach the side border pieces as shown.

6. To make the top border, sew together three Border A Pieces and Border Piece B as shown.

7. Attach the top border to the quilt top.

8. To make the bottom border, sew together three Border A Pieces and Border Piece C as shown.

9. Attach the bottom border to the quilt top.

Finishing the Bowl of Cherries Three-Yard Quilt Pattern

1. Cut or piece together a 51” x 69” piece of quilt backing fabric and make a quilt sandwich with the backing, batting, and top.

2. Baste together with fusible batting, pins or basting spray.

3. Quilt as desired. Straight line quilting or cross hatch quilting with your walking foot would be fast and easy. Trim away the extra batting and backing.

4. Depending on your fabric width, you will need 6 or 7 strips of fabric for the binding. Cut 2 1/2” tall (or desired height) binding strips. Sew the binding strips together and bind using your favorite method. This is my favorite quilt binding method.

xoxo,