Quilt. Book. Cuddle. Repeat.

I’m really trying to embrace whatever stage of life I’m in. And when I say embrace, I mean, really seizing every opportunity I can. So in this current stage of life, we have little littles and read all of the books. Did you know there are tons of children's books that have quilts in them? I didn’t until my son started to bring me ten books to read at a time– after you see the first one, they really stick out. 

My idea was to recreate a quilt from a children’s book so you can have the perfect cozy and cuddly reading session possible. And it’s cute that it matches! I plan to release this as a freebie (always) every couple of months so stay tuned for future books!

I, of course, had to start with “The Little Ghost who was a Quilt”! I know a ton of people have blogged about making their own or even sell kits doing so. My goal was just to walk you through the process of what I did so you can use whatever option best fits your need! This will be the perfect companion when you read this book this Halloween season.

For this project, I wanted to have the quilt finish at 36”x45”. You need 80 squares arranged in 10 rows to accomplish this. This is the perfect project to use your scraps for or find a random assortment of colors already in your stash.

I chose to use a layer cake for this project and cut all of my squares out using half of it. You can also use charm packs--just make sure you have 80 total 5” blocks when you start!

Sewing Instructions:

Sew (8) 5” squares together to make one row. Press seams open or all in one direction. Make 10 rows. 

I chose to press my seams all in one directions and then that way, when I sewed the rows together, I alternated nested the seams so they fit snuggly.

Applique Touches:

Cut out the eyes and mouth using fabric of your choosing. Place the eyes and mouth and pin to quilt top. Sew applique pieces in place.

Don’t get too hung up on which color to sew your pieces to. In the book, the color of the blocks the eyes/ mouth are on changes on every page. My recommendation is to applique your pieces around row 4 & 5. But I’ve also seen lovely ghost quilts with faces directly in the middle, at a diagonal in a corner, etc.

In my shop, you can find the “stencils” I used for my own little ghost quilt (and a coloring page)—so head on over there to download that freebie!

Finishing your Quilt:

Cut and piece your backing fabric together. Baste and quilt your quilt top as desired. Use your preferred binding method to finish your quilt. 

I chose a cute and cozy flannel for the backing because I think it makes it even cozier to cuddle under. I bought 3 yards of this cute flannel from Joann’s. I cut a piece that measured 45” x 45” and then basted some batting in between the two layers. I used my domestic sewing machine and sewed ¼” to the left and right of each seam. Be on the lookout for a future Instagram reel showing how I bind my quilts if you need some help with binding!

Lastly, get cozy and cuddle under your newest quilt and read “The Little Ghost who was a Quilt”!

Share a photo of your #quiltbookcuddle on Instagram! Be sure to tag #tinyacorndesign and @tinyacorndesign!