How to Make a Country Rag Quilt

A country rag quilt makes a wonderful quilt for snuggling under while watching t.v. or reading a book. The country rag quilt is also a great accessory for country decor, because it has the look and feel of a vintage quilt. Making a country rag quilt is fairly simple and a sewing machine makes the project much quicker.

Materials

washed and dried cotton and flannel fabric (for shrinkage)
rotary cutter
ruler
mat
quilt batting
straight pins
scissors
sewing machine

Directions

You are going to start your country rag quilt by cutting both the cotton and the flannel fabric into 6" squares. To do this, use the rotary cutter, mat and ruler to cut the fabric into long strips that measure 6" wide. Then cut the 6" wide strips into 6" squares. You will need to cut 96 - 6" squares of the cotton fabric and 96 - 6" squares of the flannel fabric. Next, you are going to cut 96 - 4" squares of the quilt batting.

Now you are going to assemble the squares together in this fashion. Lay one square of flannel on the bottom, lay a square of the batting centered and on top of the flannel and add a cotton square on top of the batting. Make sure that the right sides of the fabric are facing out. Now assemble all of the squares in this manner.

Once the squares for your country rag quilt have been assembled, you are ready to start sewing them together. Begin by sewing a diagonal line (through all 3 layers) across each square, from corner to corner. Now sew a second diagonal line from opposite corner, you should have an X stitched across the square. Continue sewing all of the squares together, this same way.

Once all of the squares have been sewn, you can start to assemble your country rag quilt together. Start by laying 2 fabric squares together. Both of them with the flannel side facing down. Sew a 1" seam down the side. Now sew another square onto the end, of 1 of the 2 squares. Make sure you alternate from flannel to cotton. Again sew a 1" seam. Be sure to keep all of the seams on the same side. One side of the country rag quilt should be smooth and the other side will have the rag effect. Continue this step until you have 6 squares sewn together. Continue this procedure until you have made 8 strips with 6 squares in a strip.

Now with the smooth sides facing each other, lay 2 of the strips together. Make sure the seams are lined up and then pin the strips together. Sew the 2 strips together with a 1" seam. Repeat this step until all 8 strips have been sewn on. Once you have sewn all of the strips together, sew a 1-inch seam all the way around the country rag quilt.

Now with the seams facing up, snip each seam allowance approx. every 1/4" (careful not to cut the seam itself) with the scissors to create a fringe look. This will help your country rag quilt achieve the beautiful rag effect.

When you have finished, wash your country rag quilt in the washer and dry it in the dryer. This will aide in fraying the seams even more. Remove the country rag quilt from the dryer and comb out the frays with your fingers, cut away any uneven frays. Your country rag quilt is finished and ready for use.

Tips: The above instructions will create a finished country rag quilt measuring approx.52" X 68". If you would like to make your country rag quilt larger, you can add more squares or start out with 8" to 10" squares.