Vintage Hankies Baby Quilt Pattern – Use Your Grandma’s Hankies

Learn how to turn your wonderful collection of vintage hankies or even your grandma’s hankies into a quilt. If you want it larger than a baby quilt, simple – just sew more blocks.

Each block features four large squares of one hankie. You can even use hankies that have crochet edges, embroidered flowers and different colors.

The backing fabric can show through just a tiny bit – so make sure that’s a beautiful fabric as well.

For a while I was a big vintage hankie and fabric collector. I love, love that kind of stuff! I have more than enough and don’t pick up as much as I used to, but they are still fun to search for during the summer at yard sales.
At one point I had made this, but not sure that I ever shared the pattern.

For the background I chose to use some vintage sheets. Mixed in with the hankies it’s super fun. If you’d like though you could make it with more updated and modern fabric. A plainer fabric might be a good option too, so the hankies show off a little more.

Materials Needed:
vintage hankies
vintage fabric – background (vintage is optional) — to find out what size you will need for the background, you will need to measure each of the hankies. Your background will need to be 4″ larger than the largest hankie. That will give you 2″ extra on all sides of the hankie. Cut all your background pieces this size.

fabric for the border & backing

batting

Purchase the pdf Pattern here  —> Hankie Quilt Pattern

Vintage Hankie Baby Quilt Pattern~

1)  Fold in half twice so you have a small square. Iron so you make creases

2)  Repeat this with each hankie

3)  Open the squares and center the hankie on top of the background fabric– you can layer more than one hankie if you’d like. Some really small ones look great inside a larger hankie.

4)  Sew all the way around the hankies. I sewed just inside the hankie edge and followed the rounded corner if there was one. If you’d like you could tack a few stitches on the crochet edge if you were worried about it catching.

5)  Cut the square twice– in the center of each side

6)  Take the new smaller squares and mix them up. Lay them out into rows and sew them together. They will not match up. The hankies are going to vary in size, plus the edging will be all different. It’s not worth trying to make them fit together- it would drive you crazy!

7)  Sew the squares of 4 together– for the baby quilt you will need 4 large blocks.

8)  Measure the sides and cut 2 strips of fabric this length X 3″ – sew to the sides. Repeat for the top and bottom.

9)  Layer your backing, batting and finished quilt top.

10)  With thick thread, hand quilt some stitching around the blocks

Purchase the pdf Pattern here  —> Hankie Quilt Pattern

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You could use your grandmas vintage hankies for this– make a small heirloom quilt. Would be kind of fun to showcase some embroidery hankies, crochet edged hankies, or tatting.

More Baby Quilts:

Simple Nine Patch baby quilt – alternating the blocks with a fun print or solid is a great beginner quilt for any level of quilter. You should be able to sew this up in a weekend.

Early Bird baby quilt – this quilt features a fun little bird right in the center of the quilt block. If you want, you can add any applique shape or animal to showcase. You could even use the center to show off some beautiful embroidery.

Mix and match your fun collection of 5″ squares into a Eye Spy quilt. If you want it larger than a baby quilt sized- you can add more blocks.

Using your charm pack – this quilt is not as hard as it looks. There is even a flange binding. It’s one of my favorite quilts.

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