Hey everyone. Today we're taking one pack of big 10-inch squares and turning it into a real, finished layer cake quilt — no complicated cutting, no fuss.
Here we go.
First, the fabric
This one is the 2025 Tula Pink True Colors 10-inch pack from FreeSpirit.
What you get is simple, and I like simple. The pack holds 42 pieces. Every piece measures 10 inches by 10 inches. The designer is Tula Pink. The group name is 2025 True Colors.
At Linda's, this SKU is filed under Pre-Cuts, and its tags point to the gray family, including Grayworks. Gray-based prints let other colors sit side by side without fighting. One square can be bold. The next can be quiet. Together, they still belong.
I use precuts when I want to spend my time sewing, not cutting. Open the pack, sort the squares, and you are ready to lay out a top. Just like that. Give them a quick check first. Square one up if it needs it.
The project: a layer cake quilt
A layer cake quilt is exactly what it sounds like. You sew those 10-inch squares together in a grid, row by row, and the prints themselves do the design work.
Why does this fabric suit it? Because 42 squares divides up beautifully. Lay them out 6 across and 7 down. With a quarter-inch seam, each square finishes at 9 and a half inches. That gives you a top about 57 by 66 and a half inches, before borders. A generous throw.
The second reason is scale. A simple grid needs fabric with presence. Tula Pink prints are not shy, y'all. In a 10-inch square, you get to see the print.
Materials list
- 1 pack of 2025 Tula Pink True Colors — 42 pieces, 10 inches by 10 inches
- Batting, about 62 inches by 72 inches, to give you a little extra all around
- Backing fabric, about 62 inches by 72 inches
- Binding: about a half yard of coordinating fabric, cut into 2 and a half inch strips
- Thread for piecing and quilting — completely up to you on color
- Rotary cutter, mat, ruler, pins or clips, iron, and your sewing machine
For piecing, I like a fresh size 80/12 needle for quilting cotton. Set your stitch length around 2.0 to 2.5 millimeters. We're not reinventing the wheel here.
Brief steps
- Lay it out first. Put all 42 squares on a bed or the floor, six across and seven down. Step back. Move the darkest squares so they are not bunched in one corner.
- Sew each row. Join the six squares in a row with quarter-inch seams. Press one row's seams left, the next row's seams right. Alternating helps your intersections nest.
- Join the rows. Pin at every intersection and sew slowly. Rush the bulky spots and you can shift a seam, or snap a needle. Ask me how I know. I have unpicked a whole row before. The fix was easy: rip it out, press flat, sew again.
- Layer and baste. Backing face down, batting in the middle, top face up. Smooth from the center out and pin or spray-baste so nothing travels while you quilt.
- Quilt it your way. Stitch in the ditch along the grid is clean and honest. Echo a quarter inch over from the seams if you like. A simple meander softens everything. My preference is stitch in the ditch first, to lock it all down. Yours is just as valid.
- Bind it. Trim the batting and backing even with the top, sew on your binding strips, miter the corners, and finish the back by machine or by hand.
Tips from our table in McKinney
Photograph your layout before you pick up row one. One stack will flip on the way to the machine. That photo has saved me more than once.
Press, don't push. Lift and set the iron down. Sliding it around can stretch a square and make one row longer than its neighbor.
And here is the permission part. Your intersections do not have to be perfect. A point a sixteenth of an inch off is not a failed quilt. It is a handmade quilt. You are your own worst critic — nobody wrapped in this throw will hunt for that seam. Take your time. It's not a race.
If I can do this, y'all can do it. Super duper easy, honestly, once that first row is sewn.
Alrighty. Thank y'all so much for sewing along with me today. We'll see you next time. Bye.
Shop the 2025 Tula Pink True Colors - 10" Charm Pack at Linda's Electric Quilters.
