Pattern Description:
The Color Stack Quilt is a vivid, beginner-friendly jelly roll pattern perfect for stash busting. Made with 2.5″ strips, it features bold, staggered columns of stacked blocks accented by striking skinny black-and-white strips.
Measuring 67″ x 80″, this playful quilt comes together quickly with simple piecing, creating a colorful, modern design that showcases fabric variety beautifully.
Materials Needed & Measurements:
| Item | Quantity/Measurement | |
| Finished Quilt Size | 67″ x 80″ (original size) | |
| Main Fabric Strips | 70 strips of fabric measuring 2.5″ x width of fabric (WOF) (at least 40 inches long) OR Two jelly rolls | |
| Skinny Black Strips | 3 strips measuring 1.5″ x 40″ | |
| Skinny White Strips | 3 strips measuring 1.5″ x 40″ | |
| Full Block Size | 8″ by 20.5″ (made from five 8-inch pieces) | |
| Block Preparation | The 70 strips are paired into sets of two; three sets (six strips) are set aside initially for making the colored parts of the skinny strips. | |
| Quilt Construction | The quilt is made using 8 columns of 4 blocks in each column, with three skinny strips mixed in. Blocks are 8 inches wide for assembly into columns. | |
| Skinny Strip Units (Colored) | Units measuring 2.5″ wide by 4.5″ x 2.5″ are needed. These units are sewn together to make strips with varying numbers of units: 9, 8, 7, 5, 4, and 3 units. |
Instructions for Making the Color Stack Quilt Tutorial Pattern:
Initial Preparation and Strip Pairing
The project requires two jelly rolls or 70 strips of fabric, with each strip measuring 2.5″ by at least 40 inches long (width of fabric, or WOF). Additionally, you need 3 strips of 1.5″ x 40″ in both black and white for the skinny strips.
To begin, select the 70 main fabric strips and pair them into sets of two. Then, set aside three sets (six strips of fabric total).
These six colored strips, along with the black and white skinny strips, will be used later for constructing the vertical skinny strips.
Creating the Full Color Stack Blocks
Using the remaining paired strips, sew each set together lengthwise to create 32 long strips. Next, cut each of these long strips into five pieces that are each 8 inches long. Six of these sets of cut pieces should be set aside initially to be used for partial blocks.
Take the remaining pieces and sew the five 8-inch pieces together, ensuring that the colors alternate. This creates a full Color Stack block that measures 8 inches by 20.5 inches. A total of 26 of these full color stack quilt blocks are required.
Assembling Partial Blocks
Partial blocks are necessary so that the color stacks can be staggered between columns in the final assembly. Use two of the reserved sets of cut pieces to sew four pieces together, leaving the fifth piece separate.
With the last four reserved sets of cut pieces, construct partial blocks consisting of two pieces and three pieces.
Constructing the Alternating Skinny Strips
The quilt design incorporates three skinny strips mixed into the columns. To make these, pair the 1.5-inch wide black and white fabrics together and sew them into long strips, resulting in three sets of strips. Cut each of these strips into two pieces, 20 inches long each.
Sew these two 20-inch strips together, ensuring the black and white colors alternate. Next, cut this sewn strip in half, yielding two pieces that are 10 inches long.
Stack these two 10-inch pieces on top of each other and sew them together again. Repeat this process of cutting the block in half and stacking/sewing two more times until you achieve a long strip that measures 2.5 inches wide.
You must complete this process three times to create three alternating black and white skinny strips.
Preparing and Attaching Colored Skinny Strip Units
Retrieve the six colored 2.5″ strips that were initially set aside. Form three pairs of these fabrics and sew them together into long strips. Cut these newly assembled strips into 2.5-inch wide units that measure 4.5″ x 2.5″.
Sew these colored units together to create six strips of varying lengths:
- One strip made of 9 units.
- One strip made of 8 units.
- One strip made of 7 units.
- One strip made of 5 units.
- One strip made of 4 units.
- One strip made of 3 units.
These varying-length colored strips are then attached to the ends of the three black and white skinny strips:
- Sew the 9-unit strip and the 3-unit strip to each end of the first black and white strip.
- Sew the 8-unit strip and the 4-unit strip to each end of the second black and white strip.
- Sew the 7-unit strip and the 5-unit strip to each end of the last black and white strip.
Quilt Top Assembly
The finished quilt top requires 8 columns, with four blocks in each column.
First, arrange the blocks and columns to your satisfaction. The stacks are designed to be staggered between columns.
Two columns (Columns 2 and 7) are constructed solely from four full blocks. The other six columns use three full blocks combined with the partial blocks placed at the top and bottom to create the staggered effect.
Sew the 8-inch wide blocks together to form the columns. As you finish each column, iron the column, ensuring the seams go in opposite directions.
This opposing seam direction is important for easy nesting of the seams when joining the columns. Finally, sew the eight assembled columns together to complete the quilt top.
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