All about Eye Spy quilts

Photo by Angela, TweedleDeeDesigns, licensed under CC, some rights reserved. 

"I spy, with my little eye, something that is...." creative, thoughtful, handmade and fun! Welcome to the world of Eye Spy quilts (also known as I Spy).

Typically made for young children, Eye Spy quilts use a large variety of novelty prints filled with fun images to spot. Any recognizable image is fair game, from animals to vehicles, tools to fruit. Some are themed (for example, ocean themed) while for others, anything goes! 

The hardest part of planning an Eye Spy quilt is collecting all the many fabrics needed, since every little block is unique, and less than a quarter meter is usually needed of each fabric. On the other hand, they are great for those of us with bins full of scraps, and you can often find bundles online to help bulk out your collection. 

This year we are offering a great Advent Calendar bundle with 48 fat eighths specially chosen for Eye Spy quilts!   

How to Make an Eye Spy quilt?

Eye Spy quilts are often made of plain and simple squares, about charm square sized (from 3.5" to 5" unfinished squares). Sometimes they are made in a checkered pattern, alternating a print with a background color. Or sometimes they are simply square after square of prints! Check out this blog post by Amy Smart for beautiful examples of both layouts. 

 

See the chart below for the number of squares needed for a throw size Eye Spy quilt, using 5" unfinished squares or 3.5" unfinished squares. 

5" squares (unfinished)	45"x45"	45"x54"	54"x54"	54" x 63"
Number of squares needed	100	120	144	168
Number of rows	10	12	12	14
Number of columns	10	10	12	12

 

3.5" squares (unfinished)	45"x45"	45"x54"	54"x54"	54" x 63"
Number of squares needed	225	270	324	378
Number of rows	15	18	18	21
Number of columns	15	15	18	18

 

Fussy cutting

Fussy cutting is often needed to capture the motif you want to feature on a square. Fussy cutting means to cut out a specially selected area of the fabric to feature an image. 

Fussy cutting tips: 

• Leave a healthy border around your image (remember at least 1/4" on each side will be taken up by seam allowance).
• Use a clear ruler to fussy cut. You can add painter's tape along the lines of your ruler corresponding to the size of your unfinished square (e.g. along the 5" lines). 
• You can also cut out a template from cardstock to the size you need and place it over the fabric. 

Other inspiration

The quilt shown at the top of this entry is an economy block layout - a lovely versatile and classic block. Red Pepper Quilts has a tutorial on creating an Eye Spy quilt with economy blocks. 

Another popular layout is to create vintage photo-looking blocks. This tutorial by Crafty Staci provides a tutorial to make a cute photo-themed quilt. 

 

Another popular option is to frame fussy cut squares. The free Squared Quilt Pattern by Suzy Quilts is a perennial favorite. 

 

 Hope that you have a wonderful end to 2024 and looking forward to connecting with you in 2025! 

Sarah, Sally and the Sew With Vision crew