Baby Safari Panel Quilt Idea

Do you need a last-minute handmade baby quilt idea?  This baby safari quilt is a quick and easy panel quilt idea that can be made in an afternoon.

This quilt may look complicated to make, but it’s super easy!  If you look closely, you will notice that there is only one border added to the quilt panel.  

The baby safari panel is from Makower Fabric Baby Safari collection.  The panel is printed with several borders included.  This makes the quilt look more complicated when it's actually very simple.

If you are looking for ideas for quilts from panels, visit our web page Panel Quilt Ideas for lots of other ideas and patterns.

To learn more about making this quilt or to purchase fabric for this quilt, keep reading or watch our video by clicking the YouTube link below.

WHAT YOU NEED to make the baby safari quilt

• Makower Baby Safari Quilt Panel
• 1 yard Makower Baby Safari Fabric for the border & binding (or another coordinating fabric)
• 1-1/2 yard Makower Baby Safari Fabric for Backing (or another coordinating fabric)
• White or Cream Thread for piecing
• Sulky Blendables Tan Thread for Quilting
• Ruler, rotary cutter and quilt mat 
• Sewing machine
• Scissors

Learn how to make this baby safari panel quilt

Finished Quilt Size: 40" x 50" (approximate)
Difficulty Level: Beginner
Seam Allowance: 1/4"

About the Baby Safari Quilt Panel

When you first look at this quilt, it appears there are 7 borders, but on closer inspection, you will notice that the panel has 6 borders built into the panel! 

This makes this baby quilt very quick and easy to make since only one single border needs to be added around the panel.  Of course, you can add more borders if you need a larger quilt.

To begin, trim the baby safari quilt panel to be 34-1/2" x 44".  This should be the entire panel with a 1/4" seam allowance around the outside of the solid blue border.    

Adding the Border

For my quilt, I added a 3” border using coordinating fabric from the baby safari fabric line.  There are several different fabrics in the line that would look nice as the border fabric.

To add the border, cut five 3-1/2" x width of fabric strips from your selected coordinating fabric. 

Using the first two strips, sew one to the top and bottom of the quilt panel with a 1/4" seam allowance. Trim off the extra border strip fabric and save it.

Press the seams towards the border fabric.

Take the last three border strips and join them together with either straight or mitered seams.  We have a tutorial on joining fabric with mitered seams.

OR

Take two strips and add the extra cut off from the top/bottom to each strip.  This should make the strip long enough to cover the side of the quilt, but it's pretty close in length.  If using this method, sew them together with a straight seam allowance.

Use this long strip(s) and attach the side borders to the quilt with a 1/4" seam allowance.

Press the side borders open with the seam allowances towards the border fabric.

I prefer to add the top and bottom borders first in this case because the side of the quilt before adding the top and bottom border is 44" long.  This means it only needs 1" to complete the side and it's such a small piece to add!

Adding the top/bottom borders then extend the sides to be approximately 50" long so the seam isn't right next to the other border.

Backing The Baby Safari Panel Quilt

The finished quilt top should be approximately 40-1/2" x 50".

Since the backing fabric is 43" wide, there should be just enough to back the quilt without having to piece it together.  If you need instructions on piecing a quilt backing, please click the link for a tutorial.

Layer the backing fabric face down on a table, then place the batting fabric on top.  Place the quilt top face up on top of the batting fabric. 

Smooth out the layers and pin-baste them together.  Or, use your favorite method for basting your quilt.  We have a tutorial on layering and pin basting a quilt available through the link.

Options for Quilting the Layers

Quilting a panel quilt can be a tricky decision!  If you have a longarm quilting machine, an all-over pattern would be nice on this quilt.  With an embroidery machine, an edge-to-edge quilt design can also be stitched.

Outlining the images on the quilt panel or stippling in the negative space is another possibility.

For my quilt, I decided to stitch vertical straight lines, 3" apart across the entire quilt.  This was a simple way to quilt without detracting from the panel itself. 

For our pieced border panel quilt idea, I used straight vertical lines in the center and then horizontal lines for the border.  Look at that tutorial to learn more about this quilting method. 

For some extra tips and instructions on How to machine quilt, click the link for a tutorial.  

I used Sulky Blendables Cotton thread in tans to quilt the top of this quilt.  This thread blends into the background and allows the panel design to show.  A walking foot is also helpful to keep the layers feeding through the sewing machine at the same rate.

Square Up the Quilt Top

Once the quilting is complete, it's time to square the quilt.  Click the link for a tutorial on How to Square Up your Quilt Top.

Squaring up a quilt top is the process of removing the extra batting and backing around the edges of the quilt and also making the quilt as "square" on the corners as possible.

Binding the Baby Safari Panel Quilt

The last step in creating this quilt is to add a binding.  My second favorite binding is the Quick Quilt Binding and I used it on this quilt.  This binding is sewn on completely by machine and requires no hand sewing.  It also only uses one fabric.  Click the link above for our tutorial on this method of binding.

If you are interested, my favorite binding is the Flange Binding.  This binding is sewn on completely by machine and also requires no hand sewing but it uses two fabrics. 

Use our binding calculator to figure out the number of strips to cut for creating the binding for this quilt.

The baby safari panel quilt is FINISHED!

The quilt is now finished.  Don't forget to put a label on the quilt!

This is such a quick quilt that the whole baby quilt could be made in one afternoon!

Additional Panel Quilt Ideas

• Collection of Panel Quilt Ideas - we have rounded up panel quilt ideas from around the internet.
• I Spy Quilt - A fun playmat made with a panel by Robert Kaufmann fabrics.
• American Pride Quilt - This quilt features a patriotic panel but the layout would work with many different panels
• Simple and Easy Baby Quilt Pattern - This quilt cuts apart a panel and uses them in the center of the blocks.
• Pieced Border Panel Quilt - This quilt has a pieced border around the outside.
• Woodland Forest Friends Baby Panel Quilt - An adorable quilt utilizing two cute panels.
• DIY Baby Playmat - This DIY alphabet play mat pattern is perfect for sewing beginners and comes together fast!