3 Fun & Fresh Quilted Pillow Patterns

3 fun and fresh quilted pillow patterns for a modern look. Easy to follow patterns that are fat quarter friendly or use up scraps!

I come to you today as a fun and fresh 32 year old, but in a matter of hours, I will be an old, wisened 33 year old. You see, tomorrow, December 20, is my birthday. And something I have discovered over my almost 33 years here on earth is that quilting...well...it takes a lot of time.

Oh, that's not a new revelation to you? Well, I guess it's not completely new to me either, but you know what is new to me? Being almost 33 and 7 months pregnant. That puts a whooole new spin on how long it takes to make a quilt.

(Below is a picture of me wearing my maternity swimsuit as I mentally prepare to drive to the gym to swim laps in the pool. I'm a pretty poor swimmer, and also very unsure of the buoyancy of this huge belly.)

7 months pregnant

With a serious lack of energy and mostly constant nausea, I have come up with a fantastic solution to the "quilts take too long to make" crisis of 2018. Pillows! Why make a full throw-sized quilt when you can whip out a pillow in a fraction of the time?!

Before I was in time-saver mode, I didn't make many quilted pillows. But now I see quilted pillow patterns as a top priority!

Trending patterns!

Whether you don't have the space to make full quilts or are crunched for time, I have 3 fun and fresh pillow patterns for you to enjoy.


This is a stand-alone extension pattern that includes fabric requirements and instructions for a finished 18" square pillow. Like all of the pillow patterns, this one is great for using up scraps. The largest strip is only 2 ¼" wide!

If you make a pillow, or two, and love the look, you can also get the Maypole pattern in its entirety – which includes baby, throw and queen quilt sizes.

Click here for a full tutorial on How to Make a Quilted Pillow with Zipper.

3 fun and fresh quilted pillow patterns for a modern look. Easy to follow patterns that are fat quarter friendly or use up scraps! | Suzy Quilts
3 fun and fresh quilted pillow patterns for a modern look. Easy to follow patterns that are fat quarter friendly or use up scraps!

If you like this hand quilted look, be sure to check out my tutorial on hand quilting. It includes all of my favorite supplies as well as a step-by-step tutorial video. Click here to read How to Hand Quilt with Video Tutorial!

Below you can see that these pillows were finished with a zipper and a stuffed with a pillow insert. For the exact premium hypoallergenic no-geese-were-harmed-in-the-making-of-this-pillow, click here for the link.

3 fun and fresh quilted pillow patterns for a modern look. Easy to follow patterns that are fat quarter friendly or use up scraps!

When I bought these pillow inserts on Amazon I was a little skeptical because... well...sometimes you just don't know what you're going to get when it comes to Amazon. When I received the package I was very confused because they came totally flat. For about 3 minutes I tried blaming my husband for ordering a strange seat cushion. 

For shipping, apparently the manufacturer sucks out all of the air from the pillows. As soon as you open the air-sealed package, the pillows pop up and are lovely and light. I highly recommend them – especially for the price.

3 fun and fresh quilted pillow patterns for a modern look. Easy to follow patterns that are fat quarter friendly or use up scraps!
3 fun and fresh quilted pillow patterns for a modern look. Easy to follow patterns that are fat quarter friendly or use up scraps!

Maypole Pillows in the Wild

Because we are 6 days away from Christmas, time was tight and a lot of my testers only finished their pillow tops. You can still see how amazing they will look when finished!

Christmas Maypole Pillow by Elizabeth Ray

Fabric is from the Merriment line by Gingiber.

3 fun and fresh quilted pillow patterns for a modern look. Easy to follow patterns that are fat quarter friendly or use up scraps!

Gingham Maypole Pillow by Susan from Needle and Grain

3 fun and fresh quilted pillow patterns for a modern look. Easy to follow patterns that are fat quarter friendly or use up scraps!

Woodland Nursery Pillow by Jessica Schunke

3 fun and fresh quilted pillow patterns for a modern look. Easy to follow patterns that are fat quarter friendly or use up scraps!

The Sugar POP pattern includes fabric requirements and instructions for a throw and baby quilt in addition to an 18" square pillow. You can see loads of pictures of that pattern this blog post.

I'll still how you some fun pillow pics, though, cause it is such a dreamy, modern design.

3 fun and fresh quilted pillow patterns for a modern look. Easy to follow patterns that are fat quarter friendly or use up scraps!

I know I already mentioned the free hand quilting tutorial, but thought I'd bring it up one more time in case you missed it. 😉 Click here to read How to Hand Quilt with Video Tutorial!

3 fun and fresh quilted pillow patterns for a modern look. Easy to follow patterns that are fat quarter friendly or use up scraps!
3 fun and fresh quilted pillow patterns for a modern look. Easy to follow patterns that are fat quarter friendly or use up scraps!

I hold the Modern Fans pattern very near and dear to my heart. This past fall I hosted my first sew-along using this pattern and it made me fall in love with this quilt community to such a degree I'm STILL heartbroken I can't marry ALL OF YOU!

Each of the sew-along posts are still up, so you can follow along at your own pace! Click here to see them or do a search for Modern Fans here on the blog. Are you worried about sewing curves? Don't be! I have lots and lots of videos and tutorials to help you through. 

This pattern includes lots of sizes – king, queen, twin, throw and baby as well as an 18" square pillow.

3 fun and fresh quilted pillow patterns for a modern look. Easy to follow patterns that are fat quarter friendly or use up scraps!
3 fun and fresh quilted pillow patterns for a modern look. Easy to follow patterns that are fat quarter friendly or use up scraps!

Do you have pillow plans? Let us know in the comments if you have a favorite pillow pattern or a tip for finishing a pillow. Zippers aren't the only way to go!

3 fun and fresh quilted pillow patterns for a modern look. Easy to follow patterns that are fat quarter friendly or use up scraps!
3 fun and fresh quilted pillow patterns for a modern look. Easy to follow patterns that are fat quarter friendly or use up scraps!

17 thoughts on “3 Fun & Fresh Quilted Pillow Patterns

  1. Kate @timetosew says:

    I just made the sugar pop pillow as a gift – a great scrapbuster for leftovers! And also my sister will be getting a maypole one from the leftovers from her campfire quilt when I’m finished. I still did the hand quilting stitches with a piece of cotton for backing (and to prevent fray issues with washing) but without the batting – it’s cushiony enough already. Also overlocked the sides again for no-fray purposes. Thanks Suzy for lovely designs.

  2. Haley says:

    I love these pillows SO MUCH! I have four young kiddos and making time to quilt is tricky. Just when you think a baby is slowing you down, just wait! Soon he will want to sew alongside you. Totally cool! However, the quilt project that became a pillow will then become a pin cushion. The most glorious collaborated pin cushion of all time!

    I will for sure make pillows (probably with help) and I think giant floor pillows would be great too…for snuggling, reading, playing Legos. Merry Christmas Suzy!

  3. Alanna says:

    hey suzy, when you make quilted pillows, do you quilt the back side of the pillow too? or just use quilting cotton, unquilted? do you interface it? thanks and happy belated birthday. I just turned 33 this month too!

    • Suzy Quilts says:

      Well Happy birthday to us! There’s no right or wrong way to do it. I usually only have the energy to quilt one side, so a single layer of fabric with no interfacing is the back to most of my pillows.

  4. Josie says:

    Hi Suzy! Love your patterns. Any chance you’ll be making potholder patterns 😉 ? They’re quick and fun just like pillows. <3

  5. Robyn Christie says:

    I LOVE all of your patterns so much and they turn out so beautiful. I’ve never really been much of a “modern” pattern person, but your patterns have completely converted me. I think I will purchase all of them.
    I’d love to be a pattern tester! Let me know how I can apply.
    Looking forward to the next Suzy Quilts project!

  6. KathyB says:

    I’m a bit late to the party, but just came across this tutorial while searching for a Zen-like pillow to make for a Christmas gift. I’ve searched the various blog posts, but cannot find any reference to what fabrics were used to make the light-colored Modern Fans pillow in the photo above. Can you tell me which collection these came from, please? They would be perfect for my project. Thanks!

  7. Alyson says:

    Love this pattern! I just made it today and I was wondering how you did the quilting on the green pillow. Did you do hand embroidery or is that just the quilting (the ovals and leaf/fan looking designs)?

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