Sundogs Quilt

Sundogs Quilt Pattern by Cait Lisle Designs – Beginner-Friendly Mini Quilt

The Sundogs Quilt is a charming mini quilt pattern designed by Cait Lisle Designs, finishing at a neat 21" x 21". This downloadable PDF pattern is ideal for quilters of all experience levels, and is specifically rated as beginner-friendly, making it a wonderful entry point into the world of quilting. The design draws on traditional piecing techniques and gives them a fresh, modern twist — a hallmark of Cait Lisle's signature style.

What Is Being Made

The finished project is a square mini quilt or wall hanging measuring 21 inches by 21 inches. Its compact size makes it an approachable project for newer quilters while still offering a visually striking result. The Sundogs Quilt is part of the blankets and throws category, suitable for display, gifting, or use as a decorative accent piece.

Design and Construction Techniques

The Sundogs Quilt is built using triangle piecing, a classic quilting technique that involves cutting and sewing together angled fabric pieces to create geometric patterns. Cait Lisle Designs has structured the construction around a printed triangle template included in the PDF, which quilters print, cut out, and use to trace and cut fabric pieces from pre-cut strips. This template-based approach simplifies the process and helps beginners achieve accuracy.

The cutting process begins with slicing fabric into 3½" x 22" wide strips, from which triangles are then cut by rotating the template to minimize fabric wastage. This efficient rotary-cutting approach is a staple of modern quilting and helps make the most of every piece of fabric.

• Triangle template piecing – a printed template is included in the pattern for precise triangle cutting
• Strip cutting – fabric is first cut into 3½"-wide strips before triangles are cut
• Rotating template placement – triangles are cut by rotating the template to reduce waste
• ¼" seam allowances throughout, consistent with standard quilting practice
• Directional seam pressing – the pattern includes pressing direction arrows to ensure flat, accurate seams

Colour Palette and Fabric Layout

The pattern uses a three-colour palette — yellow, dark teal, and light teal — to create its sundog-inspired geometric design. A swatch chart is included in the pattern so quilters can attach fabric swatches or use coloured pencils to plan and track their colour choices before cutting begins.

The triangle counts per colour are precise and intentional:

• Yellow: 14 triangles
• Dark teal: 39 triangles
• Light teal: 38 triangles

Materials Required

The Sundogs Quilt is fat quarter friendly, meaning all the main fabrics can be sourced in the widely available fat quarter cut (18" x 22"). This makes it easy to use pre-cut fabric bundles or coordinate fabrics from a single collection.

• Yellow fabric: one (1) fat quarter
• Dark teal fabric: two (2) fat quarters
• Light teal fabric: two (2) fat quarters
• Backing fabric: ¾ yard or ¾ metre
• Batting: 30" x 30"
• Binding fabric: one (1) fat quarter

Standard quilting tools such as a rotary cutter, cutting mat, quilting ruler, and a sewing machine capable of a consistent ¼" seam are recommended. The width of fabric (WOF) is assumed to be 42" throughout the pattern calculations.

Pattern Format and Designer