Have you ever spotted a beautiful quilt at the thrift store and wished you could turn it into something wearable? Today I’m sharing how to make a quilt coat using a $6 coverlet I thrifted. It’s white with sweet pink roses embroidered on it—so romantic and perfect for the colder months.

I’ll be using the Joni Jacket pattern from Etsy, which features an oversized ruffled collar, bow closures, and a hip-length fit. I was so excited when I found this pattern! It’s the exact look I was looking for.

how to make a quilt coat

SUPPLIES

2–3 yards of quilted fabric (or a quilt)
1 yard of fabric for ruffle, bows, pocket and collar lining
Joni Jacket Pattern (available on Etsy, sizes 0–34 included)
½” Single Fold Bias Tape (for the neckline)- get 1 package
½” Double Fold Bias Tape (for finishing edges)- get 2 packages. I needed around 4 yards.
Sewing machine
Matching thread
Scissors or rotary cutter
Pins and clips
Iron and ironing pad

Choose the Right Quilt

Before you begin, it’s important to pick the perfect quilt for your project:

Check condition carefully: Look for stains, tears, or brittle fabric—some quilts are too fragile to withstand sewing or wear.
Consider weight and drape: A heavy quilt will make a bulky coat; a thinner, softer one will be easier to sew and wear.
Design placement: Pay attention to the quilt pattern so you can feature interesting blocks or borders in prominent places, like the front bodice, back panel, and pockets.

You can also quilt your own fabric, but I won’t be including a tutorial for that in this post.

figure out your size

To choose your pattern size do the following

Take a jacket that fits you well. Measure it and compare the sizing to the finished garment size on the pattern
Measure yourself and compare the sizing to the fit guide on the pattern

For both of those, I got a size 12. I usually wear a size medium and my jacket I measured is a size medium. I want it big enough to wear a sweater under or a dress with puffy sleeves.

You’ll also want to figure out how long the jacket should be. For that, I measured the jacket (from the shoulder to the bottom of the bodice) I have and compared it to the finished length of the jacket (found in the instructions). Then I took 1-1/2″ off the length of the pattern on the front and back bodice pieces.

PRINT OUT THE PATTERN

Since this is a digital pattern, it needs to be printed out. On the PDF there’s an option to just select the size you are so that’s all that will print (under the layers button). I used my printer at home and it took 42 pages to print all the sizes! I wish I’d gone to my library and used their large format printer. Or had it printed at Staples or FedEx where they could’ve used a large printer and I would’ve had less errors taping the pattern together.

It took me a few hours to cut out all the pattern pieces and piece them together. I’ve used digital patterns and printed them, but this one I found a little difficult to know how to tape the pieces together. I wasn’t confident that the angles I put the pattern together were right. It was slow and a little frustrating taping all the pieces.

This ended up causing problems in the arm hole and collar. Please, if you use this pattern, use a large format printer to print it!

CUT OUT THE PATTERN

Lay the pattern pieces thoughtfully: Before cutting make sure to lay the pattern pieces on the quilt. Since I want all of the key parts of the jacket to have the embroidered parts, it took a while to align the pattern with the key quilt motifs where I want them on the finished coat. Taking this step slowly will ensure a really pretty finished jacket so its time well spent..
Because quilts are thick, you’ll want sharp scissors or a rotary cutter to keep edges clean.
For the ruffle, the ties, and the lining I’ll be using a pink gingham fabric. I think it’ll look really cute with the embroidered flowers!

Before You Start sewing

A few things to note before you begin making the quilt coat-

The Joni Jacket calls for a ⅜” seam allowance—so keep that in mind as you sew.
This is a beginner-friendly project (maybe edging toward advanced beginner), but I promise it’s worth it for the end result!
To make it easier, the collar, bows and pockets don’t have to be added. But those are the cutest details, so I’ll show how to sew those.

I also like to layout my cut pattern pieces to start envisioning the finished product. This helps get me super excited for the end result!

1. Sew the Bodice:

Pin the front pieces of the bodice to the back at the shoulders (right sides together) and sew.
Sew the side seams of the bodice the same way. Sew from the bottom toward the armpit.
Finish seams with a zig-zag or overlock stitch and press.
Turn right side out and set aside.

2. Make the Sleeves:

Sew each sleeve along the side seam, right sides together. Sew from the wrist up toward the armpit.
Finish seams with a zig-zag or overlock stitch, press, and turn sleeves right side out.

3. Attach Sleeves to Bodice:

Pin each sleeve into the armhole, matching seams.
Ease in the extra fabric for mobility. On the pattern it says that the sleeve is a few centimeters bigger than the arm hole for better mobility. But I found the arm hole bigger. I ended up sewing the armpit a little tighter so the sleeve would fit in. I’m not sure if I messed up somehow (maybe when taping the pattern together?), but this step was slow for me to figure out.
Sew the sleeves to the bodice, finish seams, and press.

4. Add Bias Tape to Edges:

With the jacket wrong side out, pin double-fold bias tape around the front opening (starting at the top of the bodice front), the bottom edge, and the sleeve cuffs.
Sew along the first fold line to tack the bias tape in place.
Connect any tails, then fold the bias tape over to the inside, pin or clip in place and sew again to finish.
Trim any excess bias tape at the neckline.

5. Make and Attach the Ruffled Collar:

Sew the two ruffle pieces together to create one long strip.
Take the ruffle piece and fold it in half- making sure the right sides are together. Use a 1/8″ seam allowance and sew the curved edge together on both sides. Turn right side out and press.
Next, sew basting (also known as gathering) stitches, gather the ruffle until it matches the length of the collar edge, then sandwich it between the quilted collar piece and the lining.
Sew, clip curves, turn right side out, and press.
Attach the collar to the neckline using pins.

Note- at this point I realized that the collar was too small for the neckline. I’m not sure if there’s an issue with the pattern, but I’m betting it’s an issue with how I put the pattern together. I struggled with it. So I definitely suggest using a large format printer to print the pattern so there’s a smaller margin for error.

To deal with the collar being too small, I created a pleat on both sides of the front of the jacket. This ended up being fine, just more challenging when attaching the collar.

Take single fold bias tape and pin it to the collar and jacket. Sandwich the collar between the bias tape and the jacket.
Sew along the neckline
Turn the bias tape toward the inside of the neckline. Fold the excess length of the bias tape over the edge. Fold the bias tape round the neckline, pinning into place.
Sew around the neckline attaching the collar to the quilt jacket.

This step- adding the bias tape to the collar ended up being slow and frustrating for me. It was the trickiest part. Maybe because of the added bulk from the pleats I added? Maybe because I haven’t used bias tape in a while? It did turn out looking nice, but I wanted to give you a heads up, this step can take some time and patience.

6. Add Pockets:

Sew the pocket lining to the quilted pocket pieces, leaving a small gap.
Clip curves, turn right side out, press, and topstitch the opening side.

Note, I forgot to wash my quilt before I sewed it into a quilt (gross, right?!). Every time I ironed, it smelled. So please wash it before using it! I washed mine right when I was done with sewing, but regret not doing it right off the bat.

Pin pockets to the jacket front, check placement, then sew in place.

7. Make and Sew Bows:

Fold each bow piece in half (right side together). Pin along the edge.
Sew each bow piece along the edge.
Clip the corner on the angle, turn right side out, and press. Repeat for other 3 ties.

Pin the top two ties along the front opening about 2 cm down from the neckline and 2.5 cm away from the front opening.
Fold the ties away from the center opening and then fold over tower the center. Pin over the raw edge of the tie.
For the second bow, attach the ties 2.5 cm away from the center front police opening a bit above the pocket.
Fold the ties away from the center opening and then fold over tower the center. Pin over the raw edge of the tie.
Try the jacket on to check placement. Make sure it’s the same on each side. Tie the bows to see if they need to be adjusted.
Then sew the ties in place with a small square once you’re happy with the look.

8. Finish and Admire:

Give the whole coat a final press, snip any loose threads, and—voilà!—your custom quilt coat is ready to wear.

after

Now you know how to make a quilt coat using a thrifted quilt or coverlet!

Despite my difficulties, it turned out really cozy and stylish.

If you make this, I love that every coat will be one-of-a-kind depending on the quilt you use.

price breakdown

I spent $6 on the quilt. The pattern cost $16. Gingham fabric was $8. Bias tape $2. Thread $1. In total, I spent $33 which is a great price for a new jacket!