Skip to main content

Necktie Quilt: How Many Ties, and How to Get Them Ready

A necktie quilt is a memory quilt made from someone's ties, opened up, stabilized, and sewn into rows, fans, or stripes. Each tie gives one long panel from its wide front blade, about 4 by 12 inches finished. With 2-inch sashing, a throw about 58 by 68 inches takes 50 ties, and a small wall or lap quilt about 40 by 54 inches takes 28. Ties are cut on the bias and are often silk, so they stretch and slip; fusing lightweight interfacing to the back of each one is the step that makes them sewable. Most tie quilts end up as wall hangings or lap quilts, since silk ties are usually dry clean only.

Updated October 2026

Plan yours free in the Memory Quilt Designer

Photograph each piece, and the designer packs them into balanced rows and prints the pattern with prep for necktie, a cutting chart, and yardage. It holds up to 48 pieces, enough to plan a wall quilt or a small throw and to try an arrangement before you cut. For a bigger tie quilt, plan it in sections.

Plan a necktie quilt

How many do you need?

These counts use 4″ × 12″ finished panels (where the designer starts for necktie) with 2″ sashing between them, laid out by the same math the designer uses. Finished sizes are before any border. The designer itself plans up to 48 pieces and quilts up to 96 inches wide, so for the largest sizes here, plan the quilt in two halves.

Quilt sizePanelsLayoutFinished sizeTies
Baby / Crib287 across, 4 down40″ × 54″28
Throw / Lap5010 across, 5 down58″ × 68″50
Twin6611 across, 6 down64″ × 82″66
Full / Double9814 across, 7 down82″ × 96″98
Queen12015 across, 8 down88″ × 110″120

Each tie gives one 4 by 12 inch panel from the wide blade. A long tie sometimes gives a second, shorter piece from the narrow end, which can go in a small-pieces block.

Aiming at a particular bed? Check the standard quilt sizes chart.

How to make a necktie quilt

  1. 1Check the labels. Sort the ties by fiber: silk, polyester, wool, or cotton. Silk and polyester want a cooler iron than cotton, so you'll press them in batches.
  2. 2Take each tie apart. Unpick the long stitch running down the back of the tie; often you can pull it out in one thread. Take out the inner interlining and the small lining at each tip, then press the tie flat under a pressing cloth.
  3. 3Stabilize the silk. Ties are cut on the bias, so they stretch and slip. Fuse lightweight fusible interfacing to the back of each one, using a pressing cloth and a cool iron.
  4. 4Cut the panels. For a 4 by 12 inch finished panel, cut 4½ by 12½ inches from the wide blade, the part that shows when the tie is worn. Center the best of the pattern.
  5. 5Sew gently. Use a fine, sharp needle and plenty of pins or clips. A walking foot keeps slippery fabric from creeping. Sew the panels into rows with sashing between, then join the rows.
  6. 6Finish and hang. Most tie quilts become wall hangings or gentle lap quilts. Add a hanging sleeve if it is going on the wall, and a label with whose ties they were.

Frequently asked questions

How many ties do I need for a necktie quilt?

Using one 4 by 12 inch panel from each tie with 2-inch sashing, a small quilt about 40 by 54 inches takes 28 ties, a throw about 58 by 68 inches takes 50 ties, and a full-size quilt takes about 98. Layouts that use the whole length of each tie, like fans or long stripes, need fewer.

How do you take apart a necktie for quilting?

Find the loose stitch running down the back and pull or unpick it. Open the tie, lift out the wool or felt interlining and the lining at each tip, and press the shell flat with a pressing cloth and a cool iron. What you have left is one long bias-cut strip, widest at the front blade.

Do ties need interfacing in a quilt?

Yes, almost always. Tie fabric is cut on the bias and is often slippery silk or polyester, so it stretches as you sew. Lightweight fusible interfacing on the back makes it handle like quilting cotton. Press with a pressing cloth so you don't leave shine on the silk.

Can you wash a necktie quilt?

Most ties are labeled dry clean only, and silk can bleed or shrink in water. That is why most tie quilts are made as wall hangings or lap quilts that get spot cleaned. If you want a washable quilt, test one tie in cool water first, or choose polyester and cotton ties.

What other layouts work for neckties?

Ties are long and pointed, so they are often set in fans, Dresden-style circles, long vertical stripes, or a crazy quilt where pieces are sewn onto a foundation. The designer here plans the straight rectangle layout; the prep steps are the same for all of them.

More memory quilts