What are charm packs used for in quilting?

Question

I am new to quilting and I know what fat quarters are but what are charm packs and jelly rolls that I've been seeing on the fabric stores online.What are they used for?

Answer 1

Technically a "charm quilt" is one which uses a different fabric for each piece.  So a charm pack would contain loads of totally different fabrics (usually cut up into squares so they can be made into a Trip Around The World quilt or actually any pattern at all).

Since "jelly roll" packs appear to be strips, I'd guess that a charm jelly roll pack would be strips of all-different fabrics rolled up into a jellyroll-shaped unit.

Diane B.

Answer 2

Charm packs are great if you are trying to use one of the charm quilt templates (eg apple core, triangle, etc). Also some books call for 5" squares, for example "Nickel Quilts." It's a way to be scrapy without buying extra yardage.

They are also neat just joined as squares.

Hope this helps,

Sarah

Answer 3

Charm packs are packages of precut fabric squares that are all different fabrics.  Jelly rolls are precut fabric strips rolled together.