It’s time to gear up for a new skill building Friendship Quilt Along! Click Here to get started with Block #1!
The Friendship Sampler Quilt Along is a 12 month quilting project designed to teach you how to piece and quilt a beautiful scrappy quilt one block at a time. Yes, the blocks are pieced and quilted separately, then put together at the end to create the finished quilt.
Click Here to find all the Friendship Sampler tutorials posted so far!
How big is the Friendship Sampler Quilt?
For the first time ever, I’ve designed FIVE different quilt sizes! Choose from baby, throw, twin, queen or king and follow the charts found in the Block 1 Pattern to purchase your materials and know how many blocks you will need to make from each pattern.
Click Here to join this Friendship Quilt Along by purchasing the Block #1 pattern!
Each month new block patterns and tutorials will be shared to guide you through the process of making your Friendship Sampler Quilt. Here’s the schedule:
- 1st Day of the Month – New block pattern available to download
- 1st Monday of the Month – Piecing tutorial
- 2nd Monday of the Month – Quilting tutorial on your home machine
- 3rd Monday of the month – Quilting tutorial on a longarm*
*No, you don’t need a longarm in order to participate! I’m sharing two different quilting ideas for each block because I’m making a king sized quilt. All quilting designs can be quilted on any type of machine. Yes, you can make the king sized Friendship Quilt on a home machine!
Let’s Make a Super Scrappy Friendship Quilt
This quilt is the perfect scrap buster! If you have a big collection of fabric scraps, you can get a head start by slicing your stash into 5-inch squares.
Will this quilt along work with precut charm packs squares?
Yes, but you may need a few extra squares.
Some charm packs have a pinked or zigzagged edges. This reduces the amount of fabric you have over all and you might not be able to cut as many pieces from the square. For this reason, yes, you can use precut 5-inch squares, but you may need just a bit more fabric for certain blocks.
Can I use yardage instead?
Absolutely. Cutting all of your Fabric A pieces from yardage will be more efficient than cutting from 5 inch squares. I’ve included fabric calculations for cutting from both scrappy 5-inch squares and cutting from yardage so you can use either one.
What size are the blocks?
The blocks in the Friendship Quilt Along are super sized! You’ll find exact measurements in each pattern as they become available the first of the month. You’ll get a lot of practice piecing and quilting for every block.
But how do I quilt it?
This is the best part of my quilt alongs! We don’t just piece the blocks, we quilt them together too.
For this quilt along were going to explore four fantastic styles of machine quilting:
- Walking foot quilting – this is a very easy style of quilting that uses a walking or even feed foot. Because the machine and this special foot does most of the work for you, this style of quilting is perfect for beginners.
- Free motion quilting – this style of quilting uses a darning foot and allows you to quilt more complex designs because you can easily rotate the quilt in all directions quickly. The upside is increased movement, but the downside is this style of quilting requires a bit more practice to get the hang of. Don’t worry though I have lots of skill building exercises to share along the way!
- Ruler foot quilting: this is a type of free motion quilting, but with a special ruler foot and rulers to guide the design. You’ll still have the same freedom of movement as free motion quilting, but the ruler can help you stay in better control over your quilting design.
- Longarm quilting – for the first time I’m incorporating longarm quilting into a quilt along. Each month I’ll stitch out a block on my home machine, then try a totally different design on my long arm. No, you don’t have to have a long arm in order to participate. All the designs I share can be quilted on any style of machine and with any style of quilting.
What is the quilting design?
This is the part of the quilt along that will be a mystery. You won’t know how we’re going to quilt the block until the tutorials are released for that month.
What will I need to get started?
Click Here to find the Block 1 Quilt Pattern. This 52-page pattern is packed with all the information you need to begin! This includes fabric cutting and piecing tips, how to cut from fabric scraps, the Block 1 piecing pattern, plus materials and supply list for all the different quilt sizes. Yes, for the first time you can make the perfect sized quilt for you!
Do you need a huge quilt for a big bed? Do you need several small baby quilts? This quilt along is perfect for everyone because you can make as many or as few blocks as you need to make the perfect size quilt for your bed, couch, or kid!
Choose between a crib, throw, twin, queen, or king size quilt and check out the detailed fabric requirements listed for each quilt in the Block 1 Quilt Pattern.
When does the Friendship Quilt Along start?
This quilt along began on December 1st, but you can join in the fun anytime! Click Here to find all of the quilt patterns shared so far.
Yes, you can still join this quilt along and work at your own pace. All of the quilting tutorials and videos will remain online forever so you don’t have to rush.
I can’t wait to see all the beautiful, super scrappy quilt blocks we’re going to make together in the Friendship Sampler Quilt Along. So you’re sure to not only bust your fabric stash, but also learn about quilt piecing and machine quilting!
Make sure to subscribe to our Quilting Friends newsletter. You’ll get the latest news about this quilt along and be the first to pick up a pattern:
Let’s go quilt,
Leah Day
Don’t forget to check out all the tutorials that have been posted for the Friendship Sampler Quilt Along right here!