Quilts exemplify precious things: comfort through the warmth they provide; community, since they are often created by groups; and love, given the time and effort they require. With this in mind, legions of kindhearted quilters all over the world choose to donate their labors of love to people in need. Ruth McHaney Danner has gathered fifty-four heartwarming stories of quilters who make their compassion tangible one stitch, square, and quilt at a time. Each story introduces a quilter or group of quilters, ranging from a blind woman in Texas to preschoolers in Australia. Their gifts have the power to make recipients feel cherished and supported, even though they may never meet face-to-face. These wonderfully inspiring stories show that every quilter who has ever wondered, “But what can I do?” can do something to reach out and help others.

Finishing your own quilts is easier than you think Turn the corner to free-motion success with a meandering makeover! Best-selling author Angela Walters shows you that free-motion quilting doesn't have to be scary - with a couple designs in your pocket, you can finish almost any quilt on your home machine and enjoy the process. Practice 8 meandering stitches for beginners, plus creative variations on each, with step-by-step visuals and quilted samples. Start your free-motion journey on the right foot with proven techniques to help you disguise mistakes and transition between designs with ease. • Thrive at free-motion quilting with popular teacher and best-selling author Angela Walters • Just starting out? Angela includes the basics of quilting and supplies • Troubleshoot mistakes, master the meander, and practice fluid movement between quilt stitches

How to use foundation piecing to make accurate full-circle and freeform curved designs, as well as appliqued bias strips that give the impression of curved pages.

What happens when famed quilt designer Lissa Alexander invites her quilting friends to create scrap quilts alongside her? Scrapalicious magic! Lissa reached out to six quilters whose quilt designs she's long admired--Susan Ache, Kim Brackett, Barbara Brackman, Sheryl Johnson, Laurie Simpson, and Sandy Klop. The result? Spectacular scrap quilts from true masters of the craft, and an invitation for YOU to join the Sisterhood of Scraps! Choose from 12 quilts inspired by everything from simple Four Patches to Trip Around the World designs to Log Cabins and more. Start a quilting bee, build a community, and bring new sisters into the fold as you make these stunning projects. Inside you'll find your Sisterhood of Scraps certificate--hang it in your sewing space to show that you're a proud member of the Sisterhood of Scraps.

Your senior year is a star-filled adventure! Your senior year of Quilter's Academy takes you into the most exciting of all designs-stars! You'll explore a variety of more complex piecing techniques such as Y-seams and partial seams, which put the sewing and pressing skills you've learned thus far to the test. Work through the lessons at your own pace and soon you will be making those really stunning quilts that you never thought you could make! • The fourth installment in this popular university-style series • Build upon the skills you developed in the first three volumes to learn how to make beautiful stars, as well as other more complex blocks and piecing techniques • Fill your creative toolbox with new techniques that allow you to enjoy the process of quiltmaking even more!

Bring the classroom into your sewing space as you learn from expert quilters how to get the scrappy look you love. Following the wildly popular Sisterhood of Scraps, author and designer Lissa Alexander has gathered more super-talented designer friends to share a dozen scraptastic quilt designs. Not feeling confident with color selection? Unsure of what fabrics to add to the mix? Want to know what makes a scrap quilt sing? Tips and tricks are inside for all this and so much more to help you make the most of your fabric stash! Lissa and her handpicked crew of "instructors" show you how to get an A+ (for awesome) on your next scrap quilts. Scrap School is in session! Lisa Bongean · Gudrun Erla· Sarah Huechteman · Susan Ache· Kim Diehl· Mary Etherington and Connie Tesene· Sherri McConnell· Amy Smart · Amanda Jean Nyberg

Aspiring quilters will love this practical, aesthetic, and magnificently photographed introduction to the craft. Every page showcases the most beautiful pieces to illustrate the various facets of this ever-popular art, including color, pattern, and texture. Color--from the bright blues and pinks of Amish designs to the subtle transition from light to dark in Log Cabin motifs--has always been one of the most exciting aspects of quilting, and you'll be inspired to play with different combinations. See how to create gorgeous patterns on the quilt itself, and how a mix of quilts can enhance your décor. Try new fabric textures, and learn about tied quilting, quilting stitches, and breaking the boundaries of tradition. Twenty projects, including an Evening Star and a Jewel-Bright Mosaic.

Want to be a scrap quilter? Great! Want to think like a scrap quilter? Learn from a master! Lissa Alexander has spent three decades honing her scrap-quilting talents, and in her first solo book, she offers page after page of tips for making dazzling scrap quilts bursting with colors, prints, and textures. Learn Lissa's secrets for deciding which fabric combinations work (and understanding why others don't). Best of all, with a dozen patterns to choose from you'll discover how to (finally!) use your unique stash to make scrap quilts that sing. Includes a preface by renowned quilt historian Barbara Brackman.

Borrow from history for your next quilt with ninety free-motion quilting designs reinterpreted from eighteenth- and nineteenth-century quilts. Honor the elegance of the past with collector Bill Volckening and quilter Mandy Leins, who modernizes motifs such as the orange peel, feathers, and quatrefoil into continuous-lines designs that are perfect for all of today's quilts. Plus, learn tips for marking, combining motifs, and quilting.

Thoughtful, Useful Gifts for Those Needing a Helping Hand. Give the gift of love with 12 helpful quilts and practical sewing projects for anyone needing an extra caring touch. Make quilts fast with super-simple piecing and helpful quilting shortcuts-many are easy enough for absolute beginners. Great projects for guilds and quilting circles to make for worthy causes. Includes a how-to guide for making charity quilts in small and large groups, and a list of organizations that accept donated quilts. Whether you make these projects for a loved one or someone you've never met, you'll give the irreplaceable gift of loving care. Projects include quilts for babies in intensive care units; handy projects for wheelchair and walker users; quilts for adults and children bedridden at home or in the hospital; and therapeutic quilts for stroke, Alzheimer's and other patients with brain impairments.