Please note: The quilt-along is officially closed! If you’d like to make the sampler quilt at your own pace, you can purchase the pattern collection here. All quilt block patterns are also available individually here.
Are you ready to join a group of 200+ fellow quilters to make a cozy, winter-themed FPP sampler quilt together?
Do you feel a little nostalgic about the holidays, too?
Truly, it’s the simple joys I cherish the most during the festive season – these are some of my personal favourites:
- Enjoying a cup of tea or hot chocolate after a crisp winter walk
- Lighting a candle and smelling the Christmas tree
- Traditional ornaments and wooden decorations
- Quality time with our kids playing with the family’s train set
- Watching and feeding our little furry and feathered friends
Can you relate?
I turned these into 20 FPP quilt blocks and would love to invite YOU to stitch
them up together over the course of 12 weeks, starting on September 16th.
Join my COZY HOLIDAYS Sampler QAL and let’s make a truly wonderful winter quilt!
Hi there, I’m Astrid
… and I’m the host of this quilt-along.
As the owner and creative mind behind Apples & Beavers I am passionate about turning my ideas and designs into quilty projects with lots of character and sharing my craft with the creative community.
Let’s spend some quality time together while making a cheerful sampler quilt with lots of whimsical details! š
The quilt we’re making…
- … measures 58″ x 72″ finished.
- … is comprised of 20 different, foundation paper pieced quilt blocks, each finishing at 12″ x 12″.
- … comes with instructions for a festive sawtooth star sashing (see below) or a simple gingham option without the star points.
The details of this quilt-along
- 12 weeks ā starting September 16th.
Every Monday you’ll receive an email with 2 FPP block patterns and some tips and tricks specific to those blocks. The last two weeks will be dedicated to making our sashing and assembling our quilt tops.
- A bit of mystery.
To incorporate a fun element of surprise, only a few of the blocks are shown on this page. The rest will be revealed in the weekly emails – I hope you’ll love them!
- A community.
Participants can cheer each other on in a community of like-minded quilters! It’s a private little space hosted on my website. Of course, you can also share publicly on Instagram using the hashtag #CozyHolidaysQAL.
Our weekly schedule
Frequently asked questions
- What quilting skill level is required for this quilt-along?
You should have a basic understanding of foundation paper piecing. We are starting with the easiest blocks and slowly working our way through more difficult/complex blocks over the course of the QAL. Since the blocks are almost entirely made up of rectangular units of very manageable dimensions, I would rate the overall difficulty level of the QAL as intermediate at most. If you are new to FPP, you might find this video tutorial helpful.
- What’s the time commitment for this QAL?
There is a total of 20 quilt blocks, with two blocks releasing every week. The time commitment depends a lot on your individual speed, but I’d say you’ll probably need a couple hours every week.
- What if I can’t keep up?
No stress, we all know that life happens! After the end of the QAL, you’ll have all the block patterns to finish at your own pace if needed. You can also make a smaller quilt with fewer blocks, e.g. a throw of 3×4 or 4×4 blocks instead of all 20.
- How do I plan my fabrics if I don’t know the designs?
I’m glad you asked! I prepared this colour guide with descriptions and quantities for each suggested colour. But this project is also perfect to work from your scrap bins if you prefer!
- Pulling fabrics on my own feels overwhelming – do you know of any kits?
Yes, I prepared a small number of kits myself (available in my shop on Aug 19th) and these shops also curated some beautiful bundles:
– Lori’s Country Cottage (Sherwood Park, Alberta)
– Mad About Patchwork (Stittsville, Ontario)
– Piece Fabric Co. (Grande Prairie, Alberta)
– Quiltessential Co. (St. Albert, Alberta)
– Quilty Pleasures (Ottawa, Ontario)
Please contact these shops directly for more info on their kits!
- Are you making a quilt as well?
You bet! I worked ahead on making the blocks to ensure the templates and instructions all work out. But I can’t wait to assemble them into a quilt top with you!
- Will the blocks also be available as individual patterns?
Yes. I’ll add each week’s blocks to my shop as individual block patterns in case you’d like to make pillow covers/table runners etc., and don’t want or need the entire collection.
- I love this collection but the timing of the QAL isn’t ideal for me…
No worries. The Cozy Holidays Collection will be available in my shop from December 3rd for anyone who wants to work through it at their own pace.
- Can I still join the QAL after September 16th?
Yes, absolutely! You can still sign up until the last email with assembly instructions for the quilt top goes out on December 2nd. After that, the Cozy Holidays Collection will be available in my shop with all my other patterns and you can sew it at your own pace (without the QAL).
- I’m not a fan of mystery projects and would prefer knowing exactly what I’m signing up for.
I get that! I sprinkled a few examples and hints throughout this page to give you an idea about the vibe of the quilt. If that’s not enough for you and you’d really prefer seeing all the blocks, you can have a peek here. But shhh, please keep the secret!
Sounds exciting? Iād love to welcome you aboard!
If you have any further questions not covered above, please comment below or send an email to astrid@applesandbeavers.com. I’ll be more than happy to help!