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Sampler Quilt

A quilt featuring many different blocks, each demonstrating a different pattern or technique.

A sampler quilt contains a collection of different blocks — each block is a unique pattern — rather than repeating one block throughout. Historically, samplers were made by apprentice quilters learning techniques. Today, sampler quilts are popular as quilt-along projects (each week features a new block pattern), as teaching tools, and as creative showcases. The challenge in sampler quilt design is achieving visual cohesion across many different block patterns — usually achieved through consistent color palette and block sizing.

Related Terms

Quilt Along (QAL)An organized event where many quilters simultaneously make the same quilt or pattern, sharing progress online.Mystery QuiltA quilt project where instructions are released in stages and participants don't see the finished design until the end.Block SwapAn organized exchange where quilters make and send blocks to each other according to agreed-upon rules.

Practice makes perfect.

NiftyFifty connects quilters from all 50 states through block swaps, bees, and quilt-alongs. Great place to put new techniques to work.

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