Learn to Quilt

Missouri Star Quilt Company (hosted primarily by Jenny Doan) is the most-watched quilting YouTube channel and the most popular for absolute beginners — Jenny's friendly teaching style and pre-cut-friendly patterns have introduced an entire generation of new quilters. For more methodical block-by-block tutorials, SewVeryEasy (Laura Coia) is widely recommended. For free-motion quilting and longarming, Angela Walters is the definitive channel.

The American Patchwork & Quilting Podcast (from the major US quilting magazine) is the most widely-listened quilting podcast. A Quilting Life Podcast (Sherri McConnell and Chelsi Stratton, Moda designers) is the top mother-daughter industry show. The Quilter on Fire (Brandy Maslowski) is the best for international guest interviews. BERNINA's Sew & So is the most polished industry-supported podcast.

For modern quilting: Suzy Quilts (minimalist color-theory designs) and Patchwork and Poodles. For tutorials: Diary of a Quilter (Amy Smart's deep beginner archive) and Patchwork Posse. For scrappy quilting: Quiltville (Bonnie Hunter — the canonical scrappy quilting blog). For working designer perspective: A Quilting Life (Sherri McConnell). The Crafty Quilter (Julie Cefalu) is excellent for industry roundups.

American Patchwork & Quilting is the largest English-language quilting magazine (bimonthly, Better Homes & Gardens). Quiltmaker is best known for the annual "100 Blocks" issues. Love Patchwork & Quilting is the leading UK-based modern quilting magazine. Modern Patchwork covers exclusively modern quilting. Fons & Porter's Love of Quilting is the traditional-quilting magazine from Marianne Fons and Liz Porter. McCall's Quilting covers a broad range of styles.

Yes — almost all major quilting YouTube channels are free to watch. Missouri Star, Pat Sloan, SewVeryEasy, Jordan Fabrics, and Angela Walters all post full tutorials at no cost. Many channels supplement with paid pattern downloads, paid courses, or paid memberships for additional content, but the core video tutorials are free. Some channels (like The Quilt Show) have a paid membership tier for full-length episodes, with selected clips free.

Most major quilt designers, teachers, and shops maintain active Instagram presences. Search for the names of designers mentioned on this page (Jenny Doan, Pat Sloan, Bonnie Hunter, Suzy Williams, Sherri McConnell). Also search hashtags: #quilting, #modernquilting, #scrappyquilts, #quiltalong, #quiltcon, #beequilts, and specific quilt-along hashtags during their run periods.

YouTube channels are free, broad, and self-paced — you can sample many teachers, but you don't get personal feedback. Paid classes (Bluprint, Craftsy, designer-run classes through Patchwork School or Sewing Studio) typically run $30–200, include video lessons plus pattern materials, often have private community access for questions, and sometimes include feedback from the instructor. Most quilters use both: free YouTube for general learning, paid classes for specific techniques they want to master deeply.