How to Start a Friendship Quilt

A friendship quilt is a creative way to make memories with your friends, whether you are all saying goodbye for the summer as a camp project or just making the quilt on your own as a keepsake. A friendship quilt combines a variety of quilt patches that each friend in the group contributes for the quilt. Before you start your quilt, decide as a group whether you want to keep a uniform pattern throughout the quilt, or make a friendship quilt out of a variety of unrelated blocks.

Step 1

Talk to your friends about starting a friendship quilt. Those who are interested in making the quilt become part of the friendship quilting circle or group.

Step 2

Get your friendship circle members together for an initial meeting. Talk about what you want the friendship quilt to look like and what you want it to represent. For instance, you might give your quilt a theme, such as "Summer Fun" or "Far Away Friends."

Step 3

Give everyone in the friendship circle a week or two to collect a piece of square fabric to use for the friendship quilt. Tell those in the group to find a material that has sentimental value.

Step 4

Invite everyone over for a second meeting to prepare their quilt blocks, or fabric squares, as a group. Request the friendship quilt members to bring along their fabric.

Step 5

Decide on the dimensions of the blocks, such as 3.5 inches by 3.5 inches. Use the cutting edge ruler, rotary cutter, and cutting mat to cut the accurate dimensions out of each person's fabric.

Step 6

Go around the circle and ask friends to share their fabric with the group. They can talk about why their fabric is sentimental.

Step 7

Sign or print your name on the square block with the fabric marker. Embellish your block, which is optional, with something unique, such as a heart, smiley face, sun, butterfly or something else that suits you.

Step 8

Put all of the blocks together in a pattern that makes a large rectangle or square. Switch around the blocks if you think some of them would look better in another spot of the quilt. Once you have decided on the layout for the quilt, pin all of the blocks together to keep them in place and so you remember their order.