Capture a part of America's heritage with this tribute to the Pioneer settlers. Eleanor blazes the trail in this series, creating quilt blocks as reminders of history and geography commemorating the settling of the West. Meet with Eleanor in the General Store, or out on the Oregon Trail, as she forges ahead, sharing new techniques used to make the twelve sampler block result in this spectacular quilt.

#1001 Golden Gate Block

Eleanor familiarizes the viewers with the Pioneer Sampler quilt, planning the color and fabric selection as they set off down the trail. Combining strips and the grid cutting method, the Golden Gate block is quickly formed. The Golden Gate block is a tribute to those settling "pioneers" who chose the trip around the Horn as their way of going West.

#1002 Rocky Mountain Puzzle Block

The discovery of gold brought thousands of pioneers west, and the triangular pieces in this block are representative of the rugged mountains, birds, and directional movement westward. Squares of light and dark fabrics are layer cut and "grid sewn" together to form the basis of this beginner block.

#1003 Chisholm Trail Block

A variety of patterns emerge, depending on fabric selection and how the components of this block are laid out. Eleanor herds her viewers up a new trail of creativity with the possibilities of projects in this program.

#1004 Louisiana Block

Eleanor introduces the "Triangle Pieced Rectangle Method" (TPR's) as the basis for constructing the four quarters of this versatile block. The wheel in the block lends a sense of movement, like the slow moving wagons hauling the crops of indigo, rice, and cotton from the plantation to market.

#1005 Cheyenne Block

Grid sewn patches form this simple yet dramatic block, reminiscent of the Native American Indian tribe of the Wyoming territory for which this block was named. Eleanor explores innovative techniques that give a variety of projects a distinctive flavor.

#1006 Colorado Block

Original techniques, such as "TPR'S" and the "Diagonal Sewing Technique" are used by Eleanor to form the Colorado Block. Color values of light, medium, and dark make a striking contrast for the assortment of blocks and projects Eleanor quickly creates.

#1007 Illinois Block

Eleanor shares new ways to quickly create an intricate design that looks complex, and luckily is not! Join Eleanor as she shows how to use today's technology to create a "look" for your quilt that the pioneer woman achieved as she stitched at the end of a long day on the trail.

#1008 Salt Lake City Block

Like all settlers in the west, the settlers of the Mormon communities in Utah, improvised when they couldn't get needed supplies. Eleanor doesn't need to improvise today, but her experimentation with color and block layouts will delight her viewers.

#1009 Arizona Block

With a burst of color and design like the Southwest desert, the Arizona block makes a dramatic addition to your sampler quilt. Join Eleanor as she uses "TPR's" to create this block.