When severe winter weather damages a church hosting the annual Christmas boutique, Sylvia offers space at Elm Creek Manor, where fundraising efforts are complicated by the personal struggles of her fellow quilters.

When the creative residents of Elm Creek gather the week after Thanksgiving to work on quilts for Project Linus, they respond to Sylvia's provocative questions to alleviate respective personal challenges and learn helpful lessons about the strength of human connections.

Sarah, struggling to find a job and a sense of place in her new town, finds herself learning how to quilt from a cantankerous old woman who also teaches her about the deep love that can exist between friends.

Meditating on the weddings she has attended in Elm Creek Manor throughout the years on the morning of her daughter's wedding day, Sarah McClure evaluates the symbolic features on a wedding quilt designed to display the signatures of beloved guests.

Having joined Elm Creek's quilting circle, newest member and chef Anna remembers her past and present experiences in her community's kitchens and becomes the writer of the group's official cookbook, in a tale complemented by one hundred recipes.

While decorating Elm Creek Manor on Christmas Eve, Sarah McClure discovers an incomplete Christmas quilt and sets out to uncover its history with the help of Sylvia Bergstrom Compson, who reveals why the quilt had never been finished.

The arrival of newcomers into the circle of quilters heralds unexpected journeys down pathways near and far as well as capturing the spirit of friendship at the moment of its transformation.