In June 2004, quilt camp season is well underway when Summer Sullivan, the youngest of the founding Elm Creek Quilters, unexpectedly returns to the celebrated quilters’ retreat with worrisome news. After dedicating two years to earning a master’s in history at the University of Chicago, she’s struggling to complete her thesis. If she can’t finish before the fall semester begins, she won’t be able to continue into the doctoral program—and that will mean the end of her plans to become a college professor like her mother.

Summer hopes Elm Creek Manor will offer the creative inspiration she needs to overcome her writer’s block in time to graduate. She finds a welcome distraction in an ambitious project to raise funds to renovate Union Hall, the 1863 headquarters of the Waterford Historical Society. Her research skills and thorough understanding of the art and traditions of quilting make Summer the perfect candidate to take charge of the capital campaign’s centerpiece: an exhibit of antique quilts with historical significance. Encouraged by the Elm Creek Quilters, Summer embarks on a quest to find intriguing heirloom quilts and uncover their back stories. Yet while local quilt lovers and history buffs praise the growing collection, affronted local leaders demand that Summer remove all references to Waterford’s troubled past. As controversy threatens the exhibit’s success, Summer fears that her pursuit of the truth may cost the Waterford Historical Society their last chance to save Union Hall. Her only hope is to rally the quilting community to her cause.

Just weeks before Christmas, severe wintry weather damages the church hall hosting the Christmas Boutique—an annual sale of handcrafted gifts and baked goods that supports the county food pantry. Determined to save the fundraiser, Sylvia Bergstrom Compson offers to hold the event at Elm Creek Manor, her ancestral family estate and summertime home to Elm Creek Quilt Camp.

In the spirit of the season, Sylvia and the Elm Creek Quilters begin setting up market booths in the ballroom and decking the halls with beautiful hand-made holiday quilts. Each of the quilters chooses a favorite quilt to display, a special creation evoking memories of holidays past and dreams of Christmases yet to come. Sarah, a first-time mother expecting twins, worries if she can handle raising two babies, especially with her husband so often away on business. Cheerful, white-haired Agnes reflects upon a beautiful appliqué quilt she made as a young bride and the mysterious, long-lost antique quilt that inspired it. Empty nesters and occasional rivals Gwen and Diane contemplate family heirlooms and unfinished projects as they look forward to having their children home again for the holidays. But while the Elm Creek Quilters work tirelessly to make sure the Christmas Boutique happens, it may take a holiday miracle or two to make it the smashing success they want it to be.