New to group

Welcome Lynda.... we're glad you found us!

As you will soon discover, quilting is an extraordinary way to spend your time (and your money!!!)

How to get started? Lots of different ways.

1) Buy a good beginning quilting handbook -- there are many, many, many out there including those by Fons & Porter, Eleanor Burns, Alex Anderson and more. (I'm sure others will add their favorite book to the list).

2) Find a local quilt shop. Almost all shops offer classes from beginning patchwork to advanced applique and everything in between.

Tools? Depends on how you would like to start.

You could start with as little as a good pair of scissors, a pencil, some cardboard and needles, thread and fabric.

If you want to sew by machine, (or by hand too) you may prefer to use "modern" tools such as a rotary cutter, mat and rulers. There are many different styles and types out there. If you want to start this way, I'd recommend a 45mm rotary cutter, a medium to large sized mat and a 6" x 24" ruler. That should get you started.

Where do you live? I'm sure there is at least one quilt guild somewhere close (unless you really live in the boonies). Find out when their next meeting is...and go! We're a friendly bunch.

You might want to hit your local public library and check out about a dozen books on quilting. Start looking at pictures to get a feel for the colors you are drawn to, the types of quilts you think you would like to make. With the hundreds (thousands) of books out there -- I'd suggest you start with "free" reading before you begin to invest in your own quilting library.

Have fun! You're embarking on adventure that can last the rest of your life! You'll find many friends who will be happy to offer help all along your journey!

Welcome to the best-est cyber quilting frame around! I'll echo Kate's suggestions. It is best to take a class to begin with - basically you take a couple pieces of fabric and cut them up into small pieces and then mixx them up and sew them back together. (That's the top). Put a layer of fabric (face down) for the "backing", a layer of batting on top of that, and your top (face up) on the top. Then you have a choice to 1. tie the layers together (or) 2. sew them together. Sew a binding around the outsides to keep the edges from fraying --- and you're done! The hard part is picking an easy pattern (i.e. "block") and a small enough size (lap quilt/baby quilt/?placemat?) so you don't get frustrated while learning the basics.

We'll be here to root ya on! .... and answer questions as they come up.

Here's some "starter" websites:

ME-Judy

websites:

Ok whats backing and batting, I like how you explained that sounded simple untill you got to backing and batting . I understood the cutting sqaures and sewing them back together so I will start with that. This is going to be fun.

I too wish you welcome to the group! Kate in MI has some great suggestions for you, so I won't echo hers.

BTW, I am the "official" taste tester of coffee. Yep...coffee! ( Seems appropriate as I've been working on hand piecing my "Double Shot of Espresso" quilt for what seems like years ). So, send along a sample of your favourite brand of coffee to central MA and I'll be more than happy to report back to the group about how well it goes with the chocolate that you've sent Pat in VA. ( Pat, you are sharing, aren't you??? )

- dlm. in stunningly beautiful central MA

Howdy, Lynda!

Backing is the fabric on the back side of the quilt. Keeps the seams on the back of the quilt top from showing and holds the batting in. Batting is the "filling" in the sandwich--what makes a quilt warm, squishy, and cuddly. Could be cotton, wool, polyester, silk, etc.

Welcome!

Monique in TX

Here is what I would offer to you as a way to get started. Asuming you don't already have a machine, there is a wonderful book that deals with quiltmaking by hand . It is called:"Quiltmaking by Hand", by Jinny Beyer. ISBN 0-9721218-2-X. It will teach you how to go about the whole process without getting into the "Which Sewing Machine should I get" question. It lets you get going with a minimum outlay of money to accomplish something to see if you like to do this sort of thing. Then when the virus of Quilting gets firmly implanted in your mind, you can bankrupt yourself with multiple sewing machines, embroidery machines, long arm machines and god knows whatever else and still it will not be enough. This way you can test the waters for the price of the book and a few supplies and see if it is for you. If you can take a class at a local quilt shop, so much the better as some people do better in a class setting and some are able to self-teach from a book. Even if you bail out, the book is a lovely to look at trip through the world of hand quilting. Good luck

John

Welcome Lynda. I didn't see that anyone mentioned Carol Doak's book: 'Your first Quilting Book or it should be'. It's a really good idea to start with the library, as has already been suggested. Quilting can be expensive, and it is such a help to have an idea of the sort of thing you might like to make before you buy any fabric or any other supplies. In the books you will see lots of different kinds of fabric, and will get an idea of the kinds you like best. Most quilting fabric is pure cotton (though there are some beautiful silk or wool pieces) - don't mix at the beginning. Cotton is lovely to work with. You can't make a quilt without fabric! and you don't want to make too many costly mistakes >g< If you don't have thread, you will find it easier to work with cotton thread. You can get it in no end of colours. Sewing the pieces together can be done with almost any colour, but grey is often a favourite, because it seems to almost blend with most colours of fabric. Other neutrals are good, too. . In message , Lynda writes

Welcome, Lynda! This is a great group and pretty friendly; you'll soon find that we about LOTS of stuff besides quilting :). Others have given you a lot of good suggestions. But no one mentioned looking to your local community education for quilting classes (and basic sewing classes, if you need those.)

Julia in MN

Welcome, Lynda! Is there a quilt shop (AKA "LQS") near you where you could take a beginner's class? I didn't have access to that when I began, so I used books instead. I'd recommend _Quilter's Complete Guide_ by Fons and Porter as one good one you could try. Your local library may be able to get it for you so you could see it before you buy. :)

Oooh, I forgot about that one! Yes, it's quite good!

Welcome, Lynda!

You've made the right choice comin' in here. RCTQers are the BEST people you'll find! Listen to the advice they give and you can't go wrong! :)

Everyone else has pretty much enumerated what you need to get started and the best way to learn, so I won't waste your time repeating it (though, it IS worth repeating). Just listen to'em and you're good to go.

Just don't get overwhelmed - quilting is FUN!! It may be a bit confusing at first, but then, that's why you're HERE - to pick the sweet, kind brains of all these here quiltin' divas! So ask away if you have any questions! :)

WHAT? You've been gone walkabout a year or two, and now that you are back a few days, you're already begging for my chocolate? Dream on, girl, dream on. ;) PAT, LOL in VA/USA

- dlm. wrote:

Hi Lynda! Your post could have been written by me a couple years ago! I'll tell you how I learned:

1. First I took an 8-week class at the local quilt shop. I didn't even know what supplies I needed, or how to start. We made a wall hanging and it got me off to a running start.
2. This group has just been invaluable. I have learned so much just lurking, and searching old posts for a particular topic. Then I got really brave and started posting. People here are so nice. So helpful.
3. There are so many good beginner books. And an awful lot of free instruction on websites. The first full-size quilt I made was the "Turning Twenty" pattern. I think it's a good one to start with. Good luck! And welcome to the group.

Sherry

Thankyou yes everyone is so nice I am so glad I joined this group.

yeah -- what she said BTW - you can buy backing by the yard or in a package for a specific size (i.e. "twin", "full", "queen") to match the size of the quilt you're making. My first quilt (college dorm) had a thin blanket used as a batting, and was "tied" using embroidery floss. Get the "top" done first, as you said. The rest we'll help you figure out when you get there!

ME-Judy

One more thing to keep in mind..... Repeat after me...... There ARE NO "quilt police" --- There ARE NO "quilt police" --- There ARE NO "quilt police" (to inspect your work for "perfect" stitches and other stuff.) ..... sometimes we (errr.... I) learn best by making mistakes (and learning what NOT to do the next time!) than I do by accidentally getting it right the first time around.

The object is to enjoy what it is you are doing! Perfection comes with age and practice.... and nobody is perfect (and none of us is that OLD, (yet)) (That's why we take frequent chocolate breaks, too!) BTW (By the Way), what's your favorite chocolate??

ME-Judy

Welcome! I started quilting in January of this year. I had an old sewing machine, and I had a good friend who quilts who had taken me with her to some shows and lent me all the quilting novels by Jennifer Chiaverini ...

Our local quilt shop has a beginners' course, one evening a week for six weeks. They also had put together a kit of all the equipment needed to get started - some of it I didn't even know what it was! The course was great - they helped us choose fabric to make a quilt with several different blocks in it, and they taught us all the steps, going slowly enough that nobody felt clumsy.

Once I got started, I borrowed a lot of books from the library and some from my friend, I asked a bunch of questions in this group, and I asked more questions at the store. And now I'm having a great time making different projects. I've been to a couple of meetings of the quilters' guild in town, and I think this year I'll probably join officially.

One neat thing about quilting fabric that I don't think anyone's mentioned yet: it's kind of expensive, but it is normal to buy it in little pieces. A "fat quarter" is a piece about 18 inches by 22 inches, and you can just keep buying little bits of colours and patterns you like until you are ready to turn them into something together. You can even buy smaller bits than that, sometimes - I got a six-inch square for 25 cents CDN, the other day, and it was a perfect accent for a project I'm working on.

Louise, in Kingston Ontario

Another Washingtonian. Lynda, go to Pieces Quilt Shop on Rainier Blvd across the parking lot from Fred Meyer. They are very nice in there and offer a lot of classes for different levels of quilters. Donna in Bellevue