Teeler

I ventured to a LQS today after being in a strange town for a meeting. Smart phones are great for "take me to the nearest fabric shop!" Ended up in a place called Martin's in Bedford, NH. After about an hour, I was depressed after finding only a couple of FQs and couldn't find more matching colors/patterns to go with these few, as well as feeling all miserable because I feel like I have no business being in there when I haven't got a CLUE what I'm doing. A whopping $13 later (still gagging at current prices of fabric...last time I shopped for fabric, $6.xx was a high-end price, not a sale price!), I'm home with what is likely to be just practice pieces...but that's ok, too. The zigzag would have been border material and accent if I could have found more coordinating 'block' material. Oh well. There will be other trips.

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JulieR

How cool! I love the fabric you got! I always feel that way in quilt shops, even after all this time, but it's still fun. Some shops have stock that match my personality and interests and others don't, but there's always a goody to be found somewhere.

JanTx

Don't be discouraged. Look at sites that have bundles and kits. Not saying you need to buy these, but look at what others have put together. If you like it - you've learned something. If you don't like it - you've learned something too! I looked a lot at Fabriccafe.com when I first started - they have 3 and 5 yard bundles and I learned a lot about what goes together and what I liked.

I've used what looks like that same zigzag in a yellow as an inner border. I also make a lot of black/white/red quilts.

Perhaps you need to find a pattern - look for free ones! Then see what you would put together. Or get a pattern that uses fat quarters - Turning 12 (Turning 20, etc.), Yellow Brick Road, Cheaper By the Dozen - Choosing the 12 (or 20) fat quarters will give you lots of adventures!

We all started somewhere. I'm a toddler quilter - not quite a baby anymore! Enjoy!

hopetoquilt

I love your fabrics... Not necessarily all together but I still love them. You will find the perfect quilt to make them in. I love to do sampler blocks with Kona white and whatever random other fabrics I have bought. Don't be discouraged. Consider it the beginning of a great journey. I also bought a color wheel to make fabric coordination easier.

NJ Quilter

I think this happens to all of us when we go into a shop if we don't have a specific project in mind. I find it far easier to start with a specific pattern and then shop. Then I know how many different fabrics I need; if I need any coordinating or contrasting fabrics, etc. Otherwise, yes, you probably want one of everything. That said, I'm not a stash-buyer. Don't have room for a stash plus I know my tastes will change over time. And/or I'd not have enough of a specific fabric for the project in mind at the time. I do over-buy by anywhere from 1/4 to 1 yard of any given fabric at the time. Gives me room for booboos and a small stash for putting together the odd block for something, trying a new technique or whatever.

Just take your time, you'll get more comfortable with the whole process.

marsharini

Love your fabric. I'm new to quilting, but not to sewing. In the past I would purchase fabric that caught my eye (read: LOVED IT!) so I would purchase it and figure out what I was going to do with the later. And eventually I did.

PaperPrincess

Don't be discouraged! Love your fabric and btw:

"... The zigzag would have been border material and accent if I could have found more coordinating 'block' material. Oh well. There will be other trips..."

This is how stash is born!