Jelly Roll or Strip Quilt Question??
 

So I am very new to quilting but not to sewing. I make baby blankets with batting, tie them and add binding. I would like to try a quilt but not sure where to start. I have read many of the posts and it seems that string quilts or jelly roll quilts are the way to start. So is it better to buy a jelly roll or buy fabric and cut your own strips? I have no stash to start from.

Thanks in advance for the advice and help!

I am kind of in the same situation. I want to make a string quilt and have very little scraps. I have decided to buy small widths of fabric to use in my quilt. I went to Hancock Fabric and had them cut 6 inch wide pieces off of 10 different calico's. It was only $5.80 because it was on sale. I will keep doing this with sale fabric til I get enough for my string quilt. I want my string quilt to be made with calico's. For some reason, I am obsessed with calico's and 1930's reproduction fabrics.

If I were going to make a jelly roll quilt and didn't have a stash, I would probably buy a jelly roll. Lots of times you can find them on sale at Missouri Star Quilt Co. (online) for great prices. And if you trust Ebay, you can find some there.

The nice thing about jelly rolls is that you get a strip (or 2) of each fabric in a fabric line. Of course you pay more for the precut. Using yardage to cut strips works well too. It takes your own time and you can cut the strips to the size you like. I like to mix jelly rolls with strips from my stash (or new-bought yardage).

It helps to have a pattern in mind when making the decision. Have you checked out the tutorials on missouri star quilt company?

It depends if you are looking for variety, alot of fabrics already prematched up for you then precuts are the way to go. its more expensive, but its less time spent picking out matchine fabrics and cutting.

You will pay a lot more for precut so it really depends on you pocket book! You can buy 1/4 yards of fabric or buy 1/2 yards and start your own stash.

I am a new quilter and the easiest one that I have done so far used a layer cake, along with a Missouri Star tutorial pattern. I personally prefer to spend my time pulling together different fabrics - for me it is more the process than the product - but this was a fun and easy project that turned out great. Nearly instant gratification!

Pam and Nicky Lintott have several books on using Jelly Rolls...I have them, but have yet to use them, as I work full-time. I'm itching to get started on one of the projects because they look easy and lot of fun!

I think it just depends on how much variety you want, and how much time you want to spend cutting. I have gone both routes and when you need a quick project yesterday the precut was perfect. Then I did 2 more where I chose the fabric! Totally depends on how much time you want to dedicate to it!