I too am new to quilting and am loving it. I love it for the fact that I am creating something from my own hands. Am I perfect no, no one is, do I have a the gizzmo's, no I can't afford it and I don't have an expensive machine but it works for me. I could fall into all the gadgets etc but then I couldn't afford the fabric. So for me I make do with what I have because the bottom line is I love sitting behind a machine and quilting..