osewme

Howdy from Texas! Recycler (above post) beat me to the "kit" suggestion. I think that would be a perfect place to start because you won't have a lot of "left over" fabric to deal with when your quilt is complete. Also, I was going to suggest Jenny Doan at Missouri Star Quilt Company as you could find a quilt you like on one of her tutorials and order the pre-cut fabric from her shop. If you want to make a quilt but don't have fabric yet, Quilts For Kids will send you a kit with everything included (except batting & thread) and you make the quilt & send it back to them to give to a child.

http://www.quiltsforkids.org/

We look forward to seeing your first finished quilt.

QuiltinMama

Dear Dan
Welcome to the wonderful world of quilting... you will find yourself not alone quilters are great for being very helpful.
There are a lot of men who enjoy quilting... we had a nasa engineer who joined our guild in Huntsville, Al... he has 4 kids and loved to quilt... he would volunteer to travel for work so he could shop at a particular store!!!
here is a web site where 3 men own and operate a quilt store... http://www.3dudesquilting.com/
they have free patterns on their web site....
Missouri star quilt company has a lot of kits and free patterns with videos.... love her videos...
enjoy the journey ....
Welcome
quiltinmama

barny

Hello Dan and welcome to the board from Dallas Tx. area. You have all the advice you need, so I'll just say if you have any questions, feel free to ask. Several quilters will be on here to help you out. Before you know it, you'll be helping someone else!

Stitchnripper

Welcome to the board! You have gotten great advice so far. I will put in my 2 cents worth. I don't have a stash to speak of. Just some remnants. I decided just to buy what I need for a project. There are many who love their stashes, good for them, continue on. Some are overwhelmed by all that fabric that they get tired of or can never use up. So think carefully if you want any kind of stash, and you can always change your mind one way or the other. PS, I am not a pre-washer or a starcher.

Bren

Welcome from Texas! I am glad you found this Board; it's a great place for information, inspiration, and friendship. You have received a lot of great suggestions here and I only have a couple to add. Blocks of the month, either on line or through a LQS (local quilt shop) are a great way to learn new techniques. I have also purchased some nice kits at LQS and online. They come with fabric, instructions, and best of all, you get to see a pic of the finished quilt before you buy. There are lots of different ways to start. The main thing is to relax and enjoy the journey!

suern3

Welcome Dan, you have already gotten lots of great advice. Everyone here is so willing to help. So here's my tip. I don't know about you, but sometimes I really like to have a book in my hand to read and study. Started on my quilting journey about 8 years ago by taking a beginning quilting class at a local quilt shop. That was the best way for me to learn, hands on. If you don't want to go that route, I would suggest the book, Make Your First Quilt, by M'Liss Rae Hawley. She covers everything from choosing fabric, color, values and block construction that ends up as a sampler quilt when completed. We used this book in the class and I still get it out for ideas and inspiration. There is a wealth of information available, on-line and in books. I think we all just keep learning as we go. Good luck on your journey!

tesspug

I buy a great deal of fabric from connectingthreads.com. They carry designer lines and also their own lines. Their prices are very reasonable and it's good quality fabric. Buy some on clearance and make a quilt.

madamekelly

A "KISS" (keep it simple and stupid) answer. 1. Visit quilting a day.com or MSQC.com to find patterns that are very easy and look great, watch a few MSQC videos on YouTube to get ideas to get you going. 2. Select a pattern, it will tell you how much fabric to buy, order the fabric plus a little extra of each to allow for possible beginner mistakes (not that we all don't make them mind you). 3. Read through the pattern before you start, any questions bring to us here, and 4. Make your first quilt. We believe in you.

QuiltnLady1

If you don't want to take the time, buying online is easy -- equilter.com, Missouri Star Quilt Company (MSQC), Hancock's of Paducah, Over the Rainbow (overrainbow.com) and Marshalls are all great sites but there are others. You need a cutting mat (larger is better), a rotary cutter (and everyone has their favorites) and at least a 24" ruler -- I would get on the Joann's fabrics mailing list since you can get most of this (and other gadgets) on sale. As was suggested, Quilter's Cache has lots of block patterns with directions and she rates them by how hard they are. Several patterns are very easy -- rail fence, nine patch, split nine-patch, four patch. An easy way to get started is just make several blocks using the same fabric and the same size and put them together into a quilt -- an easy way to make a sampler quilt and learn different techniques. If you can take the time to go to one quilt shop just to feel the fabrics and look at the different fabrics available (there are solids, tone on tone, patriotic, florals, novelty -- so many kinds) it will give you an idea of what you like and what is available. Most of all, have fun.

ctrysass2012

Hello & Welcome! You should sign up for the Daily Deals from Missouri Star Quilt Co. soon. They will be having a grand reopening either this weekend or next. Many deals in the stores (12), but also online specials. Their shipping charge is $5.00 & usually arrives in 3-4 days. Enjoy your new hobby(addiction).