WELCOME from Maryland
I have been quilting more than 40 years. My first quilts were made from leftover scraps from garments. When I started no one I knew was quilting. Over the years I have learned a lot but I still make quilts out of whatever suits me at the time. In the beginning you will make mistakes and if money is an issue it will hurt less if you don't have a fortune tied up in designer fabric. I am currently in production of Linus quilts. They are made mostly of cotton flannel and children's cotton prints. I admit I shop mostly at Joanns or Walmart for the fabric. If I can get it on clearance all the better. I know from experience with my own grandchildren that they don't care how much you paid just that they like it and you made it for them. I also know that non quilters rarely know how to care for a quilt so it will eventually be washed and or loved to death.
My friends tease me because I spend as much time feeling fabric as I do choosing. I am a handquilter and I don't plan on spending that kind of time touching something that doesn't feel good.