Good for you. I am from Seattle (Magnolia) but now live in Florida. I took my first quilting class from the Calico Cat in Auburn. That's kind of far to drive but I would encourage you to take a beginning quilting class from a shop near you. I am currently a quilt pattern tester for ToaduSew, a pattern designer (www.toadusew.com).
Also, look on line at the fabric manufacturer's home pages. They have lots of free patterns and most times will identify the easy ones. Below are some of my favorate mfgs.
Robert Kauffman
Hoffman
Alexander Henry
Benartex
Marcus
RJR
Moda
Good luck. Jo Lax