My first purchases (I already had a basic machine, which I still use!) were a rotary cutter/blades, a cutting mat and a ruler. I already had some other necessities in my general sewing supplies (machine needles, hand needles, scissors, seam ripper, thread, pins, etc). My first quilt was from baby clothes and was on the small side, so I purchased backing, binding fabric, a little border fabric, a small package of batting. I'm sure my initial outlay was less than 100 dollars. I was making the quilt as a gift for my best friend and honestly had no intention to make another! I was close to sacking the whole idea before stumbling onto this site.