Hi Eliza, welcome aboard! I was from the DFW area but have been here in East Texas for the last 4 years. You sound really motivated and ready to go! I admire you for wanting to learn to hand quilt. My mom hand quilts all of her quilts but I machine quilt (I'm just now learning how to do more than stitch in the ditch!) One of these days, I do want to learn to hand quilt also. Hope you enjoy the message board here!