Hi, I have been spying on you all for several months now, and this is my first chiming-in.
I have been quilting for about 6 years now and have never followed a pattern or done anything with perfection in mind, but have come out with some pretty nifty quilts.
Being a mid-twenties person with a very limited income, I have shifted my quilting hobby from the fabric stores to the thrift stores and am focusing on 'recycled' materials. I recently started buying thick, patterned queen/king-sized flat bed sheets at Goodwill ($2 - $5) and plan to use them for quilt backings. I have a really hard time putting a plain-jane backing on my quilts and love the combination of a pieced top and a patterned, broken-in backing.
Thank you all for your great posts. I don't know any real-life quilters, so you girls are all I have to help me figure things out!