Here I come with my unpopular comments. As a HAND QUILTER I think you should try the actual quilting first. Take something as small as a decorative size pillow top and try hand and even machine quilting it. Just draw a simple pattern on it with a pencil and attempt to follow the lines by hand and or by machine. If you enjoy doing that and are pleased with the results than you can be a "quilter". I understand how "patchwork" quilting came about. Our ancestors here in America were smart, thrifty women. They couldn't afford to waste a thing. They would be horrified that we take perfectly good whole yardage and cut it into tiny pieces and than sew it back together again. They made their quilts from the scraps left after they constructed the everyday garments and linens required to take care of their families. It was their way of brightening their homes while still making use of every little scrap of fabric left over from their household sewing. Quilting in Europe, where fabric was manufactured and readily available, was done on "whole cloth". It was done to add warmth and to show off their stitches. Take a little time to think of why you want to quilt. I have made hundreds of Linus quilts. They are simple childish prints backed with flannel and very basically machine quilted. They give me an opportunity to indulge in my hobby of buying fabric. If I didn't make something with it, my house would gradually be taken over by my collection. I also have a trunk and a cedar chest full of finished bed quilts along with quilts of various sizes on chairs, sofas and the bed in my house They are even on a wall in most every room in my house. Any major occasion in my family usually has me producing a quilt as a gift. I even won a king size raffle quilt made by a local quild. Welcome to our club but find your favorite part of the quilting process and enjoy.