Hello everyone!
 

New to this message board, and new to quilting. I have lived in northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin my whole life. I have sewn on and off since I was a teenager, now of retirement age. The only quilt I have successfully made was a simple but traditional T-shirt quilt for my son. Now I am trying to make a more modern one for my daughter but having trouble.
I look forward to learning from all of you!!

Welcome Care Bear! What kind of trouble?

I think I am just frustrated. Right now I am trying to figure out the layout. I originally forgot seam allowance when I cut 8" squares. Then I learned about 'squaring up' the blocks so now I have 7.75" and 7.25" squares. I'm not sure if I should use a 1/4" or 1/2" seam. And the quilt back I bought might be 100% polyester which I have been reading is not a good material for the back. I'm sure this group will be very helpful as I move between steps.

Hello Care Bear, I just moved to Peoria, Illinois this past summer.

Those darn seam allowances and finished versus cut sizes!. You can use the "standard" 1/4" quilting seam allowance or there is nothing wrong using a 1/2" -- just be consistent. There are various ways to use the different sized blocks, from trimming them all down to 7.25 or by framing them with woven (standard quilting fabrics) to make them a larger consistent size.

We have another brand new member also making a t-shirt quilt for a daughter -- her thread is here, you might find some helpful hints.
https://www.quiltingboard.com/main-f...g-t322270.html

Welcome from another mid-west state, Michigan. You have already found help and watch for more. Good folks with lots of ideas. Keep posting your progress. Seems we are currently having excellent weather for quilting, very, very cold. :)

Waving hello from Maryland! Stay warm: good sewing weather when below freezing.