mpspeedy

Carrie,

Welcome. I have been sewing all of my life. I started with doll clothes when i was 8 or 9. My mother had a Singer featherweight that she let me use after I had sewn by hand for several years. I made my first quilt at 17 from scraps from all of the clothes I had made myself in my Junior and High school years. It ended it's life 15 years later as the thing my husband lays on when he changes the oil in the car.
My first quilt was handquilted with double thread and big knots. No one told me it should be single thread and to bury the knots.
Now I am good enough at it after 40 years of practice to get paid for quilting for other people.
I now own several Berninas but for years i sewed on a little freearm Kenmore I purchased from Sears for $139 when my daughter was born. My daughter is going to be 31 next week.
I only do machine quilting on Linus quilts or other projects for children as they will need to be laundered often. I do wash my handquilted items when necessary and usaully just stick them in the washer and dryer. I like handquilting because I can do it while watching TV or holding a conversation with my husband, family or friends. I find it very relaxing.

Start with a simple pattern so you don't get to frustrated and don't worry about it being perfect. If I worried about perfecton I would have two quilts finished not dozens and dozens. While I appreciate some of the "masterpieces" that are made what counts for me is that mine are done and usable.

Ragann63

I agree with most of the above! Start easy - quiltblocksgalore.com - has thousands of patterns. I would also suggest looking for a quilt guild, women's church quilt group or a retreat in your area. You can learn a lot in a short period of time working with a current quilter. I learn something new almost every time I go to a retreat!

JJean

My first quilt top wasn't so great. I pulled it out this year to take it to someone to have it quilted. I found a couple of open seams. The back of it was covered with threads and the seams weren't even at all. It wasn't until my second queen sized quilt (log cabin) that I could sew a quarter inch seam. That's a biggie---knowing how to sew a quarter inch seam. I bet you figure it all faster than I did. The old saying may be true for you: practice makes perfect. In my case it is: practice makes for a big improvement. :)

denverjjoy

If I can say anything at all to you to help is what my great grandmother told me: "The quilt police are not going to show up at your door, so don't fret about the mistakes."

There are a lot of simple patterns you can do on table runners, hot pads, etc to get used to color, patterns, and your own designs. I very seldom use a pattern, I just have a vision of what I want and go for it. And there are mistakes, but that is okay, because I will have learned what works and what doesn't. And trust me the kids love to have my "good quilts" to play with and I also donate many of them to the homless, preemies, etc. They could all care less that a couple of seams don't match perfectly or the colors might be off a tad.

Don't give up. Lot sof people here on this site to help you!

Keep on a'quilting.


denverjjoy :roll:

denverjjoy

If I can say anything at all to you to help is what my great grandmother told me: "The quilt police are not going to show up at your door, so don't fret about the mistakes."

There are a lot of simple patterns you can do on table runners, hot pads, etc to get used to color, patterns, and your own designs. I very seldom use a pattern, I just have a vision of what I want and go for it. And there are mistakes, but that is okay, because I will have learned what works and what doesn't. And trust me the kids love to have my "goof quilts" to play with and I also donate many of them to the homless, preemies, etc. They could all care less that a couple of seams don't match perfectly or the colors might be off a tad.

Don't give up. Lots of people here on this site to help you!

Keep on a'quilting.


denverjjoy :roll:

Luv2Kreate

Quilting is suppose to be fun, so my 1st must have is a piece of advise I received at a quilting class...Don't worry about perfection, the quilting police are not going to come knocking on your door to inspect your work. Do your best & have fun. Your work will improve with time, so enjoy what you are doing!

Other must haves...
Rotary cutter
self healing cutting mat
scissors
ruler
sewing machine
good lighting :)
fabric
thread
and a plan

Start with big square blocks...then go from there. There are tons of simple to do free patterns on the internet.

Janelle

Don't give up! It took over a year of toying with just the idea of quilting. I began with a very easy Christmas quilt for my great-niece from a panel I purchased, plus picked out my own backing and batting, with help from store owner. It turned out beautifully, and I got going. In the past year, I've made over 4 (over, because I'm in the middle, but not completed 5) of my own projects, and I've found a wonderful website to order things. It's called KeepsakeQuilting.com
I don't have all the gizmos...just a singer machine, and still do a lot of my work on it. Can't afford an embroidery or quilting machine in the near future, so using what I have. A word from the wise, "Emprovise!"
Janelle from Arkansas

OdessaQuilts

Carrie,

First things first: take a deep breath and vow NOT to be afraid of this process, because it can be daunting. Baby steps ... baby steps ... baby steps (this is your new mantra.......)

I love the convenience of rotary cutter/self-healing mat/rotary rulers. But many a fine quilt have been made by using decent fabrics and a good, sharp pair of sewing shears that are ONLY used for fabric.

You do not need a $17,000 quilting machine to quilt with. That's a step far down the road. First you need to piece together your top, which can be done with an inexpensive sewing machine (as many have already said) or even by hand with a needle and thread.

Select your first pattern carefully. Start small (lap quilt is plenty large enough for a first project) and choose your materials at a reputable fabric store. They don't have to be $15/yd., just good quality, 100% cotton (preferred), in colors you like together so that you will enjoy working on your piece.

As for pattern and further help (because as a person who used to teach beginning quilting for many years), I would recommend the following:

Do you have a Community Education program affiliated with your local school system or Community College? They often have decent beginning quilting classes that are reasonably priced and fairly convenient. If not, call around to local churches (especially those with an elderly population), or even towns/township clerk offices with Amish or Mennonite settlements nearby. These people know how to quilt or may be able to put you in touch with someone who may be willing to teach you (or at least offer some assistance/constructive criticism about your progress).

If that fails (or to augment it), stop by your public library and pick up a good book on beginning quilting. No library? Try an online bookseller (I like Alibris.com as I can buy used books for a song that are usually in really good shape. Some even come from the collections of libraries) and try to purchase one. Some of these books even have simple blocks referenced in them for you to try; many have small projects.

Read everything you can get your hands on. After you've got your top pieced together, come back for advice on how to layer, baste and quilt it. As Mamagus said, "we're open 24/7!" We'll be glad to help!

Odessa

motomom

Don't get discouraged. I plunged in and made my first quilt with just a little booklet that I found in a stack of junk somewhere. It is actually a terrible quilt, my corners don't match up and the colors are kind of funky.

I cut the fabric out with scissors, using cardboard for patterns, and sewed it on the machine I have had for years. I borrowed a quilting frame from my Aunt and hand quilted it, learning as I went.

But, you know what? My daughter LOVES IT and is so very proud of it, she brought it over one day so that I could sign the back with a sharpie marker. And the next one turned out better. And the third one is turning out better still.

Just one warning, though. Quilting is very addicting, especially the hand quilting part. And my hubby, bless his heart, has put up with fabric/thread being scattered all over the living room, no dinner, me being sleepy because I stayed up all night quilting, etc, etc.

Up North

I got the quilting bug less than 2 years ago and learned nearly everything from the internet. Just go to google and type in what you want to know. Nobody told me to start with an easy 4 or 9 patch I chose a star patten and it is probably the best quilt I have ever made. All my points even came out good! Hasn't happened since. I have a tote with some blocks I tried and didn't so so well at but the main thing is try and keep trying. This board is the perfect place to ask questions and get encouragement. I can't believe how much I have learned in the past year and a half from just trying new things. Pot holders a re a good thing to make in the beginning as they are just one block and they don't need to be perfect to be usable. Now get chopping up some fabric and make something!!! LOL