jcrow

I would shop at Amazon. I have gotten some amazing deals. Better than ebay. The rotating mat is wonderful but you might need a bigger mat also. And don't forget extra needles for your sewing machine. You might try the titanium needles. You should change your needle after every project. And don't forget an iron and ironing board. You can get a nice used ironing board at a thrift shop and even Walmart sells them pretty cheaply. Also, you can make your own small ironing board to sit next to you. If you go to YouTube and type in homemade ironing board, you'll be amazed at what comes up. Very, very inexpensive. Good luck to you! You are going to have the best time!!!

KR

Flathead flower pins
Blue/purple washable marker

Moedeenie

Welcome!!! WOW ... how exciting for YOU! You have received lots of great advice!

I started with the Olfa kit (mentioned above) which included a self healing mat and two rotary cutters (45mm and 18 mm), (this set runs about $45 but with a 50% discount...great deal!!!) and my favorite ruler is 7"X14" made by Nifty Notions. I eventually added the rotating mat and a longer ruler and larger mat. In addition to the notions mentioned above, a few more I find useful are a sliding seam gauge, retractable tape measure and marking tool (I like the Clover Chaco Liner Slim-White) and a black Micron pigma pen for labeling your quilts. A little notebook and sticky notes are handy, too! More sales will come and you can add as your budget allows. Enjoy!

mighty

Sounds like everyone has cover everything very well! Good luck and enjoy!!!!!

grandma.me

why don't you start with the basics. 6x24" ruler, cutting mat, rotary cutter, couple of seam rippers, small scissors for by your sewing machine, good pair of cutting scissors (Fiskars, Gingher, etc), taper measures, pin cushions, quilt stick pins (usually have yellow or white heads and are a little longer than regular stickpins). I am just going through my mind what I all have laying by my sewing machine. Basic colors of thread. This is just what I can think of now. Basically, this would get you started, and then it seems like every time I made a new project there were always some new notions I needed, and I would get them as I needed. I think if you make a list, you will find lots of ideas from the quilters here, and just add it to your list. Bigger items you can get coupons from JoAnn's and Hancock's. I know I still write down notions I hear or read about and pick them up,and I have been sewing all my life. I am 68, and I love my sewing machine and my notions. Quilters, is there more you can add?
Marilyn

AnitaSt

All of the responses have great information. The only thing I would add is a stiletto. I absolutely don't sew without it. You can hold pieces of fabric together all the way to the needle....really helps in lining things up and matching intersections. I first learned how useful a stiletto could be by watching Jodi Barrows' videos on her Square in a Square website. Whether you like her methods or not, she really shows how to use a stiletto effectively. And there are inexpensive stilettos at the fabric store.

davis2se

I would hold off on the rotating cutting mat until you are very, very comfortable with the whole rotary cutting process. Normally the rotating mats are quite small, and I just believe that for someone just starting out on this awesome journey of quilting would do better to buy the largest, stationary mat that you can afford.

Good luck with your quilting and welcome to the board.

luvTooQuilt

Free items around your house you can use in stead of buying:

Stiletto- you can use a chop stick, kabob stick, a mechanical led pencil with metal tip that ran out of lead
Pin cushion- make your own stuff with leftover batting
pin catcher- sm metal bowl, tape or glue a fridge magnet to bottom
thread catcher- empty kleenex box


im sure others will add more ideas..

DogHouseMom

Your going to need at least TWO rulers unless you plan on using the grid on the mat to measure - which I don't recommend (ask me how I know). When you use two rules it is MUCH more accurate to measure and you can use the second ruler as a "slide" when you have to cut longer lengths of fabric.

I suggest getting a medium 9.5" square ruler as your second ruler.

DogHouseMom

As for the brand ... I can only say that I CANNOT recommend the "Quilt in day" square rulers. The reason is that the horizontal and vertical lines stop at the center diagonal - they don't go all the way through. So when your trying to measure a 2" strip it's difficult to see if the 2" line is accurate to the full length of the square. I have two of her rulers and I hate them.