I have always decided on the pattern I like and then get the material

My wierdness is connected to backing fabric. I have see fabric I HAVE to use on the back of a quilt. Then I get a pattern and fabric to make a top which will harmonize with the back. My passion is batiks.
Quilt Sister

I too am a beginner and have the same question. I also ask so now I have stash and FQ now what do I do? Where to begin is the hardest part. I amsure "we" will figure it out.

I too am a beginner. I see a pattern and buy farbic once in a while i will buy some fabric because I like it and then sometime it will work for my next quilt. I usually only do lap quilts.

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You will come to find that you do both, pick pattern first as well as pick fabric first.

I am genetically drawn to red/white, I think. So I have a lot of those fabrics, of every shape and style.
So I notice all red/white quilts regardless of pattern, and think if I would like to reproduce that.
And I think of all designs as they might look in red/white.

Otherwise, on the one hand, I might take a fancy to some pattern I see like New York Beauty or some new-to-me technique like Continuous Prairie Points, and then pick the fabrics second.

On the other hand, I might think of how I would like a particular fabric displayed, that is to say, does it need a lot of exposure as a main visual element or does it need to merely peekaboo in the design? or does it need points? or does it need curves? or does it need lines? or does it need dimensionality?

On the gripping hand, I think of a pattern I am dying to make, such as Schoolhouse which I have always loved and never yet made, and think how I might like to show it in colors and shading. Do I want it Traditional? or Updated?

But mostly, I just have a lot of all kinds of fabric and a lot of patterns and keep sewing and keep collecting more of all of it.
I just love quilts!!
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Usually get the fabric and then choose a pattern. I do have several patterns that I keep on hnad jus tincase I find the right fabric. In the beginning I would find a patterna dn then the fabric for it. this works better if you want the exact fabric but now I love the challenging of mixing all kinds of fabrics to obtain the effect I want.

Oh for the days when I only bought what I needed for a pre-selected pattern. Of course those were the days I only made clothing. Now I own more fabric than I will ever be able to put into a quilt even if I live to 200. I usually get the idea, then shop my stash and try buy only what I need to complete it. I have found that digging through my complete stash for something is a good thing to do just before a show or shop hop or any opportunity to add to it. I will still buy but hopefully, not so much.

Both. A lot of the time I look through my stash & start getting ideas of what I could make with what I have. Most of the quilts I have made have some of my stash in them. I do however occasionally see a pattern I like & buy especially for that, buying a little extra of course to add to my stash. I look through books to get ideas too & then adapt them. I've only actually followed a pattern for three quilts.

I usually have a pattern and then I find my favorite fabric to go with it. I often use the author of a book or magazine
that I enjoy using. I change pleasures all of the time and go from solid color choices (primary colors) to red,white, & blue, to blended quilts. I do agree sampler quilts help to obtain style, color values. Good luck beginners, keep it simpler and grow from there. The whole issue is enjoy yourself and don't let any quilt police interrupt your growing talent. It is always a work in progress.

Kind of like "which came first, the chicken or the egg?" I seem to do both. I'm a beginner quilter also of less than a year. At first I bought kits until I could understand the process. Now I just buy what I like whether a pattern or fabric.