just poked in, so i don't know if anyone directly answered.

a backing for a generous queen quilt - 96 x 96 - needs at 3' of 108" or 9' of 40" seamed fabric. add in your amount for seam allowances on the front.
the more pieces you have in the design. the more you need for seam allowances. if you know anyone with a computer program, it can be broken down for you.

Mary,
I love your r/w/blk quilt and I too am a fan of D9P I made 2 of them this summer. Actually one I only helped with it was my neighbors daughters wedding quilt and it turned out lovely.

Jack
You have lots of great suggestions here for choosing colors.
I actually probably enjoy choosing my fabrics more than any other step of quilting. I just love to go to the quilt stores and play for hours pulling fabrics and trying different ones together or now in my stash.

I will be doing the fw's quilt on this board in Kansas Trouble fabrics these have a lot of the colors like you said you like and I did purchase various lines of them when I started collecting them a couple years back so they all go together very well.
Have fun and enjoy the process,
Muriel

katier825, what are tonals? I saw some fabric once that blended and got lighter as it went toward the bottom but I haven't been able to find the place again. Thanks

Of course all of the above are great suggestions. I try to be sure I use an odd number of colors--artists will tell you that 3 is a good color.
Our guild says to put one in that is a "sizzle" color; something you don't expect.
I also go by color families; all of the shades of one color, in an odd-no. amt.
No doubt there are many more great ideas!
Mariah.

Hope you have a great time at your quilt class. Not quite sure what D9P means but I think I have an idea.
As for picking colors, I find a focus fabric and then call in my hubby, he is more agressive in color combinations. I have a tendency to play it safe.
So my suggestion to you, while in class get some recommendations from others. We all have these amazing color wheels in our heads, all different for the most part and it will help you to expand, try other combinations. So much fun to be with other quilters when you are at this stage. We learn from each other, no matter what stage of education you are at as a quilter.
Be sure to share your creation and what you learned and have fun.

Mary
Love the D9P - I believe it is also called a nine patch with a twist. Going to give it a try myself. Very dramatic and thanks for sharing.

Got my cutting board, ruler, roller cutter and additional blades at Hobby Lobby today. $86 :shock: I figured prob. 80 and that included an iron; not! The iron was an additional $11.
Jack

Jack,

Quilting is not an inexpensive hobby! Just wait until you send a quilt out to be quilted by a professional longarm quilter...1.5 cents per square inch (on up to about .06) does add up quickly! And don't forget the backing material and batting!

I have only done one quilt so far, but one problem I have is picking colors. My experience in sewing was with clothes and you don't mix patterns with clothes so much, at least you didn't used to. One good hint I received for picking quilt colors is Don't stand too close. Put the fabric out on the table and step back several feet to look. I was looking too close, so colors and patterns never seemed to match, this helped. Hope to see your project soon.

Even though I have enough of my own ideas to keep busy, I'm always impressed with the great ideas on display at my LQS......

Some people can really benefit from having a colorwheel. I have a nice one that came with various cutouts that make it easy to pair things up.

Ask for help at your LQS, whether it be employees of the shop or other customers!