I am self taught. I couldn't afford material let alone a quilt class. I did order a couple of books. I used old clothes and cut out templates from cardboard. I drew each and every square or triangle on the fabric and cut each out with scissors. Very tedious. My oldest -my daughter was 5 she will be 34 this Oct.

I took a class offered close to home and I didn't get much out of it. I got the directions for a few quilt blocks I didn't have but all she had us do was cut out the fabric with her templates and take it home and sew it . I went home and used my cut down method instead of her templates and I never did put the blocks into a quilt. It was a sampler and I was mostly interested in getting the picture of the blocks so I could do them my way anyway.

I don't have the time for a full size quilt.

I took my first class when I started in 1983. It was a Queen Size Sampler class all hand pieced and hand quilted. I was hooked and I am still a hand quilter, although would love to take a class for machine quilting. I am always up for a class to learn a new technique.

My grandma taught me to hand piece four patches when I was in 4th grade. She taught me on scraps from old aprons and "house dresses". Things happened and I never got that quilt finished (but she did several years later). Then in my very early twenties my MIL at the time and I joined her mother in "quilting club". It was a bunch of old ladies mostly in their 60's and up. They hand quilted and thought that machines were okay for "quick bedding" if you were in need, but real quilts were hand done. Like one of the previous posts we cut templates from cardboard or plastic butter lids and each piece was hand traced and cut with scissors, then hand sewn together. They were very critical of my work at first, but decided that I came along rather well for my age. Once a month we would meet at someone's house and quilt on that person's current project and have a pot luck dinner. I did that for a couple of years and then life got in the way again and I didn't get back to quilting until I found out I was going to be a grandma a few years ago. I was amazed and still am at how easy quilting is now with all the tools and gadgets. I wonder if those old ladies are rolling over in their graves knowing I rotary cut and piece and quilt by machine or if they are saying you go girl. Sometimes I almost feel guilty for all the gadgets and fabric I have when I think about my old quiltig club days. But I sure do enjoy all my goodies and stash. :)

It is a very different world now.
Sewing was a neccessity, now it is a hobby and expensive at that.
Fabric and supplies cost more than to buy ready made.
Before I began quilting I bought my quilts for 39 dollars and that incuded the shams. You can still buy them for that amount and they are not bad.
The quilting isnt as good as a long arm quilter does but the piecing is good.
So now we quilt because we love it. People dont apprieciate the work that goes into a quilt either. But quilting keeps me happy.

I just began quilting in Sept of 2008. I had wanted to try it for years but everytime I surfed around looking for information on it....I just became overwhelmed.......and didn't know where to start.
Finally found a quilting class at a local quilt shop in Sept and took a beginner class based on Eleanor Burns book "It's Elementary".
Loved the class and am now addicted to quilting!!
I also signed up for a class on Paper Piecing starting next month. None of my friends quilt so I like to take classed just to meet new people who love quilting.

Nope, I've never had a quilting class. I'll be taking my first quilt class when I go on my first quilting retreat in June. I'm looking forward to it.

Classes are like candy. New ideas, new fabrics, new friends, new techniques. You can't have enough - classes or candy.

Bella, that is such a funny story. You are now known as "Fearless Bella" what a woman :!:
I guess I am self taught, there wasn't quilt classes around when I started and they are kinda out of my price range now. But now you have the internet and can look up soooo much and there are even vidio tutorials. That helps me, I am a gotta see person more than a reading about it. I think if the price is reasonable for you and you luck out and get a good teacher (that shows up :wink: ) you can learn a lot. But I feel quilting is a personal thing. You have to find out what type you are. Hurry up and get it done? Do you enjoy the prep work more than putting it together? Do you like taking your time? Do you like paper piecing? (more structured)Do you prefer applique? There are so many things to consider when starting and until you try several things you don't know if that is what you like. Maybe if classes aren't an option you could look for a mentor that might help you find your calling :D

My first quilt was a huge Trip Around the World with directions out of a magazine. It was cut with scissors and took months. My second was a class - Log cabin in a day, with strips ripped. After that, rotary cutters came out, and I took my dinosaur to a strip piecing class to learn all the new techniques.

I like learning new techniques and experimenting with new stuff. I would not be interested in a class just to make the exact same thing as everyone else. Like so many have already said, there is so much free information now

Most of the classes I've seen lately are geared towards selling pricey doo-dads. In order to attend, you have major investments in specialty tools. The days of using a single ruler as a multi-purpose tool are gone.

I've taken one class- the hunter's star. Felt like an outsider by others attending but very welcome by the instructor. She hasn't had any classes that I can attend so haven't been back for a class, but frequent trips for fabric purchases are always learning experiences as she answers questions on anything I need help with. I spend lots of $$$ there, but she's worth it!