I brand new at learning to sew.
 

I am disabled with the early stages of MS. I decided to learn to sew and quilt to kill the hours I spend at home. Im trying to gather the tools and supplies to begin learning the craft. My first project will be a wolf pillow and wall hanging. I have a brother model 2350 sewing machine but I don't have an owners manual or know how to thread it. I am also a severe dyslexic so I need advice on measuring and cutting fabric straight. Thank you for any advice you can give me.

on the internet downlow the manual or google

What wolf pillow and wall hanging are you planning to do?

thank you for the advice I'll go there now.

Its just a basic pillow panel with the wolves and the full moon. I m planning on using some sunset and tan accents. I still trying to gather a stash of fabric, threads and trims for this project. Most of my projects will center around wildlife and native American themes

If your Brother is an LS2350 you can download a PDF of the manual here:

http://www.brother-usa.com/manuals/default.aspx?PGID=3&R3ModelID=LS2350#.URp6zqUhgg0

At the committee at church we go to, we have this gentlemen that cut us out some boards, out of wood. For example we use a 7 by 7 square board.Also you may want to invest in a cutting board stuff from walmart, they are expensive for the one time purchase,but worth it. It saves us time in cutting for larger quilts.

Be sure and buy your supplies at Joann fabrics store if possible. You can find coupons online and sign up for email coupons and snail mail coupons. That way you can use a 40% off coupon for any item you choose.

Good luck on your new adventure. You will be a whiz in no time. You were right to join this forum, everyone is so nice and helpful!
Penny

Go on line and type in the information on your sewing machine it will take you to a web site and show the correct threading. Good luck to you and may God Bless

You can find everything on line and will never need to buy a pattern. Many places have step by step photo directions, even on how to cut and measure your fabric.

Welcome to the Board. I hope you find lots of inspiration here. Be sure to search Youtube videos for tutorials on how to measure, cut, and bind. There are tons of videos and some great videos with patterns, check out videos by Jenny Doan of Missouri Star Quilting Company (she makes quilting look so easy). I use a 24" x 3.5" ruler and a rotary cutter to cut my fabric. I do have one other 6.5 square that I use a little, but most of my fabric is cut with my long narrow ruler. I hope you enjoy the quilting boartd.

Good for you. Remember practice makes perfect and no one but you will see any mistakes. Keep up the great'
learning experience. don't give up.

Flo in NNY

Welcome to the board! Lots of experience and friendships here! Quilting can be very addictive. LOL There are some rulers that are made by Quilters Rule that can help with straight line cutting. They are a little pricier that the others but I have found them very helpful with rotary cutting. If you can purchase just one, I recommend the longer one. I like Olfa mats best and do not depend on the gridded side. I use the blank side.

great advice....

Just a tip for cutting and measuring with your ruler...If I want to cut a 2 inch strip, place a piece of tape on the 2 inch line so you don't have to check for it each time. I tend to reverse or misread numbers and this really helps. Also, don't measure or cut when you're tired!!! We all make mistakes then creatively fix them.

Welcome to this great QB. So sorry you have health related problems. Hope you enjoy learning to quilt. Be sure to post your progress. Will look forward to seeing your quilts.

You are going to love your new pasttime just relax and enjoy yourself the others have already given you lots of good advice so just have fun now.

Check with your local quilt shop - they will probably have some wonderful beginner classes to help you get started. Also check with your local quilt guild - they have a wealth of knowledge that most are very willing to share. Enjoy

If you are interested; Craftsy has online sewing classes for quilting. They regularly have some on sale.
They have some very good teachers and do a great job with the camera work also.
Good luck on your quilting!

Welcome to the board. Having the right tools will be helful The projects you picked to start with sound lovely and very doable for a first project. If there are groups or guild in your area it would be nice to join.

Quilting is a great way to create wonderful things, learn something new at every turn, occupy your mind, and maintain some dexterity. I have enjoyed sewing since I was 10 (1958), and quilting for about the last ten years. It never gets old. I have made quilts for everyone I love (almost!), and have a couple to do for my house, eventually. I hope you love it as much as I do. And you are in the right place here. Feels free to ask questions. There are always friendly voices and good advisors here. By the way, I also have a Brother. Not sure if it's the same model you have, but it has been my flawless, faithful companion for years. Never has a tension problem.

Another good resource is about.com/quilting. Lots of instructional videos and easy instructions.

Welcome to sewing! I have been at it since I was 15 and am very addicted. You can get great deals on sewing tools and rulers by using the coupons available. For instance Joann's and Hancock Fabrics have 50-60% off. They also take other stores coupons.

First, sign up for coupons at Joann's so you can save 40 per cent on the things you will need, a 22 by 36? cutting mat, buy the largest for all projects, a 6 inch by 24 ruler, a rotary cutter that uses a 45mm blade which is the most common size, some sort of suction holder for the ruler to keep from injury while your learning to cut or a Fons and Porter safety cutting glove and good pair of scissors that you use only for sewing like 6 or 7" Gingher and a small scissor for snipping threads on your projects. Don't buy a kit! Watch all the tutorials you can find on what you p[lan to do and watch them over and over. Suggestion, Missouri Quilt Co, but there are hundreds out there and here on this site. Change your needle or put a new needle in now and at the beginning of every project. Some people use a size 11 or 14, the numbers go up as the needles get thicker but important to use right size needle.

If the machine isn't new, I would suggest you get a tune up and cleaning and make friends with local sewing machine shop so if you have questions you can call for help. Cleaning your machine after every project is important too.
under bobbin and around in that area and thread and fuzz can build up and even dislodge you bobbin so you can't sew.

Hope this helps. My favorite rulers are 4 by 16 and 4 by 8 but the big ruler is imperative. Good Luck. Oh, you will get a new flyer by mail about every 3 weeks from Joann with 40 off. Keep us posted, 33 years and counting with MS.

Watch the blind quilter on you tube, she is amazing. she made me turn my I can't into my (I Can do this.)

I use june taylor cutting system for cutting strips, there are slots measured so as long as your fabric is straight you should be good. I cant cut otherwise. i am visually impaired and very bad at math so my cuts before were useless! Look online, get the biggest one they have. I have the 1|2 and 1|4" slots and one for 1|8 but use the 1|2, 1|4 " all the time!!!

Welcome. I haven't been quilting long and really find this group helpful. In addition to youtube instructional videos I'd also recommend the public library for quilting magazines and books. As far as basic tools the must have list posted by Rainsprite is perfect. I also find a 1/4 inch quilting pressure foot is invaluable to help keep your seams accurate. Good luck and post photos when you finish your projects.

Welcome to the board. I'm not a person who gets a lot out of just words either, so I love You Tube. They have videos for almost everything. Even when I mute the sound (because it's in a foreign language) the pictures make more sense. And, no, there are not any stupid questions. Ask anything you need to know, we'll answer. We've all been where you are. And when you are tired, take a break. Fatigue only leads to mistakes and the main thing is to HAVE FUN!

I have a friend with MS that took up sewing about 3 years ago....you should see how well she quilts now!!!! You will do wonderful and the internet is full of helpful ideas as well as here!!!!

What a great way to take your mind off things. Good luck and have fun that's what it's all about.

Ask around and find some quilters or a guild in your area. Believe me you will have a fantastic, ready-made support group for both your sewing endeavors and your personal/health challenges. God bless.

I have MS also. I sew & knit. I do everything I can do. You go Girl.

Good luck to you, it will be a great hobby to pas the time. God Bless.

The 40% at JoAnn's is only good on regular priced items and they keep lots of stuff on sale.

Get the ruler with the safe guide and some
Fons and Porter safety gloves.

You could use utube videos to help now. Look to look fork local people to you who could come and show you how to thread the machine and any other problem you have .

Quilters are very. Friendly and will share their knowledge with pleasure.

Don't forget Hobby Lobby. They have 40% off coupon for any one item EACH WEEK! (in our area newspaper) For you all out there (in quiltiing land), ANYONE can go on line to the Hobby Lobby site and download one of these coupons, each week. I live too far away from a Hobby Lobby to spend the gasoline on a regular basis....however, if you have one somewhat nearby, try to get one of your basics, each week, with this great deal. This is a good way to get your cutting mat, your basic rulers, rotary cutter, and good pair of "fabric-ONLY" scissors, and you'll be set to be off and running! Welcome to quilting, and Have fun! (Hug!)

you tube is a good learning tool