New to quilting!

[Jessica92983]

Hello everyone! After getting a new sewing machine (initially for odds and ends), I thought long and hard about trying my hand at quilting. My first projects will be quilts for my nieces and nephews, I don't believe I will make them in time for Christmas (since I have 7 of them), but perhaps by my next trip down south. I'm not ready to create just yet, but I will be very soon. I've read "Quilt-Opedia" which I found incredibly useful, but I do still have questions. I've looked into the fat quarters, fat eighths, etc... but what I really would like to know is about how much fabric is needed for a quilt? By no means am I ready to make very elaborate or large quilts, and I'm sure once I get going and gain more experience I will also gain knowledge. But say, for a quilt that they will hopefully have for years to come, so not small like a baby quilt, how much fabric would be recommended? I am very excited to start this project and hope I can perhaps get some expert guidance! Thank you for your time!!

[grammiequilts]

your fabric depends on the pattern,,,heres how I would start if i were you....I would look through some books and pick an easy pattern,,,,usually thry are marked beginner, confident beginner, intermediate, and advanced,,,if you have a local quilt shop go there and ask the gals in the shop they can tell you...start by reading all the directions and walking through them. you might have to do this more than once...when you think you under stand the process start cutting your fabric and go for it...you will make mistakes everyone does...if you get stumped come here or go to sew in and ask,,,,we wil answer most of us are on her everyday and we collectively have hundreds of years of experience....Welcome XXXOOO Judi

[Jessica92983]

I did also get a pattern "book" that is a calendar but has a different pattern for every day, and I have picked out some ones that I should be able to start out with. I will definitely make a trip to a local shop, I just didn't want to go in sounding like a complete amateur lol! Thanks for the advice!

[scrapquilter48]

Jessica I belong to Manitoba Prairie quilters and you have a guild in Grand forks, North Start guild I think.. Every 2 years our guild goes down as guest to that guild, then grand forks come here every 2nd as visitor. Lots of prizes we give and fun..

Lots of you tube to learn free, patterns free, forums of all kinds free, find other ladies in your area. As for fabric it varies depending on pattern. Nothing wrong with thrift store to start. It will take a while to learn everything..

Attend quilt shows ask lots of questions.. PIECE OF WARNING ITS ADDICTIVE AND THERAPEUTIC.

[Marilynsgrammy]

There really a wealth of experience on this forum.. I rely on these girls often.

my advice is... don't start out with something too big for your first project...it can get overwhelming very quickly...

I would follow Judi's suggestion of picking out an easy pattern.. maybe make a table runner or a baby sized quilt. it sews up rather quickly and you will have a finished product to be excited over...

get the fabric for your small project at Joanns or WalMart.. don't spend a fortune on it... make sure you like sewing and quilting before spending a fortune..lol

make sure you aren't hard on yourself.. sometimes points aren't pointy and they will never match no matter what you do... don't let it set you back...

hope you enjoy making quilts..it can be a lot of fun.

Chriss

[gershwin64]

Jessica, I agree with GrammieQ ) (Judi) I love calling her GrammieQ though ;o) When I started I didn't have a pattern, just a picture (it was a picture of a quilt FarmChick made) I bought 21 FQ's and 3 yards of one fabric for my sashing and border, I made a queen size quilt and I had plenty of leftovers ) I would say if you want to make a throw size (60x60) or a twin size (65x95) I would just figure how many colors you want and kinda mentally figure how many would lay across the bed or into whatever size you want to do, add a little extra and start sewing ) I do this alot LOL sometimes I'm short but for the most part if I'm not following a pattern where it tells me how much of what to buy then I've been adding a little extra lately and coming out pretty good )
I'm sure that didn't help you at all LOL but that's what I do sometimes )
Tina

[Marilynsgrammy]

Tina.. you're a nut... glad you're my friend.xo

[MainelyMe]

If you want to get just an idea of how much fabric you would need for a quilt, you can check out some free quilt patterns on-line and they will give you the amounts for each fabric in the quilt. Add them up and you'll have the idea for that pattern.
You can find free quilt patterns on most of the quilt fabric makers sites, like RJR Fabrics: http://www.rjrfabrics.com/patterns/patterns_search.cfm, or others.
Hope that helps.
Joan

[mellomayking]

Hi Jessica, and welcome! I don't think I can help with the figuring of how much material is needed when "creating" your own design, etc., but I do highly recommend using one of Eleanor's patterns for your first attempt.

Her directions are so precisely written that it is very hard to go astray! She will even tell you which direction to press the seam so that everything "nests" together. The patterns will also tell you how much of each fabric is needed, as well.

Happy sewing!

Mel

[billizzy]

Jessica welcome to our quilting world:) I agree with many of the posts look for a pattern that says beginner or easy. El has many of them and I will say a lot even have video I would Highly recommend that to help you understand some of the terminology used in patterns:) El makes it simple and shows you quick tricks:) One pattern that is easy fast and quick to do is: Piece of Cake it uses 2 layer cakes {10 in square packs} very easy and you can use a lot of different fabrics for kids or adults when making it:) Another is Hole in the Wall easy fast and it uses fat quarters {12}. These would be a good way just to practice matching seams and not having to worry about a lot of points and angles the first time round. Both are El patterns:))) Happy sewing

Izzy