I want to start quilting, tips?

[ChicknJ]

Quote:
Kathy, I am soooo sending these pictures to my mother, it will let her know she isn't all alone. I have an amateur collection in comparison

 

[kathyinmo]

And I thought my stash was obscene!!! Yours is drooliscious!!!
If we started a thread to show off our sewing rooms/stashes YOU would definitely be the topthreader!
You are truly proof that quilting leads to fabric addiction!!

It is just terrible! I love love love fabric! I can sit for hours going through fabric and patterns. Start a thread on fabric? huh?
Well, you start a thread and let me see YOUR stash! LOL

Quote:
I'm so glad to hear I'm not alone! Your mom sounds wonderful!​

 

[CoyoteMagic]

Hey crazy lady (I love that name! my students at school sometimes call me that @#$%&* crazy lady with the dog)LOL

I've got 2 swaps that are going on. Deadline for sign-up is December 31st. Would be great for Virgin, er, ah, Newbie quilters!

Red and White Swap-- https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=267998

I-Spy Swap-- https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=267993

 

[Wildsky]

Quote:
I wish I had the motivation to join in - perhaps in a couple of months I'll get back on my machine and start sewing again, I haven't sewn for months! (unless someone's pants had a hole in em!)

 

[ninny]

Hmm how many yards do i need for a baby quilt? Kathy are you selling or giving away?

 

[QuailQT]

Quote:
I love making "quilts" (just what I call them, even though I just knot them and it probably isn't technically correct), and have only ever hand quilted one wall hanging (that I can't seem to find ANYWHERE!

), but I always knot them with embroidery floss to finish them off. I just don't have the time or patience at this time in my life. My cousin got me started making quilts and helped me pick colors and etc. I don't know about anyone else, but that's the hardest (yet most satisfying) part for me and I can easily spend hours in the store trying to make up my mind!

My cousin suggested that I try one of the "Quilt in a Day" series by Eleanor Burns. I bought her Log Cabin and Trip Around the World books and just love how fast you can whip one out by using the strip set method. The directions are really easy to follow for beginner's like me. My grandmother got hooked on the quilts too (she had made them before, but got started again when I did and we spent so much quality time together. She passed away 5 years ago and I am so glad to have spent so much time with her.

I've made LOTS of baby blankets from these patterns and others and get so much satisfaction out of it and they are SOOOO quick! I've made tops and sold them on ebay too just because I like to make them and it feels good to have a creative outlet without finishing them off. (My favorite part is picking the colors, organizing the lights/darks and setting the "puzzle". If I could only find a buddy who loves to quilt, I'd be set! I could whip out the tops and they could quilt them.)

Here is my last project that I need to finish up. It is a Trip Around the World pattern. I had started this quilt a few years ago and then put it away and had never bought any fabric for the backing. When I got it back out, I had a hard time finding something that I really "loved" (that's what I have to do, find fabrics that I absolutely love together. Even with the "Quilts in a Day" being much faster, you still have time and work invested in yourself and it is dissapointing when you're all done and decide that you wish that you wouldn't have used one of the fabrics that you picked. That's why it takes me forever at the store and I still usually end up buying a different fabric to replace one I had picked before. ) I have never used a bed sheet on the back before, but I found this green stripe that just matched so nicely, and thought I'd try it.

Good luck and enjoy your new hobby! It's good for the soul! If you decide to get the books and try them and get stuck, don't hesitate to PM me. )

 

[that_crazy_lady]

thank you all for making me feel so welcome

and all the tips, good stuff. that being said

I don't know what day yet but I'm going to Kathys!

maybe this week

CoyoteMagic I think about the swaps, it sounds like fun

 

[kathyinmo]

Quote:
YAY!! I am as excited as you are! Be prepared to be overwhelmed (with choices!) I am happy to get new quilters interested and started in the craft of quilting!

 

[Wildsky]

Quote:

SO not fair!

 

[alabama49]

Hmmm...what does longarm mean?