Reported by Cindy Keery
Wouldn’t you love to learn to create beautiful quilts that your family will cherish for years to come? I’ve recently taken up quilting because I have this desire to make something long lasting. I am a stamper at heart and always will be, but cards only last so long. Plus you can’t stay warm with a card.
Here are a few tips I’ve learned along the way in my quilting journey. If you’re a quilter please feel free to leave a comment on this post with your favourite tip or recommendation. I am by no means a quilting expert, but I definitely have a passion for it!
Quilt Shows
A great way to get excited about quilting is to go to a quilt show! Once you see all of the beautiful quilts on display you will want to give quilting a try yourself. Plus the enthusiasm from the vendors and all the quilters is very contagious. You won’t be able to resist purchasing a quilt kit or signing up for a class!
Take a Class
When I decided that I wanted to learn how to make quilt I knew I would take a class. I wanted to make sure I did it right! I signed up for a 4 session class at one of our local quilt shops and even though I could only make it to two of the classes I still learned a great deal. I think having an amazing teacher definitely helped! I took the Beginner Quilt class at A Great Notion in Abbotsford, BC with Therese Schwab as the instructor. If you live in the area I highly recommend this class! If not, I’m sure your local quilt store would have something similar.
The Tools of the Trade
One of the most important things for a beginner quilter to learn is rotary cutting. If your cuts aren’t accurate it doesn’t matter how perfectly you sew your pieces of fabric together, your whole quilt will be out of whack. For rotary cutting you’ll need a cutting mat (buy the largest one you can afford and the largest one you have space for), a rotary cutter, and 2 rulers. In my opinion these are the first tools every new quilter should purchase.
Read Books
One of the reasons I learned so much at the quilt class was because everything Therese taught us was reiterated in this book; Your first Quilt, by Carol Doak. It’s a great resource when you’re just starting out. If you’re not sure about diving into quilting, why not visit your library and check out some quilting books there instead of purchasing one.
Check out online Tutorials
Without even leaving your chair you can find a vast array of wonderful quilting information online! Here are a few of my favorites:
Fabric Designer: Heather Bailey
-Be sure to check out her tutorial on binding a quilt – it’s awesome!
Quiltnut Creations
-Every Monday she posts a beautiful quilt that she has made!
Sew a Quilt
-Free quilt patterns & quilt lessons
Fabric & Pattern Selection
Sometimes you will fall in love with a line of fabric and then will go on a search for a pattern that will go well with it. Other times you’ll have a specific pattern that you want to make and will find fabrics that compliment the pattern. You can also buy a kit which contains a pattern and the fabric. When purchasing a kit it’s a good idea to ask what else you will need to buy in order to complete the quilt.
Most established quilters will have a stash of fabrics that they will pull fabrics from to make a quilt. Since I am a pretty new quilter I haven’t acquired a fabric stash and (for now) I don’t intend to. I prefer buying fabric for each specific project rather than buying fabric for the sake of buying fabric. Long time quilters are probably gasping at the audacity of such a thought, but that’s ok.
Click HERE to see the progress on my latest quilt.
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