First time quilt maker?

Question

I would love to make my mother a quilt for Christmas, but I'm not sure how to go about making one. I do have a sewing machine. Does anyone know where I can go online to find directions to make a simple quilt?

Answer 1

First, go to: http://www.quilt.com/HowToPage.html
This site will give you all of the basics of quilting.
Pay special attention to "Rotary Cutting", "Speed Piecing" and "Pressing".

Make sure you get a rotary cutter, mat and ruler. Next to your sewing machine and iron, these are really the only "essential" tools. All the rest is great, but not necessary to start.

One of my favorite "easy" patterns is this one: http://www.victorianaquiltdesigns.com/VictorianaQuilters/PatternPage/EasyBeginnersRailFence/EasyBeginnersRailFence.htm
It's a rail fence. It teaches you a lot of the basics of quilting. Then, when you go to lay it out, you can change it any way you want.

It's nice to start with only three different fabrics for one of your first quilts. It isn't too daunting to find three fabrics that you like and that go together. Plus, you don't get confused trying to remember which fabrics are for which parts.

The best part of this quilt is that it goes together pretty fast, and it looks like you put more work into it than you did.

Lastly, go easy on yourself! Don't expect perfection your first time out. Your mom will love that you took the time and effort to make her such a wonderful gift. Even quilts that aren't our best are sewn with love and keep you just as warm as "perfect" quilts.

Have fun! Take a break when you are frustrated or tired. Eat chocolate when necessary. That's it. That's the secret to quilting . . . and life!

Remember, quilting is supposed to be fun!

Answer 2

Hi, first time Quilter. There are many sites with information on quilting. If you can sew at all, I recommend you pick up a copy of Singer's Quilting Guide. Try an online book store such as Amazon, you might get it used and cheap.
Just a couple of things, a good quilt maker learns to measure accurately using a rotary cutter and mat. Learn how to sew a 1/.4 " seam. Every seam must be the same, ir the quilt will be lopsided. Once you master a few techinques your quilting project will be a snap. Try to use a simple block pattern for your first quilt. Good luck, we all started somewhere.

Answer 3

There are so many options out there for you! One of the easiest traditional block patterns is called a Rail Fence. You cut long strips from selvage to selvage (width of fabric, or WOF), then sew them together into strip sets. You then cut the strip sets across the stripes of fabric to form the blocks. The width you cut should match the width of the strip set. For example, if you cut your strip 1 1/2" wide and you sew four strips together using 1/4" seams, your finished strip set should be 6 1/2" wide. Cut the strip set into 6 1/2" sections. Now lay out the squares on the floor and rotate every other one 1/4 turn. This will give a woven or stairstep pattern to the strips. Sew the blocks together to form rows, then sew the rows together to form the quilt. Pin at the block intersections to make sure they line up when you sew the rows together. If you'd like, add one or more borders to the outside to finish it off. Check out the Quilter's Cache link below for detailed instructions on making the rail fence blocks.

You can make an even easier quilt, with no seams to match, by sewing your strip sets, sub cutting them whatever width you choose, then sewing them together end to end to make one long piece of width-wise stripes. Alternate this strip with a strip of plain fabric, and repeat until it's the size you'd like. It's a very adaptable quilt - depending on your fabric choice you can make a baby quilt, a modern quilt, a child's quilt, a country quilt... whatever you like. You can adapt it even further and cut your strips into different widths, or even at angles. Check the additional links for photos.

If you'd like to chat further about this, feel free to e-mail me. I love to chat about quilting.

Answer 4

Here is a link to Better Homes & Gardens - they have great intro instructions for making a quilt, from the supplies you need to free patterns!

http://www.bhg.com/bhg/category.jsp?categoryid=/templatedata/bhg/category/data/Quilting.xml

Answer 5

If the first answer is not what you want - there are plenty of monthly magazines, and masses of books with easy patterns and instructions available from public libraries.

Answer 6

Check out this thread where I replied recently to pretty much the exact same question:

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AhVJokB2UjzTz.VWUHqczqrty6IX?qid=20070807081321AADEzdj&show=7#profile-info-CgetEZ3daa

(and this thread has a little more about backings, etc.)

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AqQEw0BZfF5rvWqNdlgYiAPty6IX?qid=20070610225929AA9GdXv

HTH, and have fun!

Diane B.

Answer 7

Here is my suggestion:

http://www.quiltwith2sissies.com/three.htm

Good luck!