Understanding the necessary materials and supplies that a fabric art genius uses!
When embarking on a creative adventure you’ll get a lot further if you have the essential supplies to make a few basic things.
For instance, to make the most basic lap quilt ever, you’ll need:
- A sewing machine
- A cutting board
- Rotary Cutter
- Scissors
- Seam Ripper
- An iron
- Spray bottle with water if your iron doesn’t have steam capabilities
- Spray starch (if you’d like your project to be flat)
- A pattern – either a single pattern or a book
- 3-4 materials for the front
- Backing Material
- Batting
- Thread
- Bobbins
- Bobbin thread
- Needle(s)
- Pins
Don’t Despair
It’s not as bad as it looks.
Every single thing on that list can be used and reused for dozens of projects.
A good sewing machine that is properly maintained can last a lifetime. We’ve used the same cutting board for 6 years, and the one before that for 15. A good iron can last as long as 5-6 years. One rotary cutter (with frequently changed blades) may never wear out.
Needles break, but they can be used for quite a few projects before they finally meet their Waterloo. Pins will bend and eventually wear out, but they come in packs of hundreds, and one pack can last for a couple of years.
A good pair of scissors can last an incredibly long time, especially if you know how to sharpen the blades occasionally.
Fabric and thread will both eventually get used up, of course, but if you’re careful with your measurements, and save the leftovers, you’d be surprised how many different projects a favorite piece of material can show up in.
Mostly, it’s a matter of knowing yourself, your preferences, your artistic style, and your needs before you start.
For instance, if you are an Elegant Precisionist without much flare for creative drawing or spontaneous alterations, then you may never need a sewing machine that has more than 15 stitches.
You can read all about the different materials and supplies that quilters use in the following sections, and the various ways that these supplies can be organized to make every artistic journey easier and more fun!
Fabric
The fabrics you pick – and why – is arguably the most important foundational part of quilting. Find out all about the different options and their pros and cons before you buy!
Sewing with Thread
Hold your fabric art projects together, highlight them, quilt them, and make them stunning by sewing with the right kinds of threads in the right kinds of styles.
The fabrics you pick – and why – is arguably the most important foundational part of quilting. Find out all about the different options and their pros and cons before you buy!
Hold your fabric art projects together, highlight them, quilt them, and make them stunning by sewing with the right kinds of threads in the right kinds of styles.