How Long Will It Take Me to Make My First Patchwork Quilt? Beginners ask this question frequently. The answer is ‘not long’ provided you choose a pattern that will help you learn and achieve results without too much fiddly stuff. Furthermore, simple patterns sewn well will result in a far superior finished item that a poorly executed complicated pattern. My two starter quilts are the Heart Quilt and my Scrappy Stars Quilt. They are proven winners with many beginners who have gone on to tackle more complex projects.
Which Patchwork Quilts To Start With?
The Heart Patchwork Quilt provides great education on cutting and sewing precisely, using decorative stitches, applique and basic walking foot quilting. That’s quite a lot, even for such a simple quilt. It is important to learn the basics well as you will be using these skills time and time again as you make more items. Taking the time to learn how to cut and sew precisely is vital to any success. Wherever you start, the most straightforward quilt will take you through a process. With the steps to learn, for the first few quilts, it is best not to over complicate the design. My GillyMac Loves Pinterest Board offers some great ideas for beginners quilts.
How Long Will It Take Me To Make?
My beginner’s heart quilt will take (and everyone is different) 30-35 hours work from start to end. We space this out over five weeks, with 3 hours weeks in class and the rest in private guided sewing. We take time over each step in the process and if needed, repeat it. The next quilt in the sequence, my GillyMac Scrappy Stars quilt will take 35-38 hours to complete.
Below are just a few examples of finished quilts by beginners’ classes. Participants create these beautiful quilts from a starting point of a complete beginner.
The next course Beginners Course starts in April. More details can be found here.
