What supplies for quilting are essential?
For those who enjoy quilting, you may feel confused by all the materials you need to purchase before you actually start quilting. Being a beginner in the field, you should enjoy learning different things in quilting and what you need to do to gain experience.
You need to find suitable needles, supplies and tools. While it is not necessary to buy a quilting machine, then you will have to purchase threads, needles, scissors and all sorts of tools to ensure you make your work easier and that you have all you need in order to begin quilting. Have quality supplies for quilting such as a good sharp scissor and needles makes quilting a lot more enjoyable.
In purchasing essential supplies for quilting a sewing machine is of most importance. While you can do your quilting job without using the machine and some quilters prefer to do the work by hand, others want to get it all done easier and faster and therefore use a sewing machine for that. It would be especially helpful to piece the quilting blocks together and then you can add the other parts by hand or with the help of the machine.
It would be thus sensible enough to buy such a machine; if your budget allows you to buy one, it will be of great help. To give you some advice on the brand you should select, choose Pfaff, Janome, Bernina or Husqvarna Viking, which are renowned and top-notch brands. If you won't be doing any advanced work, such as adding difficult stitches and you will only use the machine to sew simple things, you should buy a basic sewing machine. It is possible at some stores to trade up to a more advanced machine later on. A simple machine will be easier to operate.
Next on the shopping list of supplies for quilting should be a cutting tool. A basic tool includes two pairs of old fashioned scissors, which will be sturdy enough for your needs; one pair would be used to cut only paper and the other one would cut paper. Cutting paper with a fabric scissors will dull the blades. In addition to the two pairs of scissors, you will also need a mat and rotary cutter which gives more efficient results that a pair of scissors because it can be maneuvered more easily and can cut through different layers of fabric at the same time.
The mat will be useful as a supporting surface on which to work on therefore, you don't be fooled by the apparent simplicity of these tools and consider them trivial objects. They are of primordial importance in your quilting work and will take off your shoulders a lot of pressure and stress.
After you buy the necessary supplies for quilting, you next need the fabric to work on. Make sure your materials are usually made of cotton, because it is easy to work with, can be handled in different ways and it also comes in different colors and shapes. Cotton prints are long-lasting and they have a lustered hint to them. In addition to cotton, you will also need pins to fix the materials in different positions or angles. They are usually made out of steel and are fitted with vivid colored heads to make them easy to distinguish on a certain fabric. Add needles and seam rippers to your shopping list and make sure you have enough money for everything, because this is no place to want to save money and give up on some things.
Some quilters would even add on the list of shopping essential an idea board or bulletin. The idea board is usually placed in close proximity to the sewing machine and you can note down any momentary ideas about quilting that pass through your mind, tips to replace pins or how to arrange some fabrics, in other words some guidelines regarding the project you are working for now.
Carefully make up your shopping list and happy shopping!