Hello beginner quilter! Welcome to our favorite hobby—we’re thrilled to have you here. There are lots of beginner sewing and quilting projects to choose from, and we know it can feel overwhelming. We’ve been at our sewing machines for awhile now so we have some great recommendations for where to start!
But before we get into our favorite beginner sewing and quilting projects, here are some courses at Thimbles to consider to help polish those skills…
Thimbles Clubhouse
Every year Thimbles hosts an annual Clubhouse Quilt Along—but it’s so much more than just a quilt along. It’s exactly like a block of the month project, so you will complete a portion of the quilt every month. But we also invite our Clubhouse quilters to join us on the last Thursday and Saturday of every month for refreshments, show & tell, educational demonstrations, extra projects, and prize giveaways. When you sign up, you can choose to make the quilt with us, or be a “club only” member and only make the extra projects.
As a beginner quilter, making a whole quilt right at the start may feel daunting, but this is one of the best ways to make your first quilt. We’re there to hold your hand, you’re quilting alongside other experienced—and inexperienced—quilters, and it’s a great way to build community and confidence at the same time.
It’s not too late to join Thimbles Clubhouse!
Reversible Apron
We love classes that pair a project with learning a new skill or using a new tool. Kay’s upcoming Reversible Apron class shows quilters how to use the Prym Vario Creative Tool to punch holes, attach snaps, and apply eyelets and rivets, all while making a reversible apron.
Make a Reversible Apron with Kay!
Beginning Quilting Mosaic
You’ll learn below why Kara LOVES the Fat Quarter Style book for ALL quilters, regardless of experience. Our Beginning Quilting - Mosaic classes remain one of our most popular courses for beginner quilters because we cover all the basics. From how to read a quilting pattern to the proper way to use your rotary cutter to measuring precise seams and accurately piecing, you’ll discover all the fundamentals of quilting while making a quilt. We offer Beginning Quilting - Mosaic courses throughout the year, with 4 classes in total for each course. Next round starts on January 14!
Sign up for Beginning Quilting - Mosaic!
Free Motion Quilting
Free Motion Quilting is another great beginner quilting course we routinely offer throughout the year. Our next class meets on January 19, but you can always find upcoming courses here. This course is great for growing confident with your walking foot and learning free-motion stippling and meandering, and continuous patterning.
Register for Free Motion Quilting.
Foundation Paper Piecing
Foundation Paper Piecing, or FPP, is one of those techniques that makes even practiced quilters a little nervous. But we promise: it’s much easier than it looks, and it’s a lot of fun! We regularly sprinkle paper piecing courses in our annual class calendar because we want our quilters to feel confident paper piecing as it opens up a whole new world of quilting shapes and possibilities. Our beginner FPP class leads you through the basics of preparing and cutting your paper and fabric pieces and practicing simple blocks. Don’t forget to check out our top paper piecing tips for beginners!
Register for Foundation Paper Piecing.
Embroidery Basics
Once you really dive deep into quilting as a hobby, you’ll discover how much machine embroidery will enhance all of your quilting projects. In our Embroidery Basics courses, we combine small, fun machine embroidery projects (like our upcoming Tea Towel class and the following In the Hoop Applique and Freestanding Lace class) with techniques like using stabilizers, adding appliques, placing designs, and more.
Register for Embroidery Basics.
Now that you’ve learned about some of our upcoming beginner quilting and sewing classes, let’s talk about our favorite projects!
Tammy’s Favorite: The Burrito Pillowcase
Tammy loves the Burrito Pillowcase pattern because it’s really easy to get professional results with very little effort. The Burrito Pillowcase opts for gorgeous French seams for that polished finish, and it’s perfect for using that luxurious, special fabric on something you know you’ll use and love. You can learn how to make the Burrito Pillowcase in our free tutorial here.
Jane’s Favorite: Yellow Brick Road
Jane loves the Yellow Brick Road quilt pattern for so many reasons: there are no points you have to match up, no weird piecing, no triangles to cut and fit together, and it’s all squares and rectangles so straight—easy to match up!—lines abound. And, it’s fat quarter friendly—any 12 fabrics you have that coordinate well together can be used beautifully in Yellow Brick Road. Follow the Yellow Brick Road, Jane says!
Kara’s Favorite: Fat Quarter Style
Remember how we talked about our recurring Beginning Quilting - Mosaic class above? The class includes making a quilt from Fat Quarter Style, one of Kara’s favorite quilting books of all time. Kara loves Fat Quarter Style because all 12 patterns feel beginner friendly but not boring, and as named, they’re all great for fat quarters. It also includes multiple size options for each design, so you can make crib, lap, twin, or queen sized quilts.
Kay's Favorites: Terra Tunic and Professional Tote
Kay's favorite sewing pattern is the Terra Tunic by Love Notions. She says when you need something cozy, warm, and easy to wear with everything, the Terra Tunic is a fabulous choice. It includes 6 neckline options (including a hoodie) and 4 sleeve lengths, plus optional welt pockets.
Her first choice for pre-teens and beginners would be the Runaround Bag by Lazy Girl Designs. It is very versatile and easily made larger or smaller. Students learn how to install a zipper and make a strap. What more could a girl want?
Her favorite intermediate bag pattern of all time is the Professional Tote by Creative Thimbles. She's made several versions of this tote and finds it's one of the most versatile bags you can make. She uses hers on a daily basis, and has used the pattern to make several diaper bags for new moms!
Sheri’s Favorites: Sallie Tomato Commuter Tote Bag & Lucky Stars Quilt
Sheri’s favorite beginner sewing project is the Sallie Tomato Commuter Tote Bag, because it’s roomy, stylish, and works really well with faux leather fabric. Her favorite quilt pattern for beginners is Lucky Stars; it’s another fat quarter friendly quilt in a classic sawtooth star motif.
Maren’s Favorites: Peg Legs Leggings & Blissful Quilt
For beginning garment sewing, Maren’s favorite is the Peg Legs Leggings pattern by Patterns for Pirates. The pattern is so easy and versatile—and wearable!
For beginning quilting, Maren really loved quilting the Blissful Quilt. It makes a nice-sized quilt and is a good pattern to learn new techniques without being completely confused or overwhelmed.
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