Sew a sweet heirloom baby quilt!

This Instructable is for a crib-sized baby quilt, approximately 40x50", fashioned in a 100 year old or so 'hole in the barn door' pattern with a twist.

I consider myself a novice quilter, but have picked up some great tips and tricks over several years of sporadic quilting. I will show you that a beginner can turn out a beautiful, heirloom-quality baby or lap quilt that will be treasured and enjoyed for years to come. This start-to-finish Instructable even includes a video on the finer points of stippling (the method of machine quilting I used). video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9Hv1qNlyxk

Thank you for reading my Instructable! I hope you like it.

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Step 1: Gather Your Supplies.

I assembled the fabrics I wanted included in this quilt. I had about 2 1/2-3 metres of the neutral beige (and used it for backing and binding) as well as half a metre of the red polka and the turquoise I used for borders. I used 8 different fabrics in 12 quilt blocks, so I had a couple of duplicates. I used a combination of fat quarters that I had purchased, as well as fabric from my stash that went well with the turqoise/red/vintage-y feel I was going for. I fell in love with the turquoise ric-rac in the store and almost built the quilt around it.

As far as colour choice goes, try to pick one neutral, as well as some others that will pop. You can certainly go mono-chromatic, but you will lose the 'barn door' effect. With a traditional pattern, I tended to stick with a traditional palette. Be sure to choose a bold or complimentary border that will 'frame' the quilt. I had hints of red here and there, so chose the red polka dot as my border.

Fabrics don't have to cost you an arm and a leg. It's great fun to buy it off the bolt, but that adds up quick. You can easily get close to a metre of useable fabric from a men's XXL button down shirt for a buck or two at the thrift store. They are often 100% cotton as well, and if you look for brand names, you can get quality cotton, not just flimsy, lightweight stuff. Don't forget to stroll the ladies' clothes too...a XXL cotton skirt in a flowery, summery print may be in just the colour scheme you're looking for.

Other essentials for this project: sewing machine, cotton or polyester quilt batting (poly will bear repeated washings well), coordinating thread, pins, scissors, rotary cutter, mat & ruler, iron & board and handy but not essential is the water-soluble marker. In the end, I have quilted this quilt with a darning foot on my sewing machine. You can also quilt by hand, tie your quilt (more on that later) or you can quilt with the regular foot on your machine as well.