What you need to start quilting
Wadding, backing, safety pins, a walking foot or hand-quilting needles, and binding fabric.
- Wadding (batting): cotton is flat and soft and crinkles after washing; polyester is light, washes well and is puffier; wool is warm and light. An 80/20 cotton-polyester mix is a popular all-rounder.
- Backing fabric a few inches bigger than the top on every side.
- Curved safety pins or basting spray to hold the layers.
- For machine quilting: a walking foot, which feeds all the layers evenly.
- For hand quilting: short 'between' needles, quilting thread and a thimble.
- Binding fabric, usually cut in 2.5 inch strips.
Bobbin's tip
Some cotton wadding shrinks a little when washed; check the pack and pre-wash if you want a flat finish.
Some cotton wadding shrinks a little when washed; check the pack and pre-wash if you want a flat finish.
Watch
Quilting for Beginners: Essential Techniques | Quilting Tutorial (2:12)
By Craftsy · Open on YouTube
Chosen from its title and channel: a 2-minute video from Craftsy on the same topic as this guide. Embedded from YouTube with credit; we don't host it. It only loads when you press play.
All guides ›Quilting
Sources
All checked 1 November 2026. We read these; we did not test the products ourselves.