There’s a moment every aspiring quilter knows: standing in front of a pile of beautiful fabric, heart full of inspiration, and wondering: where do I even begin? If you’ve been drawn to the painterly, artistic world of collage quilting, I have wonderful news for you. Getting started is more approachable than you might think, and there’s more than one beautiful path to your first finished piece.

At Collage Quilter, I offer two distinct methods for creating fabric art: parchment pressing patterns and foundation panel patterns. Both are equally beginner-friendly. The difference isn’t about skill level, it’s about project size, time commitment, and what excites you most right now. Let’s explore both so you can choose the path that calls to your creative spirit.

Parchment pressing is a fabric collage technique that creates stunning textile art—no quilting required. It’s an intimate, meditative process of building a fabric collage piece by piece, and the results are breathtaking.

Here's how it works:

• Your pattern comes with a template that includes a gray-tone value guide. You trace this template onto a sheet of parchment paper (same baking paper you’d use in your kitchen. Parchment paper is the perfect surface because it’s nonstick and heat resistant).
• You prepare your fabric with Lite Steam-A-Seam 2, a fusible web adhesive that allows fabric pieces to bond together when pressed.
• Following the value guide in your template, you cut small pieces of fabric and begin placing them directly onto the parchment paper.
• The first few pieces won’t stick perfectly because parchment is nonstick by design! A mini wand iron is helpful for pressing those initial pieces into place. But as you build your collage, the pieces begin to adhere to each other.
• Once your collage is complete, you press all the pieces firmly together. They bond into a single textile piece that you can peel right off the parchment~ like a beautiful fabric sticker!
• You then get to audition it against different background fabrics to find the perfect pairing. You can use your own fabric or choose one of my custom-designed background panels.

Choose parchment pressing if:

• You’d love to start with a smaller, quicker project
• You want to explore the technique before committing to a larger piece
• You’d prefer to skip quilting for your first project
• You love the idea of creating textile art that can stand on its own

Choose foundation panel quilting if:

• You’re ready to create a full-size quilted artwork right away
• You’re excited about the quilting process
• You want to create something larger and more expansive
• You're feeling confident in your collage abilities

There is no wrong choice. Many collage artists start with a parchment pressing project to get comfortable with the technique, then move on to foundation panels as their confidence grows. Others dive straight into a foundation panel quilt because a larger creative challenge is exactly what excites them. Trust your instincts, they’ll guide you to the right starting place!

Regardless of which method you choose, the basic supply list is simple:

• A Collage Quilter pattern of your choice (or download our free mushroom pattern to try the technique first!)
• Fabric in a variety of colors and values
• Lite Steam-A-Seam 2 fusible web adhesive
• An iron and pressing surface
• Scissors (I like Karen K Buckley 6” scissors)
• For parchment pressing: a mini wand iron and parchment paper
• For foundation panel quilting: a sewing machine for quilting and binding