I quilt, and I love it.  

This Autumn Leaves quilt was commissioned by my mother-in-law for her daughter (who lives in QLD)  It is a king size plus.  Although the leaf blocks are commonly available it is otherwise my own design or setting.  It is heavily quilted in a modern style.  Once again I have put together ideas from You Tube and books into my own quilting design.  Thread is a 40 weight in a colour that matches the background. The quilt has a single layer of pure wool batting (no scrim) it is cold machine washable, although colour catchers are advisable.

What advice can I give?

A  backing, yes you will need backing!

Quilting your top involves a number of important decisions.

Firstly; edge to edge/ pantograph or custom (I don’t do edge to edge/pantograph quilting so you will need a different quilter for them)

Secondly; light, medium or heavy quilting 
Thirdly; style of quilting 
Fourthly: colour and type of thread
Fifthly: batting or wadding

I will discuss 2-5 and try to help you feel confident that your quilt top will look and feel the way you want.

Oh and it is a very good idea to have thought about backing.

There are options;
1.  The old favourite- seamed standard fabric
2.  The new favourite- wide back fabric 
3.  A modern favourite- a specialist fabric, for picnicking you will want a tougher fabric, perhaps a light canvas, while for cuddling up you may want an acrylic, like the scarf/jumper or toy fabric which is incredibly soft.

An example of heavy quilting.