4. Choose your prints wisely. If you are just starting out, you might want to avoid plain fabrics, said Bailey. "They stick out and they are very unforgiving." If seams don't match exactly or aren't quite straight, that will show up much more with plain fabrics.

Prints come in small, medium and large varieties, and again those are relative. Some people are intimidated by large prints, she said, but a lot also depends on the quilt pattern. Big prints work well for big pieces, but not as well for small pieces.

The same rule of thumb for values applies to print size: Start with 15 percent small prints, 70 percent medium prints and 15 percent large prints.

5. Let the experts help. If coming up with pleasing combinations is a struggle, there are ways to find help:

• Buy a kit. Many quilt stores sell patterns that come with the fabric needed to make them. All the choosing is done for you.

• Stick to one line. Fabric that is made by the same company for one line will generally go together and will still give you lots of choices.

• Buy bundles. You can find "jelly rolls," which are long strips of fabric that are packaged together, or "layer cakes," which are 40 10-inch squares that are put together. These fabrics all coordinate with each other and can be used in a variety of ways. In fact, Bailey's newest book contains a variety of patterns for layer-cake quilts.

Many quilt stores also put together packets of fat quarters that combine well together.

• Match to an object or accessory. Bailey has made quilts that used the same colors as a favorite painting. You can match to a piece of furniture, a pillow, even a favorite piece of clothing.

• Check the selvage. Many print fabrics have color dots along the selvage. Those are all the dyes that were used in that print. Using that as your focus fabric, you can match other fabrics to the colors of the dots.

• Match a product package or box. "Take a cereal package, for example. They have professional artists who design those; they know what works together."

6. Experiment. Sometimes you have to try things to see if they work. Make one block. Audition fabrics for sashing and borders by laying blocks on them and stepping away to look.

And if you get things done and are not quite happy with them? Well, as one of the class members said, "There are always places to donate quilts."

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E-mail: carma@desnews.com