We've been taught all our lives to share - share toys, share money, share food. Why not share your quilting knowledge? You can start a quilting business by sharing what you know about quilting.

You don't have to be a veteran quilter with 50 years of sewing experience to have sound advice to share, either. If you have quilted for a month, you know more about quilting than someone picking up a needle and thread for the first time. Your quilting business can inform novice quilters of the basics.

Your most basic quilting information could teach some important skills. A lot of wannabe quilters won't even start a quilting project because the chore of selecting appropriate fabrics seems like such a daunting task. Maybe you could start quiltinb business based on a member-based website that offers tips to beginners. You could also start your quilting business with an old-fashioned paper printed newsletter that you mail out monthly or quarterly to beginning quilters. Some topics could be selecting a quilt pattern, selecting fabrics, threads, etc.

Of course, the longer you quilt, the more information you can share with your subscribers. But you sharing information is not the only kind of quilting business you can start.

If you are like most quilters or crafters, you have a lot of leftover fabrics taking up storage space! You could start a quilting business that concentrates on selling your fabric leftovers (and just think how much fun it would be to spend the money you make on new fabric)!

Maybe you could start a quilting business by developing a quilters consignment store online. People could hire you to sell their leftover fabric, threads and other notions.

If you love quilts, but haven't ever quilted and are afraid to try, you can still start a quilting business. You could coordinate quilters retreats for others. You can make arrangements at a local hotel or bed and breakfast to get great room rates for any overnight guests. Reserve a location, plan a few games, prepare snacks, whatever the quilters need you to do. They'll benefit because they got a retreat without having to do a lot of the work and you will benefit by being around quilters and quilting. Maybe you'll even be encouraged to start your own quilt project!

The two ideas that usually come to mind when people think about starting a quilting business are to sell quilts or to provide a quilting service for tops that have already been pieced. Both are good ideas.

If you choose to sell quilts, you have a lot of options. You could sell only appliqué quilts (or pieced quilts, or baby quilts, etc.). You could sell them online, through a small newspaper ad (or word of mouth since that's free), or at area craft shows. If you decide to sell quilts at craft shows, try taking a quilt project along with you to work on in between browsing customers. When shoppers see you working on a project, it draws their interest more keenly to your work which will hopefully lead to a sell.

Don't let lack of experience be an obstacle between you and your quilting business. Your quilting business can grow right along with your quilting skill level. All you really need to start a quilting business is a love for the art and a desire to succeed - you don't even need a lot of money. If you've been thinking about starting a quilting business, decide today to do it. You'll be glad you did!