Rag Quilts

Thanks for asking this question. I had never heard of this before and now I really want to try it!
About.com says the best fabrics are quilting cottons, flannels, and homespuns, but don't use polyester blends.
http://quilting.about.com/od/ragquiltpatterns/ss/rag_quil...

I'm not in your area but try your local high school adult education classes. I use all cotton fabrics in my quilting projects. If it is new fabric it helps to wash it first before cutting and sewing.

the ones I made that I liked the most, the fabric that ragged the best were the cottons and as far as softness, the flannel works good and is still easy to sew. I had started a quilt with some thick fleece....but it got so thick my old sewing machine wouldn't sew it. The quilts are so easy to make, that I taught myself. I did look up some instructions online and found some help for the questions I had. I wouldn't go with anything smaller than a 6" square for a beginner...
Good luck! These things are fun to make!

I recycle old clothes we don't use any more to put in quilts, I've used denim, knit, cotton, tshirts
they make nice quilts

I've never really read up on it, but I had the same idea but a little different.
I'm going to use my son's old pajamas and clothes that are otherwise rags and cut out all the cute little patterns and sew them into a quilt. I plan on doing the same thing for my daughter, too. :)
Good luck, and have fun!