Laurajbr

I am new as well, and my advice is all of the above from the experienced folks and good music. It takes a lot of practice. Mary J. Blige, Pink and Van Morrison are my quilting buddies.

coffeecozy

I started with shapes that I would doodle on paper if I were talking on the phone. They will be the easiest ones to make.
I go slow the first few stitches and gradually increase speed to make smoother lines.
I do my stitch in the ditch, free motion. I did it at first to practice straight lines and it gave me lots of time to get a feel for a working speed when I fmq. It's pretty good too. I really have to look hard to find out if I've ditched a seam now.
I make a nest around the needle. That makes the spot that I'm stitching light and easy to move around and the rest of the quilt is safely out of the way.
Relax and enjoy learning.

ManiacQuilter2

When FMQ, look to where you are going, not where the needle is. Fine a comfortable speed that you can hit it and learn the speed at which your sewing machine would move the fabric. Match the movement of the machine with that same speed. That is what Harriet Hargrave taught me back when I took a class from her in the 90s. She has an excellent book called "Heirloom Machine Quilting". I don't know what edition is out now. I bought her third edition and still refer to it today.

tessagin

I've been practicing zig zag as a sub for SITD. Also a wavy line along the seams to give a different effect. Having a ball with the different stitches and cams on my 401. Practice doesn't always make perfect but makes it better. I don't go for perfection only better.

Sewnoma

For SITD, I use a foot that has a blade/guide in the center to help keep me on track - on my machine I have a built-in walking foot so I can use that blade/guide foot with the walking foot; you may have to pick between a walking foot or a non-walking blade foot; experiment to see what works best for you! I usually set my needle so it's just to the side of the seam, but sometimes I go for the seam itself. (I always miss my mark in some spots no matter what but that's OK, I quilt for family and friends and they'll never notice. And each quilt is just a little bit better than the last!)

Main thing, I think, is don't be afraid or dismayed by mistakes or by needing to go slow. I see some of these videos of people doing beautiful quilting at 100 miles an hour and they make it look effortless...these are people who have practiced a LOT. It's kind of awkward to manage the quilt fabric and you're bound to screw up a lot on your first couple of quilts so be ready for that and don't worry if you're not instantly an expert. Keep at it and you'll keep getting better and better.

I second (or third) the quilting gloves...they really do make a BIG difference for me. I've tried the "halo", I've tried rubbery fingertip covers, I've tried hand-held grippers and for me gloves work the best by far, but you should experiment with that as much as possible too. You can buy quilting gloves (and I do love my Machingers) but any gloves with grippy fingers will work, like gardening or mechanic's gloves.

I used to dread quilting because I was sure I was about to ruin each quilt at that stage, but now I'm finding it's becoming one of my favorite parts of the process! I'm still pretty bad at FMQ but gosh it's fun to do!

Making yourself a nice new set of potholders is a great way to practice quilting, by the way.

Quiltngolfer

I'm a Lori Kennedy fan too, inbox Jaunt. She has great, easy ideas for FMQ. I am learning now too, and I just finished a mini quilt. This is the first time I have ever done a satisfactory piece, at least satisfactory to me. I have made many practice sandwiches on muslin. I decided to make pretty little quilts out of 3 fat quarters. They can be used by my DGDs and they won't mind the imperfections. I was always told it would click someday, and it did. I used my Janome 8900, Machingers gloves, and I adjusted the speed to medium slow. I did the little clam shell pattern.

KalamaQuilts

I did/do a lot of practice work on panels. there are usually sections so you can try different techniques, and they are easy to move around.

I usually use warm and natural batt. when the panel is quilted out I run a row around the edge, call it bound and drop them in the doggie basket.

huskyquilter

I am a total newbie as well, and I'm working on a twin size quilt. There are a couple things I've gathered from tutorials, this board, and my own screw-ups that have been a pretty big help from when I started, vs. where I am now (about 80% done quilting.

1. Gloves - A huge help!

2.. Speed - I learned that my sewing machine has a half speed setting. This has helped a ton because my random over-excitement or foot spasms don't end up causing a huge problem. If you can set your machine speed to limit itself it will help.

3. Triceps - yep. They exist... Quilting will make you painfully away of that fact.

4. Music or tv - this one helps me a lot. I have a pretty bad case of ADD and if I find my mind wandering it's usually followed by veering off course. So, I found it really helps to have pandora or netflix streaming in the background. Keeps that restlessness focused. Music is the best for me because it also somehow manages to help sync up my hand, eye, foot, coordination.

5. Bulkiness - the quilt will create drag as your sewing, so find a way to limit the drag. I manage this by having the dog crate right against my sewing table and it helps take some of the pressure off. I was having all kinds of problems with skipping stitches, and I realized it was the drag of the quilt, once I dealt with the weight, things got a lot smoother.

6. Go easy on yourself and yes, PRACTICE! My first attempt at fmq, literally first, was a table runner I was going to give my mom for Christmas. It was a grey/white/yellow color scheme, and I decided to try to fmq grey trees on part of the white fabric. Wow. Those 'trees' could only be described as drunken. I also marked with a chalk pencil, then ironed and it didn't wash out... So, mom got an outfit from banana republic instead.

AlvaStitcher

I just took a class yesterday at one of the LQS on FMQ. Before going to the shop I put one color thread in top and another color thread in bobbin. That way I could see if the tension was correct and/or adjust the tension as needed. RELAX. Try not to keep your shoulder muscles tensed up or it will be very tiring. Listening to books on tape or to music helps me to relax. Have fun with it. I had already been doing stippling and meandering. Yesterday I concentrated on trying out feathers. LOL What a hoot! But I must say that the more I tried it, the better they were getting to be. Not great yet but I have started! Nothing to fear but fear itself. Practice is necessary. The teacher said about 25 hours of practice is needed to become familiar with FMQ

shy

Too start ..I feel in the ditch to be too nerve racking..Try the loops or circles or meander of all sizes..this gives you the space to get the feel of the machine and your speed and etc..Doing small sandwiches is a whole different thing than moving a big quilt around .If u are using a regular sewing machine..So be prepare to mess up some..we all do..and gloves make moving the quilt much easier..don't let your quilt hang over anyway..as the pull will make moving the quilt harder..I bunch mine up around where I am quilting..then smooth the area where I am working..There is much starting and stopping to adjust the quilt..In the ditch even more so..If u want it to be completely straight..Think about the other I suggested .I think u will enjoy doing it more this way until u feel at ease with doing it ..whatever..u decide..main thing is enjoy..