sewingsuz

Every time I try to FMQ I don't do very good. I always ask my self. "Do You have to be a little good at drawing and if you are not does that mean you can never do it? I think use of a stencil marked is harder than if it were just free motion. Am I right about this. When I watch a you tube for example , just stipelling it looks so easy and they are just moving so graceful.

Dolphyngyrl

I on't think FMQ is harder freehand than a stencil. I think its just practice. I can't draw but my FMQ does not look bad after lots of practice. I think stencils make it easier if you can't draw. I also do not find stippling or freehand easy

Dolphyngyrl

It does help to draw your design on paper before you FMQ it

sewingsuz

Thank you dolphyngyrl. I have drawn feathers and stippling on paper but it does not seam to go in my brain.

Vitality

I would break it down into smaller steps and when comfortable with each step of a design then put it together to make more complex designs. This Quilt Along from 2012 with Leah Day is really good for getting going with FMQ.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...1F4B76430BB141

katier825

I found that stippling was harder when starting out than it was to do loops, curls, stars, hearts. It gets better with practice.

Tartan

I use white chalk for marking my feather spines but do the rest freehand. Trying to follow lines for quilting is more difficult for me. I use designs that I have practiced and can do without drawing. A way to start FMQ is to pick a shape you can do easily. One of my first was the stars that you learned to draw in grade school with loops between to move around the quilt.
I really like the Tuesday tutorial done by Lori Kennedy and she quilts between lines or marked points. Her site is www.theinboxjaunt.com/

Doggramma

I agree loopy designs are easier for beginners (well...after straight or wavy lines of course). When I first started FMQ I actually bought a stippling stencil! It didn't really help me that much. What I eventually realized is that it gets better after hours of doing it. It's part training your hand/eye/brain coordination and part learning what works for machine speed/hand moving speed.

Becky's Crafts

Are you using the darning foot to FMQ or the walking foot? If you're having that much trouble following lines I'd check to make sure my feed dogs were down too. The darning foot is great for following curvy, loopy lines & the walking foot is good for straight lines. I haven't had the troubles you seem to be having, but I've tried doing FMQ several different ways. If I find a design I like & want to try, but am not sure of myself, I make it fit the area, print a copy of it & sew over it as though I were doing paper piecing. No marks on the quilt, so no one knows if it's not perfect! It's also good for getting the muscle memory down for a certain design. I have used stencils to mark my quilts before & I do some meandering, stippling & the like.

PaperPrincess

When learning to FMQ on my domestic machine, practicing by drawing only went so far. My brain didn't connect a moving-the-pen motion of drawing with the moving-the-paper motion of FMQ. What it did do, however, was help me to figure out where to go next so you don't quilt yourself into a corner and if you do, you know how to get out.
I cut a bunch of squares of batting & muslin and practiced. After a couple of initial sessions, I picked the design that was my easiest and best and concentrated only on that one until I got it down. After feeling comfortable with the first design, I slowly added more. Personally, I never could follow a stenciled pattern very well, and never was able to do loops. After you are sure you've got your tension sorted, you can just keep putting a new piece of fabric on top of a used sandwich & quilt again.
I'm sure there are naturals who just sit down & do it, but for most folks, it just takes a LOT of practice.