(1) ACCURATE Cutting, (2) followed by the ever elusive, CONSISTENT, quarter inch seam...(sigh..), (3) followed by Pressing and not ironing, which will distort my project, and (4) well matched seam intersections....(5) mostly have fun! There are a lot of charities to send your practice projects to...like the Humane Society...(great to practice your FM quilting, then whack it up into little quilties for kitties and dogs to sleep on, and bind the bunch of them! (a small quilt to keep a kitten off of the cage grate is most appreciated by an unspoken recipient!) And you have gotten lots of FM quilting practice!