I'm just learning as well and all my friends keep saying is Practice, Practice, Practice! :P I actually got a great tip from a friend who said she made about a hundred place mats for the kitchen table and pot holders to practice on. Not only did she get in a bunch of practice and become fairly proficient before ever sewing on one of her own quilts, she also had all her Christmas gifts taken care of for the year. Now that is practical! :lol: I ignored everyone and went and bought some cute panels, like the kind with Christmas nativity scenes and one that has cute lambs all over it. I have four or five of them now and I'm planning to sandwich them and then simply free motion along the already drawn lines. That and I actually bought a yard of fabric that has various pre-printed quilting lines all over it. It is made specifically to help with free motion quilting. When I bought it the gal said to first sew it without any thread, just allowing the needle to punch down into the fabric and come up empty. This will allow me to get used to the motion and how it feels to free motion quilt before I use the panel up. It has everything from feathers to stipple to clamshells and about eight other designs. Now if I could just find the right box (we moved a couple months ago) I can get started. :lol:
Piece ~ Tiffany