I jumped in feet first when it came to FMQ. I made 6 lap quilts one year for Christmas and I was not about to send to the LAQ, so I decided to figure out how to FMQ. By the end of that year, my FMQ was not to bad. Just meandering, but that is all I wanted anyway. It has been about 6 years since I did that and have not quilted in about 2 to 3 years. Started back up this summer and now I am in the process of FMQ a lap quilt. I was rusty but it is coming back. Best advice, relax as much as possible when doing it, practice on some pieces and enjoy :D