I think practice is important, just so you have a feel for moving the quilt at the right speed and keeping the stitch length fairly uniform. I usually use a hoop and start in the middle. I pin bast which seems to work fine. With the hoop I can make sure that the sandwich is tight and I don't have any folds in the backing. It is also a lot easier on my hands to hold onto the hoop than trying to just move the quilt with my hands. Most of my quilting is FM thread play on pictorial, so I am changing thread constantly to blend colors. Having the quilt in a hoop also helps keep everything stabilized when I am changing tread. But the biggest advantage of the hoop is how much easier it is on my hands (I have arthritis.)