When I first got my LA I used got a big piece of felt from the fabric store and loaded that. I Practiced, practiced and practiced on that. I think every inch is covered. It is really inexpensive and gets your muscle memory going. I keep that piece not just to see how far I've come but every once in a while I see a pattern I did that inspires me for the piece I am doing now. I agree about using two very different colors of thread so that you can see how your tension is doing. I would also get a couple of different brands of thread and try them out because some machines are a little temper mental with certain threads. What machine did you get????