I think I read in a QB newsletter that if you practice a design everyday for 3 weeks, you'll have it down pretty good. That's what I've been doing and can see a big difference. I finished my second quilt top and want to do the whole thing myself, but is applique with Large open spaces- I want to do bubbles there since the quilt is whimsical. It's much easier to do a confined space instead of this, but it's the look I want and just don't want to mess it up too bad. I'm determined not to work on another one until I get confident enough to tackle it! Practice practice and a lot of reading. I practiced on paper first.