I had the same problem when I was FMQ'ing black on black. Drove me nuts! My solution was to take a piece of colored WASHABLE chalk which i gently rubbed against the quilt top. It breaks the color up just enough that I could see my stitching. It is a bit dusty to work with but it worked for me. Washed the quilt top afterwards and every bit of chalk was gone! Very important to use washable chalk...and do a sample piece, of course. Hope that helps!