thimblebug6000

Another quilter who has some good advice is Jamie Wallen. I have used some of his suggestions for my home sewing machine, and I am definitely a beginner level at FMQ

yngldy

Congrats on your new toy! Just relax, and have fun. After all, it is just a machine!
I saw this video and got inspired. It really fires you up and shows that you CAN do it. http://karensquiltscrowscardinals.blogspot.com/

quiltsRfun

I practiced on fat quarters. Then I turned those fat quarters into zipper pouches and gave them to friends and family. They didn't seem to mind that my quilting was less than perfect. I also keep muslin on hand to sandwich with batting scraps for warm up and practicing new designs.

Check out APQS tutorials on YouTube. There are lots of other videos there too if you do a search.

sewbizgirl

Oops, I called her 'Angela Walters' and it's Waters, not Walters...

One thing that will help you more than anything with your movements is to get a doodle pad and draw the kinds of shapes and movements you like. Meander on a few sheets of doodle pad with a marker. In fact, before I try any new design I always doodle it out first to gain my confidence. There isn't a lot of time to think about where you are going next while FMQing, so practice by doodling to get your design set in your head and hands first.

mario1360

lots of videos here...https://quiltingtutorials.com/tutorials?q=fmq

mscoco07

Wow, this is soooo helpful. Off to check out the teachers!

luvspaper

Totally agree with doodling! I also like to take a picture of my flimsy and then draw directly on it to practice patterns and to test them (I hate frogging -- rippit! rippit!)

GEMRM

Tons of great advice and helpful hints here, I would add:

-Handiquilter has some great videos/tutorials and

- You can put a strip of newsprint or thick packing paper as if it was your quilt by taping it to the end arms of your frame. Then you can tape a marker to the area beside your needle and "practise" free motion quilting.
There is a device you can buy that is meant for similar practise but this is cheaper!

Here is the link to the device so you can get the general idea:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TD6AErE386g

Good luck, and enjoy!

Sheep Farmer

LOTS of good advice here!
I've found what works best for me was to watch as many of the videos as I could and then just practice, practice, practice. I had a lot of old shirts that I cut up and used those for my quilt sandwich to practice. I mostly do squiggles and I try to relax and I just don't care about being perfect cuz in the end no one is going to examine every stitch.

The main thing is to relax and take your time. I don't like to stitch too close so the quilting usually goes pretty fast.

Enjoy!

bneuen

These are some of my favorites as well. The class that made me attempt feathers is the Cindy Needham class. I did a small wall hanging and surprised myself. I keep trying :-)