FMQ practice
 

Hello ladies. I was just able to finally log in on the board, it wasn't accepting my user name or password either one. Spend three days playing with it. Hurray!!!! I'm back. Does anyone know of a good way to practice free motion quilting without wasting a lot of scraps and fabric. I am trying to do a Judy Neimeyer quilt and really want to practice a lot before quilting this one.

Try www.daystyledesigns.com. Leah Day walks us through FMQ. It will take a lot of practice, so maybe you can make placemats or potholders so you don't waste much. There are also many free videos on Youtube and you will get lots of wonderful suggestions from everyone here. Good luck, and remember, it takes practice, practice, practice and then more practice.

you have to put together quilt sandwiches together & practice in order to practice- I usually buy inexpensive muslin from joannes & on sale or with a coupon batting- or use scraps- load up, use a dark thread so you can see what you are doing & practice, practice, practice. i've had some pretty cool practice quilts come out. sometimes i zigzag the edges & donate them to the local animal shelter- a few of them my granddaughter's have claimed- they use fabric markers, pencils or paint & decorate them & use them for play quilts- forts, picnics, what ever...don't think of it as (wasting) materials- practice is necessary in order to become (good) a person can't just sit down at a piano & play a concerto with out some practice.

Make a practice sandwich & do some sample stitching. When the sandwich is all quilted, change thread color in top and bobbin, put another piece of fabric right on the top of the sandwich and practice again.

Water soluble thread is what I'm thinking of trying on a fmq practice sampler, that way I can wet it and re-use it.

I did a lot of practice "doodling" with paper and pencil. It allowed me to gain a lot of control and eye hand control. Any and all practice will make a difference.
D

Great idea! ..... I wonder, how the cost of water soluble is in comparison to regular thread?

PLUS ... what happens when you do a really good job, and say, I want to keep that one!! :)

I was told to start doodling with pencil and paper, then move to paper on the machine with an old dull needle, then to try FMQ on small sandwiches. I've tried some of each, not necessarily in that order. Then I moved up to baby size/lap quilts. Then bigger quilts.

I use fabric sandwiches and thread that I don't have much left. I don't consider it a waste - it is necessary practice! You could always sew the sandwiches together and donate the finished product to an animal shelter.

I took a Craftsy class and the instructor suggested using muslin and inexpensive batting for practicing sandwiches. Then once we feel comfortable with it, make a reference pad divided up into several different blocks. I think she had 18. Then do different styles in each block.