Oh no, please don't give up! It's just that your waves are too even and going on top of the grass. It would look good if you outline the "stuff" in the bowl then do a few uneven waves in the water part, going into the smaller spaces too. I agree about marking the waves first.

Actually I had drawn lines on parchment paper. It was very difficult to stay on them though, while trying to get the bulk through the throat of the machine.

Not trying to discourage you with machine quilting, but I find I am so much more successful with hand quilting also. I get in a hurry and think, "I'll just machine quilt this little project." But 'til I sandwich and baste together, then try to figure out what I can successfully do for machine quilting (my fmq is horrible, so has to be straight or gently curving lines with a walking foot), I am most often convinced it's worth a little extra time to hand quilt. (I use a floor frame that does not require basting.) So, whatever works for you...

I'm with you there. All the problems I hear people talking about with machine quilting, puckers, bird nests, etc.

I am a hand quilter who keeps trying to machine quilt. I have finally decided that the whole machine quilting process is just not for me..tends to take the relaxation aspect out of it. I just finished hand-quilting a lap-size quilt doing "big stitch" and I was amazed how quickly it moved along. I will continue doing my traditional hand quilting on my special quilts, but for all others, it's big stitch for me.

Good advice from Maniac. Draw in the lines you want to quilt and GO! Just don't quilt over leaves, stems, etc.

I started out as a hand quilter until I got arthritis in my hands. I quilted a couple of quilts with my walking foot with mostly straight lines and I was not happy. I took classes on a long arm quilter in Orlando and I realized that you have to know how to draw your design before you can make your machine do what you want. The best advice I learned was to buy a sheet of glass (part of an old coffee table top), tape the edges with blue painter's tape, use a dry erase marker and keep drawing and erasing until you know how to draw the pattern. I then bought 5 yards of muslin, made a sandwich and I practiced making designs on my sewing machine. Draw some lines to begin with if this will help you but practice, practice, practice is what makes FMQ enjoyable.