I really don't know what I am doing.
I do not have any machine quilting thread.
I do not have a walking foot.

That said. I thought I would practice, because a friend is going to show Sue and me how to make quilt-as-you-go blocks. I drew some lines and started stitching. It did not go as well as I had planned. I have to PULL the sandwich through the machine. (I do have a little plastic thing to go over the feed dogs). I try to go slowly. Not doing well. I try to turn to stay on the lines I drew. Not doing well there either.

Any suggestions?

Do you have a "needle down" position on your sewing machine? If not, just make sure needle is in the fabric when making turns. If you're just doing straight or semi-straight lines, you need to have the feed dogs up and engaged. You don't have to treat it like it's FMQ where you need to have the feed dogs down (or covered). Does that help?? :D

Are you using the darning foot it doesn't quite press the fabric down and you should be able to move it quite freely.

My machine is an older one that the needle stops up a lot, so I will pay better attention to that.

I am sewing curves that look like the repeated feather pattern that so many people like. I wonder if I should try a curve that is a little less "severe"??

It's just that the block seems so tough to get through the machine. I wonder if that plastic is making the area smaller....

Wonder if I should just invest in a walking foot.

It just has the foot that was on when it was bought. There are some plastic feet that I have never used.... Should I see if I can find the darning foot? (Do I have a darning foot?) :-)

With a walking foot you can only do gentle curves if you use an darning or embroidery foot you should be able to do it.

You don't need machine quilting thread to quilt; regular thread works fine.

Are you trying to do free motion quilting? Since you covered the feed dogs, I assume that's what you are trying to do. If so, you *must* have a "jumping" foot. Most people use the darning foot. This foot lifts up between each stitch to allow you to move the quilt sandwich. It sounds as if you are using your regular sewing foot. You can use a regular sewing foot to quilt (similar to using a walking foot, with the feed dogs up), but *not* to free motion quilt!

Most likely one of the plastic feet is a darning foot. Look for one that has a spring action on it. Holding it in one hand, you should be able to move the foot up and down with the other hand. That is because it has a spring in it.

If you have been using a regular foot to try to free motion quilt, that explains why you are having such difficulty moving the quilt sandwich.

I drew some lines on the block for something to follow. I think if I tried free motion it would look worse than this. It looks a tiny bit better than what I did yesterday, but still is very yucky.

I just checked the plastic feet, and they are all solid pieces. There are three and none have moving parts.

You need to get a darning foot for your machine if you want to free motion quilt. (Free motion quilting means you drop or cover the feed dogs and move the quilt sandwich around yourself.)

A walking foot works great for straight lines. To use a walking foot, though, you leave the feed dogs up or uncovered and let the machine feed the quilt. You can make gently curving lines with a walking foot by directing the quilt sandwich.

For tight curves, you need to use free motion (covered feed dogs and a darning foot).

Thanks for all of the info. I wonder how long it takes to get any good at this. I could revert to hand quilting them, but the whole idea, for me, was to (once in a while) get one done a bit quicker. :roll:

I think you are trying two different ways to machine quilt :wink:

Straight line and curves, leave the feed dogs up and you shouldn't have to pull the sandwich thru , also you can use a regular presser foot or the walking foot

FMQ you drop the feed dogs and use the Darning foot and then you move the fabric to match the speed of the needle

For me, the easiest way to machine quilt is to use a walking foot and make gently curving lines. A lot of people use a walking foot to stitch-in-the-ditch, but I find it makes me too anxious because it's hard to make it perfect enough to satisfy me! With curving lines, nobody knows if I'm a little off.

Free motion machine quilting takes some practice for most people. It's good to practice on utility quilts first (baby quilts are very good for this because babies don't care how perfect the quilting is!). It's important to spend this kind of practice time before trying to do it on a large important quilt.

In my opinion, it's well worth the investment to purchase a walking foot for your machine so you can machine quilt at least some of your quilts. It helps get them done, finished, and out of the way so you can start new quilts. :-D Free motion quilting is very popular, but it's not the only way to machine quilt!

Thanks to everyone. I am going to take the plastic cover off and see if there is any difference.

....a few minutes later. That makes a BIG difference. It still looks like a kid did it, but at least it is closer to the lines.

I want to thank you so much!!!

Oh, and Prism, I like what you said about babies don't care what it looks like. Made me smile. see..... :lol:

The darning foot on my machine doesnt have any spring. It is small and round,also called embroidery foot.

Thanks. I will look at them again.

This is what I was taught:
Walking foot = straight line or gentle curve sewing
Darning or jumping foot = free motion quilting

Harriet Hargrave wrote a very good book on heirloom quilting that covers the basics, including FMQ. When I took her class, if a mchine didn't have a "drop feed dog" switch or cover plate, she recommended punching a small hole in the middle of a business card, positioning the card with hole under the needle and taping it down with painter's tape. The card covers the feed dogs and the single hole helps prevent the fabric from getting squished down into the hole as the foot jumps.

Best of luck! It takes some practice but FMQ can be fun.

Did you lower the pressure on the foot? It's easy to forget that step! :-D

Sounds like you are on your way now. I'm glad you got so much help here. Aren't they a great group.

Yes, I had the pressure foot down. I was worried that this was part of the reason that I could not get the fabric to move very well. The plastic cover made that area smaller.

I have received good advice from many friends. I am glad I joined.

what kind of machine do you have?

Glad you got it going :thumbup:

Just keep trying. I just had to replace my walking foot, it was shot, I also use it as the foot I piece with because it feeds the pieces smoother. Anyway, it was only $29. I thought it was very reasonable. I sure helps feed the heavy quilt through the needle. I don't use it any more for quilting, I just use my darning foot for both freemotion and stitch in the ditch. It works really well for me. The rate of success for quilting is proportional to the amount of practice. So keep trying. you'll get better. It does become fun, and there is a lot of experimenting to do, trying new patterns, echoing, all kinds of fun stuff.
Lucinda

you only put the feed dog down if using the darning foot for free motion, when using a regular foot you need your feeddogs functioning, this helps move the fabric...you also keep them up with a walking foot, the walking foot keeps the top and bottom moving equally, if the feeddogs are down/ or covered, this does not allow this vital function to happen. i quilt on my machine with different feet all the time...but the feeddogs are a vital part of the process unless you are using the darning foot (which is round and does not hold the fabric down)and practice. you do need to put needle down before raising the pressure foot when turning but curves should be easy enough just going along, as long as your feeddogs are helping you along