i just bought a pair of garden gloves at wal mart with the ribbed rubber on the palm side, for $4.98 compared to the $30.00 for the stippling gloves, they work great. and ya know what, my jaws hurt when i'm stippling, i guess i try to chew my gum as fast as the machine is going, doesn't work.

I have recently gotten into free motion...and have been practicing with sandwhiches every evening. Soon I will take the plunge also. Can't wait to hear how it is going for you. What type of machine are you using?

One of the best ways to improve your quilting skills is to practice on a charity quilt. In our area Project Linus is big and the suggested dimensions of the quilt are small. This is a great way to practice your quilting and do something good for your community at they same time.

What I've done to improve my skills is to do small projects like place mats. I purchase fat quarters on sale at Joann's and buy a king size roll of Hobbs cotton batting at Michael's when I have a coupon. I use Golden Threads paper and trace a design on the paper. I always get better results if I have something to follow. It makes for cheap practice pieces and I feel like I'm working on a project rather than just doodling around. Place mats are easy to handle on the sewing machine and you can finish them quickly. I've made place mats for just about every occasion, and I can look back and see the progress that I've made.

:roll:

Please let me know how it came out & what you did. if you could email me at [email protected]. Thank You .. Shirley

Oh it so intimidating but once you start you can't stop. It is a whole new area of quilting to be excited, thrilled and scared about. (I just finished my first one after procrastinating for several years.) I took a class from Harriet Hargrave last September/October and she gave me the confidence to DO
IT.

I felt just like you did until I took Jill Schumacker's machine quilting class. It took 3 different classes and I finally did it. The first quilt wasn't exactly something to brag about but my next one was. A lot of stitching in the ditch really helped me.

Ginger S :)

It sure doesn't take long to get tired from the poor posture and the irregular breathing! After a fat quarter practice sandwich, I'm spent. Also, with the stippling toward the end of the sandwich I losing my focus and some sloppy things happen. Still trying to get the backing stitch be more consistent in it's look. I'm taking a class Saturday afternoon for home sewing machine free motion quilting and they will also teach us how to bind the piece we do in class. Will post that.

I am still learning how to FMQ and was trying last night. A word of advice - slow down and keep your thumbs out of the way!! :oops: It doesn't feel good to sew into your thumb! Been there and now have done it! Oh well when you fall off the horse you have to get right back on again! Sew to the machine I go!