jokir44

Ladies, I'm going to give you the best advise I can on learning to FMQ. Go to Facebook. There is a group called Sit down Free Motion Quilting. My machine is a Juki 2010q, not a sit down. Doesn't matter. Jeanne Harrison started this group and just passed a few weeks ago but all her classes are still there and will stay. Our moderators are pushing forward. She was an excellent and kind teacher. She explains things so plainly. Do yourself a favor and check out her site. One day I was practicing and took a break, came back, looked at my work and thought, well damn, when did I start improving?

AprilM

I can certainly relate to all of the above! About 15 years ago I started floundering around just trying to teach myself FMQ cuz I didn’t know anyone to teach me or show me how - but i really wanted to do it!

At some point in the first couple of years I found the DVDs by Patsy Thompson and I was hooked! For a long time all I could manage was the stippling (like puzzle pieces) and concentrated on trying real hard not to keep “painting myself into a corner” (who doesn’t know that one?). Like others, all of a sudden I must have started to relax a little and things got a lot better - shocked the heck outta myself! Graduated into flowers, etc - and ended up teaching what I knew and what worked for me.

All of these years later I still love FMQ and even though I got a little rusty from too many hours at work and too few hours in the sewing room, I am happy to report that the muscle memory does come back!

For many years I was convinced that I wanted a standup longarm with all the bells and whistles but decided against it due to lack of room at home that could be dedicated to it (not to mention the price tag - but believe me, if I was sold on the idea I would have figured out a way!). But something just kept holding me back.

With retirement coming in to focus in about 3 years, I again thought about a longarm. But, to my surprise - the more thought I gave to the idea, the more I realized how much I really love FMQ. Last October I found the perfect solution - I bought a sitdown longarm that fits perfectly in my sewing room and didn’t give my husband heartburn with the price tag when I floated the trial balloon about my decision! Now I’m getting all of those tops quilted and having a ball! With all of the extra harp room it’s so much more relaxing, and now I’m starting to branch out into all kinds of flowers and plan to try feathers soon. I am so happy I kept at the FMQ until I loved it! I’m also happy that I didn’t make the mistake (for me - not anyone else here) of forging ahead and getting the standup longarm that I now know I would not have been happy with in the longrun. Which is not to say that I don’t enormously admire anyone here who is much better suited to such a wonderful setup... I just know that wasn’t the right move for me.

I am definitely going to check out that Facebook site that jokir44 just posted about!

tranum

Looking forward to my class on FMQ at the LQS on Saturday !
I practice on two squares with batting between. Then I make the square into a potholder & when I get a sackful, I give it to a local charity that helps people set up households with dishes, furniture etc.

hobbykat1955

I think it does have allot to do w/machine. I'm not a FM'er but every once in a while on a small landscape I give a try and I'm always surprised "not so bad" But I find the only machine I do well on is my Vintage Singer 301. I've tried on my newer machines and ugh...seem to have no control. I just bought a Husq Epic with a 12 inch throat and haven't given it a try on it yet...Hope it works out for the few times I do FM.

Battle Axe

So, Marion, what kind of machine did you get?

SusieQOH

Thanks for the tip about the Facebook group. I have the same machine.

bneuen

One of the biggest challenges I have on free motion quilting is knowing what patterns or designs I want to put into the quilt. My FMQ is doing better but I am challenged with the design aspect. Thanks for the encouragement.

Stitchnripper

So true. I enjoy it and it does take practice practice practice. A lot of practice. But I don’t practice on a quilt so I am not nervous about ruining it. I am one of those that drawing a design doesn’t do anything for me. I have tried many times. Different moving a pen with my hand than moving a quilt under a needle. I can do more than stipple or meander. Sometimes feathers work for me but I am not a big fan of them for myself anyway so don’t use them
often or bother practicing them much. I watch a lot of videos for inspiration. I love Angela Walters and Leah day. Right now I’m pondering a design on a wall hanging. I do enjoy it and really like not spending several hundred dollars after I piece a top.

Sewfine

Thanks so much for the encouragement. I've been trying to free motion quilt for the last five years and don't see any improvement. Not given up, just taking a break and making wreaths and flower arrangements.

Maire

Schill93, that was my story also, but 15 years ago I bought a Supreme Slider (or Glider, can never remember correct name) a slippery plastic sheet to put on the bed of the machine. That somehow finally let my hands & brain work together. I used it until I wore it out, was going to buy another then realized I no longer needed it.
To me, doing the FMQ is the fun part, I love it, I put on an audio book, start FMQ and in my happy place!