Sew much to do Sew little time

Thanks for the advice everyone! I'll keep working at it and see if I can get the tension right, and I will focus on slowing down. I've just made a practice sandwhich with scraps...

bjchad

Some of your problems look like what I call the swoop factor on curves. There seems to be a natural tendency to swoop on curves. That is to go faster -- I think if I were drawing I would do that to try to keep the curve consistent and smooth. That spells a lot of eyelashes and inconsistent stitch lengths in FMQ. Fight the swoop.
By the way, some of your stitching is quite nice and you are doing very well for such a novice.
Keep up the good work!

snipforfun

Slow down! Youre breaking the speed limit!

DogHouseMom

I think your problem is two-fold. Upper tension may be an issue, but I think the biggest problem is your hand and machine speed.

Looking at the very first photo, the curves on the top are nice and flat and the stitches are of good length and uniform. Now compare the length of the stitches on the curves on the bottom. They are all larger, and not uniform in length.

I think your hand speed is too fast for your machine speed, especially on the curves.

Speed your machine up a bit, slow your hands down a bit. And remember, when you are on the curve you need to slow your hands down even more.

I would fiddle with speed first on practice sandwiches before I change the tension. And try EVERYTHING else first before you even think about changing the bottom tension, and even after that ... try them all again.

lukeje

Also I have found that I sometimes forget to put the presser foot down while doing FMQ on my Brother..It makes it look like that if I don't..Otherwise speed has alot to do with it...

tjradj

IMHO, I found that if the tension/stitches are ok when stitching a straight line, the tension is ok.
If you start having problems when you do curvy lines it tends to be a speed of machine vs speed of operator problem. Either the speed of the machine is not fast enough for how fast you are moving the fabric, or you have to slow down the movement of the fabric to catch up to the speed of your machine.
This sometimes shows up when you start getting more confident and start moving faster without speeding up the stitch speed.
Keep practising. It gets easier.

Sew much to do Sew little time

Thank you for all of the help... I think I finally got it!

It was a combination of a little of this and a little of that. I cleaned the machine (found a lot of fuzz and even thread wrapped around an axle). I also did the bobbin tension test in my hand and the "yo-yo" tension test and tightened it up a bit. I have really sped up the machine, and I think it is consistant with the pace I'm moving the fabric now. I have practiced on the scrap sandwhiches and I think I'm ready to tackle the quilt again!! Thanks again!

Sew much to do Sew little time

You are right, I feel like I have to move through the curve fast enough to keep the line smooth. I will try to remember to slow down!

LivelyLady

I believe you are right as that is how my stitches w/eyelashes looked when I first started FMQing. I was told that you have to move the fabric slower than the machine is running. It worked :D

BellaBoo

I solved a lot of my fmq problems by using the same thread in the top and bobbin.