tlpa

I learned by just doing SID and straight line designs first. When I started FMQ, I found the most frustrating part was getting the sewing machine to act well. Out of 10 machines I had at the time, only 1, an old mechanical Bernina 931 was the only one that would ALWAYS act nice, even if my work & stitches were poorly shaped.... Once I figured that out, practicing became fun because I wasn't always fighting the machine. So if you have different machines you might want to try them all out to find out which one feels the best for FMQ.

Pennyhal

I read a book. Sat down and tried to do what it said. Eventually, I learned enough to be acceptable for what I need.

crafty pat

I wanted to learn so I just worked at it until I could do it. My DM was a hand quilter but with RA in my hands I knew the only way I was going to make it work for me was with my machine. I cut out practice blocks and worked with them until I had it down right. I tied my first quilt and machine quilted my second and was so proud of it. When I got my walking foot it made it much better. Just keep at it and you will learn very quickly.

toverly

I put on a hopping foot, dropped the feed dogs and went for it. Lots of eyelashes on the back but the front looked great. It was a baby size quilt.

Becky's Crafts

I am self-taught. I saw a video on meandering and was working on an antique baby quilt and I just meandered around the teddy bears. I was scared blue, but I do love a challenge and it came out awesome. Since then, I've done a study of others quilting that I like and have been getting better. Since Christmas this year, I've signed up for two classes on Craftsy that are great and I'm enjoying them. I'm learning various designs in the classes, but the last one I got talks about breaking up spaces and transitioning designs. I love it!! I quilt all my own quilts on my DSM.

Chasing Hawk

self taught, just like most of my endeavors.

mom-6

I'm another mostly trial and error (plenty of error!) person. What has worked best for me has been making sure my backing/batting was smooth and securely basted, whether with pins or glue basting. I'm getting a little more adventurous lately but I still prefer very simple quilting. Straight lines or stitch in the ditch seem to be easiest for me.

Bree123

With the walking foot, it was mostly trial & error -- with some phone coaching from my grandmother. I had a vintage Singer & there was only one type of walking foot I could find for my machine & no special adjustments to settings on my machine so it was fairly straightforward. I just set my stitch length to 8-9 stitches per inch (3mm)and started stitching away. If you can start on a lower loft cotton batting like Warm & Natural or Quilters Dream Request, that will make things easier for you. (yes, there are many wonderful battings out there -- my personal favorite is Warm & Plush 100% cotton, and I also like Hobb's Heirloom 100% wool, but those are somewhat more challenging to feed through the machine)

For FMQ, my first lessons were online classes with Leah Day via YouTube. There are many things you need to know besides the proper foot to even remotely successfully execute a FMQ design: drop/cover the feed dogs (usually), set stitch length to 0, how far apart to space the quilting lines, marking, speed on a straighter section vs going around a curve, how to load the quilt, how to hold the quilt, etc. I definitely recommend some kind of class for that. If you can get to a live class, that's almost always the best choice. If there either aren't any nearby or you have a disability (like I do) that may prevent you from sitting through hours of instruction at a time, there are many wonderful online classes. I've taken classes online with dozens of different instructors at this point -- plus a few live classes -- and still think that Leah Day offers the best beginning-to-quilt classes on FMQ. Here's the link to the series that I recommend:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFcI...1F4B76430BB141

kat13

I had to learn myself with the help of Internet and people who gave free designs, including those in magazines, I traced the designs on lightweight tracing paper and pinned
To quilt sandwich, then using the free motion quilting foot and lowering the feed dogs I practiced stitching on the lines!! Then ripped off the paper! Sometimes using a tweezers! A water soluable paper would of been awesome!!! Wish they made one!!!

popover

They do.....