copycat

I will be teaching the July Program for our guild on Beginner Free-Motion quilting.

I have several books and magazine articles with tips and advice on how to be a successful free-motion quilter. I am putting together a handout for the class. If you have attended a class on free-motion or have any tried and true tips to pass along that have helped you with f-m quilting, I would love to share them with my guild. Thank you!

ArtsyOne

Definitely wear gloves with the little rubber dots on them!

QuiltnNan

i agree... the first time i tried it, i had no shoulder tension and could move my quilt soooo much more easily

JustAbitCrazy

Move your hands/the quilt smoothly at a steady pace, no speeding up or slowing down. Keep the speed of the machine steady, too. If you are going to teach this, you need to practice it so you can speak from experience.

toverly

Definitely wear Grab a Roos, they are the purple gloves that fit like Isotoner gloves. They aren't loose cotton and have great control. The best advice I ever received for free motion is to listen to your machine. The thunk, thunk, thunk of the needle has a rhythm. Move your hands to the rhythm of the thunk, thunk, thunk. When the thunk is slow move slow and when the thunk is fast, slow down. Although thunk sounds like a mistake, it's the best description of the sound.

joe'smom

Relax, and don't worry about being perfect. It will look fine after it's washed.

quiltedsunshine

Practice makes perfect! Don't give up! It takes a lot of practice to get good at free-motion quilting.

Prism99

For those who develop sore shoulders and backs from quilting while sitting down, you might mention that standing up helps. When I quilted on my domestic machine, I placed it on my cutting table. I could FMQ two or three times as long without back/shoulder pain and stiffness later.

Another thing that helps, especially if your machine is not sunk flat into a large table or desk, is to create a large styrofoam "surround" for your machine. This is easy to cut from a slab of styrofoam insulation. Cover it with inexpensive plastic. This makes a lightweight, large, flat, slippery surface for your quilt to rest on while you move it around. I particularly liked using this when quilting standing up with my machine on my cutting table.

Tartan

Don't watch where you are stitching but instead look where you want to go. Set your machine on a lower speed if your machine allows it. I love my Machinger gloves. Meander or stipple are not beginner patterns. Try a loop de loop that allows you a spot to reposition your hands. I like to use plain white chalk for marking reference points so you may want to address marking methods.

cjsews

Lower the speed on your machine and then press the foot pedal all the way. That will give you a consistent speed without going too fast.