Free Motion Quilting is my ‘go to’ option.
It’s my favourite part of the process of making a quilt (well apart from the design bit I suppose!). I love it and find that it makes me really happy to spend a whole day getting lost in free motion quilting.
It’s my favourite class to teach. Most people arrive feeling very anxious about it and sure that they aren’t going to be able to do it. Most of them base that assumption on having had a brief try at home with no guidance. One of the reasons it’s my favourite class to teach is because it’s the one where you see the most progress within a class. People transition from being scared of it to feeling like it’s actually something they can achieve. They leave with the confidence to keep practising at home and the knowledge that they can improve, provided they keep practising ;-).
"Had a fantastic day learning free motion quilting. Now to practice more at home....Thank you Jo for a fabulous day, thoroughly enjoyed myself and learnt so much. It has certainly diminished my fear of fmq !!!"
Sue - FMQ 'In Person' Class attendee
I guess that’s my main motivation really, to give people the confidence to keep practising to then hopefully find the joy that I get from it! To take away the stress and turn it into joy! In fact I even wrote up a ‘Cheat Sheet’ of my 5 Top Tips for Transforming Quilting Stress into Joy! Number 1 on that list is such an easy thing to do but most people just don’t and it will resolve so much stress! Clean your machines regularly people!!! Seriously the number of people that come to class with dirty machines lol! It takes 5 minutes and can seriously resolve so many issues! To see the rest of my tips, click the link above.
Free Motion Quilting Online Class
When the pandemic came along in 2020 I had to stop teaching my ‘in person’ classes. As I begin to transition my teaching online, I decided that Free Motion Quilting for Beginners should be at the top of the list. So in January I’ll be teaching a 4 Week Course online in my new online sewing school. It’s called Confident & Joyful Free Motion Quilting. The course will kick off on Sunday 10th January 2021.
Enrolment is now open but will close on the 8th January 2021 at 11.59pm GMT.
I’m offering an early bird deal for those signed up before the 23rd December 2020 of 15% off by using the code: FMQ15 at checkout. (Discounts can not be redeemed retrospectively so don’t forget to input the code!) Code valid until 11.59pm on 23rd December 2020 GMT.
I normally teach this content in a 6 hour ‘in person’ class. As it’s moving online I decided to break it down into bite sized chunks instead to make it manageable and not overwhelming.
So this course is for you if you want to take your first steps into Free Motion Quilting. Or if you get frustrated every time you attempt free motion quilting or if you’re too scared to even try! It’ll give you the knowledge and confidence you need to elevate your quilting skills and find joy when quilting. You’ll practise various stitches and even have a go on a pieced project if you’re feeling brave!
So, What’s Included in the Course
The course is broken down into 4 modules, one delivered each week. The content will become available on a Sunday. The following Saturday I’ll host a LIVE Q&A session on Zoom for all students to attend if they want to. I can answer any questions you might have about that week’s content and briefly introduce the next week’s module that will be live the following day. All of the content in the modules will be pre-recorded videos or downloads for you to watch or download at your own convenience during the week. Pause and replay as often as you like.
Topics we will cover include:
Preparing your machine, your quilt and yourself;
Tools; Thread; Needles; Batting; Tension;
Common Mistakes;
Two 'All Over' designs;
Three 'Filler' designs;
Pattern size;
Determining where and what to quilt;
Dealing with larger quilts;
and plenty of time practising.
I'm including a FREE copy of my Sliced Up Pattern as the Sewing Machine Cover (& Table Runner) makes a great practice project for week 4.
I’ll also be including an Online Community for: sharing photos of your practise blocks with other participants; asking for advice; sharing ideas; making new friends; and being inspired and encouraged. It operates a bit like a Facebook group but it’s on my teaching platform so no need to have a Facebook account.
I can’t wait to help you become a confident free motion quilter!