Hello again. Mary Ellen back.

When talking with quilters at the demos and classes I present, the topic of free motion quilting often comes up. I consider myself proficient at FMQ but certainly not an expert. As I tell those who ask, the concept of free motion quilting is very simple but the practice of it is not. There is a long learning curve for most of us, requiring lots of time spent stitching to build muscle memory. I have never met a quilter who mastered FMQ right away.

One of the websites I visit frequently, when in FMQ mode, is the one maintained by Leah Day. Lots of ideas for designs, well explained. Her blog gives guidance and encouragement. I’m sure many of you have visited her at one time or another,  if FMQ is a goal of yours.

This year Leah will be approaching FMQ from a different tack. She has increased her goal of design ideas to 1000! But she honestly says that will not be reached this year-it is a several year goal. She has another goal for this year, to work on many of the techniques she has been meaning to try, but hasn’t gotten around to. Sound familiar? Lots of us set a goal like that for ourselves.

I plan to follow Leah’s project this year, with the hope that it will motivate me to do likewise. To try, in greater detail, some techniques that I have been intrigued by but haven’t done more than just give a whirl, or perhaps bought the “stuff” but haven’t touched it since.

Here’s a link to the video where Leah explains this year’s goal and her posting format and schedule.

This is the link to Leah’s blog. I will warn you. Leah is a bit “new age”. I don’t mean that in a negative way at all; she is very introspective and shares her feelings. Not everyone is comfortable with that. If you want to skip all the “touchy feely” at her blog and just get right to the quilting, that is easily done.

My final word: if you are working your way along the free motion learning curve, you will want to hear Leah’s advice, watch her techniques, and as the adage goes “PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE!”