Free Motion Quilting with Stencils – Master the stipple and leaf meander

When you start free motion quilting, you are told to just do an all over meander, keep everything curvy and don’t overlap your lines. It sounds easy to someone who has been quilting for a while. But to a true beginner, that can be very intimidating.

You have to learn how to create smooth even curves, pointy points and move around the quilt top with an even quilting density without backing yourself into a corner all while keeping your stitches small, but not too small with a consistent stitch width. That’s a lot to handle if you’ve never done it before.

In today’s tutorial I break down free motion quilting and show you how to use stencils as a guide to learn and master the stipple and leaf meander designs. The stencils are already drawn out for you, so you just have to follow the lines.

That way instead of worrying about where you are going to go next, you can focus on creating those smooth curves and even stitches, all while developing muscle memory needed to do it without stencils once you are comfortable.

I recommend you pull out all the fabric you regret buying and create a dozen test sandwiches that are the size of fat quarters. Then quilt one fat quarter a day using the stencils, or at least one a couple times a week. By spending a half hour or so several times a week, you will gradually improve, build confidence and be able to ditch the stencils before you know it.

As always we have all the supplies you need to get started free motion quilting on your home sewing machine. Just click on the links below to get it from shop.quiltaddictsanonymous.com.

Supplies we used:
Pounce Pad: https://shop.quiltaddictsanonymous.com/?term=&s=pounce&post_type=product&taxonomy=product_cat
Full Line Stencil Stipple Meander: https://shop.quiltaddictsanonymous.com/product/full-line-stencil-stipple-meander/
Full Line Stencil Meandering Leaves: https://shop.quiltaddictsanonymous.com/product/large-leaf-meander-2/
Machingers Quilting Gloves: https://shop.quiltaddictsanonymous.com/product-tag/machingers/
Free motion or darning foot: https://shop.quiltaddictsanonymous.com/product/darners-foot-low-shank/
Test fat quarter sandwiches
Aurifil 50 WT thread in contrasting color to your fabric: https://shop.quiltaddictsanonymous.com/product-category/notions/thread/

Watch more Quilt Addicts Anonymous quilting tips and tricks videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kC-kegjVo_Q&list=PL-noqoeaGWzawSWwKiDtzCo_Llhp5dxd6

Check out more from Quilt Addicts Anonymous …
Blog/tutorials: http://www.quiltaddictsanonymous.com
Online quilt shop: shop.quiltaddictsanonymous.com
Brick and mortar quilt shop: Quilt Addicts Anonymous, 1232 30th St., Rock Island, IL 61201
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/quiltaddictsanonymous
Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/quiltaddictsanonymous
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/quiltaablog/

Music: Castle to Ruin (Instrumental Version) by Martin Hall, Comes Around (Instrumental Version) by Aldenmark Niklasson, Edge Of Life (Instrumental Version) by Aldenmark Niklasson, Fifteen (Instrumental Version) by Aldenmark Niklasson, For Everyone (Instrumental Version) by Aldenmark Niklasson, Getting Colder (Instrumental Version) by Aldenmark Niklasson, Jennie (Instrumental Version) by Sebastian Foslund, Jenny’s Alright (Instrumental Version) by Aldenmark Niklasson, Now We Do It Again (Instrumental Version) by Martin Hall from Epidemic Sound

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