Troubleshooting needed - free motion meanders...

Have you re-threaded the top thread and the bobbin and changed the needle. It sounds more like one of improper threading. Sometimes the thread pops out of one of its places.

And such a silly suggestion - but do be sure that you have the foot *down*. It's so easy to miss that one. To see if it's the Minkee that may be the problem, move over to a test practice piece that's just cotton plus batting plus cotton. Polly

Yep, threading was checked and re-done, and yep, the foot was down - my machine barfs up WAAAAY badder than this if the foot's not down, I can't stitch if I'm that scatterbrained.

I did start this one with a new needle but will try another - I just realized I think the needle went in for service with the machine and who knows what the mech did.

And yeah, I'm going rootling for a practice sandwich to have a go at.

Thanks,

Johanna

polly esther wrote:

Check to see if your needle is in backwards ..... yes, I said backwards. I've done it and boy oh boy, can your machine ever get mad at you for that. :-))

Sharon (N.B.)

Check to see if your needle is in backwards ..... yes, I said backwards. I've done it and boy oh boy, can your machine ever get mad at you for that. :-))

Sharon (N.B.)

depends on the teacher. in the last class I went to they told me my machine was going too fast....

FurrsomeThreesome wrote: ... My quilt

I saw a short presentation by Philippa Naylor at the Houston show recently; if her name is not familiar to you, she's a wonderful machine quilter (British!) who uses a home sewing machine for her quilting. Anyway, she said that she knows that everyone is always told to run the machine at top speed, but she doesn't agree. She says it makes no sense to drive a car at top speed around a curve, so why would you go at top speed as you quilt and can't always see where you're going next?

I had a quick one hour lesson with Philippa, last year. She is the most encouraging teacher you could wish to meet. I told her what I did and she endorsed it. I have speed controls on my machine, which does make it easier, and I set it at half-full speed and keep my foot in one position - though if I can't see where I'm going I do slow a bit - or stop and re-position. I fin it terribly hard, when free-motion quilting, to remember that I can take my foot off the foot control and not panic >g< . In message , Sandy Foster writes

I don't quilt myself anymore, but always have to remind learners that the most important thing to remember is . . . . . . breathe!

I've been making a few table runners etc. to sell at a Christmas Sale and have been using the last of the poly. batting I had. I tried to fmq it but just gave up - it was so slippery despite being well pinned. I ended up just stitching in the ditch and doing straight lines using my walking foot. I even kept the longer lines to a minumum as the wretched batting just wasn't co-operating.

I usually use a nice cotton one that quilts like a dream, though my fmq is still a bit hit and miss, but nothing like this slippery stuff. I've used most of it in cushions where its just outline quilting, and will be glad to see the back of it.

It was a double bed size I inherited from my sister. It was still in the original wrapper and the post mark was about 1988. She had bought it when she first started quilting, but gave up when she lost her husband, and only restarted a couple of years before she died. Perhaps the modern poly is better behaved - it wasn't too bad for hand quilting, but I didn't have time to handquilt these.