Free Wheelin'

I finally took my free motion quilting class this weekend at The City Quilter! I have been counting down for months. I even toted along my trusty little Janome Gem so I could practice on that, seeing as the Bernina 440s they have for classes bear nearly no relationship to its elementary ways. (They both had needles, thread and a foot peddle, but after that the comparison ends.)

We started with "wind":

And moved on to "water":

But I am truly a squiggle girl at heart - it felt totally natural to me, probably because it's always been my boredom doodle of choice:

There were attempts at stippling in there too, but I need, oh, a few hundred hours practice before that technique will be ready for prime time.

Now I just need practice materials - after a little more muslin, I'm thinking a big expanse of some pretty fabric so I can practice maneuvering something large through my machine's short little neck. If it turns out decent, perhaps it will become a gift for a [very forgiving] recipient!