FMQ Swirls
Five Swirl Designs You Can Quilt on the Machine You Already Have
FMQ Swirls teaches five swirl-based free motion quilting designs-basic, hooked, smoky, square, and swirl chains-using video lessons, doodle practice, and hands-on stitching, so you can quilt your own quilt top instead of sending it to a longarmer.
If you’ve already tried free motion quilting once, scrolled past quilters online who make it look effortless, and decided the problem was you instead of the fact that you were comparing your first attempt to someone’s hundredth, that quilt top still sitting in your stack is exactly why this class exists.
GET STARTED →
Imagine Picking the Right Swirl for Every Inch of Your Quilt Top
Picture that quilt top from your stack, the one you’ve been putting off, finished. Not with one design stretched across the whole thing because it’s the only one you know, but with hooked swirls filling the busy print fabric, smoky swirls softening the background, and swirl chains running clean down the border. You already know how to sit down and quilt. This is about giving yourself more than one tool to reach for.
There's just one problem
You Already Tried Free Motion Quilting Once
Maybe it was a meander, maybe it was your own attempt at a swirl, and it came out a little wobbly, a little uneven, not what you pictured. So you did what most of us do: you pulled up Instagram and watched someone stitch out a feather so smooth it looked like it wasn't real life. That’s not a fair fight. You were looking at someone’s hundredth swirl and comparing it to your first, and it convinced you the problem was you.
Here's the truth
It Was Never About How Steady Your Hands Are
The wobble wasn’t a sign you can’t do this. It was a sign you’d only ever tried one design, cold, with no doodle practice and no plan for where it belonged on the quilt. Swirls aren’t one skill, they’re five, and each one is built to solve a different problem on your quilt top. Once you know which swirl goes where and you’ve drawn it enough times that your hand isn’t guessing anymore, the wobble goes away. That’s the whole class.
"It was such a fun class and taught me so much about FMQ on my domestic machine. I was ready to advance my skills and improve my confidence, especially on bigger projects. I'm so happy that I stuck with it and finished a 60" x 60" quilt. I got a blue ribbon at my local fair! Joni is an excellent teacher and was so willing to make sure we all 'got it.'"
Terry, past student
Welcome to FMQ Swirls
This isn’t a class where you watch five videos, nod along, and hope your hands remember what to do at the machine. I teach with a method I call Learn Doodle Quilt, and it’s exactly what it sounds like: you learn how each swirl design is built and where it belongs on a quilt, background fill or border or sashing, you doodle it on paper first so your hand knows the movement before your machine does, and then you quilt it for real, stitching it into a practice sandwich so nothing’s on the line yet.
By the time you sit down at your machine for each design, you’ve already drawn it a dozen times. And remember, the only part of the quilt that matters while you’re quilting is the four inches between your hands. Worry about that four inches, not the whole quilt at once, and every one of these five designs gets a lot less scary.
I’ll be right here with you through all three steps, for every one of the five designs, not just handing you a video and disappearing.
What's Inside
Your FMQ Swirls Syllabus
Lesson 1
Basic Swirl
The foundation for every other swirl in this class. Once your hands understand its smooth, continuous motion, every other variation makes sense fast.
Lesson 2
Hooked Swirls
A hook added between swirls gives you more movement and direction with your quilting. Good for echoing to fill in any gaps between swirls.
Lesson 3
Smoky Swirls
Add dimension and movement as it travels across the quilt. Reach for this one when you want texture without anything looking too structured.
Lesson 4
Square Swirls
Trades the curves for a little geometry. This one reads more modern and masculine and holds its own next to bold colors or geometric piecing.
Lesson 5
Swirl Chains
Individual swirls linked into one continuous path. Built for borders, sashing, and anywhere you need to travel a long stretch without breaking thread.
Ready to start quilting?
Meet your teacher
Hi, I'm Joni
I’ve been quilting for over 25 years, and the only thing I love more than quilting is sharing what I’ve learned with you. Quilting is my favorite step in the whole process, and I teach the Learn Doodle Quilt method in quick, compact lessons so you can quilt your own quilts on your own machine, without ever having to guess.
But it wasn't always this way...
When I first started free motion quilting, my machine had a stitch regulator, a feature that’s supposed to keep your stitches perfectly even no matter how fast or slow you move your hands. It scared the crap out of me. I turned it off after the first try and decided I’d just have to be my own stitch regulator instead. Turns out, that’s exactly what happened.
If I can figure out my own machine, doubts and all, you can figure out yours, five swirl designs and all.
I’d be so honored if you let me be your guide on that journey. Come join me and the other quilters already working through this class.
Are you ready to start your free motion quilting learning journey?
Join me and other quilters just like you who are ready to take control of the creative process, save money by quilting your own quilts, and who are ready to start learning free motion quilting.
GET STARTED →