Practice Makes Perfect?

I am not a Quilter!

I know - you are thinking I have finally flipped out, but what is a quilter, really?  Someone who quilts.  Vonnie, Cathy, Demi, Teresa and Brenda are the Gammie Girls.  They are our shop quilters.  I am a piecer.  I am fairly skilled at piecing, but when it comes to quilting, it would seem that I am missing whatever gene it is that controls that ability,

"The right tools will make the job easier."  My sweet husband says that all the time, and based on that premise, I bought a wonderful brand new huge Bernina last year.  It has everything I need to make, and quilt, perfect quilts, including the Bernina Stitch Regulator (BSR).  For the uninformed, this is a nifty gadget that you put on the machine.  It stitches evenly as you move the fabric under it.  Accordingly, you should make perfectly even stitches while you effortlessly glide the quilt under the magic needle while it dances across your quilt making wonderful smooth loops and curves. 

What Bernina doesn't tell you is that the operator of the machine (that would be me) is the one that has to be smooth.  Oh yeah, the stitches are perfectly spaced, but they are perfectly spaced in a manner that would make you think the operator might have been having seizures while moving the fabric. 

I have done several quilts now - ok, not a lot of practice, but I really only do little quilts on my own machine.  At least I am smart enough to have figured out that my "People" are worth their weight in gold.  There is no way that I am going to spend all the time to piece a large quilt and then ruin it with my horrible quilting.

No, I will keep quilting my small quilts, but for awhile I will just stick to my usual ditch quilting.  I am sure that at some point I will get the urge to prove to myself just how bad I am, and try it again.  This should make my quilters happy, though, because it makes me really appreciate their talent. 

If you think I am making this up - stop by the shop and see my latest debacle.  If you think your quilting is bad.....

Do you quilt your own quilts most of the time?  How much practice should it take to do this? 

Thought for the Day:  Practice doesn't always make perfect!