Well, at last I have mastered hoopless quilting with quite good results I think! A combination of Suzanne Marshall, Jeana Kimball and the Thimblelady - many hours, umpteen different types of needles and at last I have got there. The secret I think is the 'folding' of fabric over the needle, and to use two or three pins so as not to get any shifting of the layers. The resulting stitches are pretty good - when I master how to get a picture on here I will post some!