Designing a quilt
#21
Power Poster
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Northern Michigan
Posts: 12,861
I do use graph paper- generally just to keep a quilt within the size parameters I want *otherwise they turn out 15 feet long!* but I have found that the finished quilt seldom turns out anything like what I may have sketched/used for blocks- so the graph paper is just so I make what i'm doing fit inside the borders. beyond that sometimes I start with an idea, may sketch some layout ideas * again- the finished quilt never looks anything like what I sketched, but the layout may somewhat*~~ I (wasted) oodles of money on design software I never use- got nowhere with ~~ I generally after playing with graph paper & sketches- just start with my fabrics- decide what fabrics I want to make a quilt out of - lay them out & start 'playing' around- often on the floor- lay out some focus/main fabrics, decide what blocks I might want to add around or with them- pull coordinates- and just start sewing, measuring, figuring out what to do next to make things fit. sometimes starting with a panel or some sort of 'picture' blocks as a starting point will help you get the idea of just moving stuff around, playing with it till you like what you have- and when I have the dimensions figured out with the graph paper the 'planned baby quilt' doesn't turn out to be king sized- or the queen sized quilt doesn't wind up being a table topper.
#22
Sometimes I'll do a rough sketch then use graph paper Other times I'll rough sketch then work out my measurements and go from there. I'm lucky in that maths present no problems for me.
I have EQ 7 but it's still in the box, just haven't had time to learn it but do have Rhonda's tutorial on it. One day.
I have EQ 7 but it's still in the box, just haven't had time to learn it but do have Rhonda's tutorial on it. One day.
#23
I am not very good at designing my own quilts. I've done a few with ok results. I have a very basic design program called Quilt Wizard- it's like the embryo version of EQ. Joanns used to carry it- it's under $30, but it has a library of blocks, fabrics, layouts etc. that you can twist, turn, combine. It will also give directions, yardage etc for the quilts and then you can print it out in color or outline. I've done the outline and then colored in with colored pencils. If Joanns still carries it and you can use a coupon, it would be an inexpensive fun thing to have.
Last edited by mandyrose; 01-06-2014 at 04:58 AM.
#26
Junior Member
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Auburn, Wa
Posts: 177
I have a quilt designing in my head for the last two weeks and I lay awake in the middle of the night imagining it and trying to figure out how to do it, then I get up and put my pieces up on my flannel board and it doesn't turn out like my head pic. I ask my hubby for opinion and he says "oh, that's terrible". So, I guess I won't ask his opinion again and just keep following my head pictures.
#29
But there is a world of people like me who want their own take on items they make. I don't need to copy someone else.
#30
Draw the peaks and valleys on scrap paper, then draw a strip that has your colors in the order you want. Use that original sketch as your pattern. Use lots of graph paper to get to the end
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