after you finish your top and place all 3 layers together, you then quilt them all together, if you hand quilt, which I do. These are made of plastic and have slits in them so you can mark a desiqn on your top that you wish to quilt. Sometimes a pretty feather or flower or sometimes just grids. It is up to you how you want to finish your quilt. If you machine quilt you can also get stencils for that. Hopefully my order will come tomorrow and I will Post a Picture.I hope this wasn't too hard to understand. If you need more help just let me know :-) always glad to help!