Quilting Software
 

I am seriously considering buying quilting software as a tool to help me in layout/design. Electric Quilt 7 seems to be the premiere program, and while I have good computer skills, my quilting skills are not there (yet!). I mostly work with squares (5"/6"/8"10") and rectangles (5"x 10"). Since any software is going to allow one to use various block layouts, I am most interested in being able to scan my own fabrics and use those in my quilt design. This is especially important to me when I use layer cakes and charm packs (5" x 5") which have multiple fabric patterns in them. So, I have come across good reviews of Quilt Pro and their scaled-back 1-2-3 Quilt! version of Quilt Pro. Either one seems to me to be perfect for my needs.

My question is this: Do any of you have any experience using quilting software and if so, could you share your preferences, experiences, etc. with me and other quilters?

Thanks!

I have EQ7--it does all the things you want it to do. They just put out a Mini EQ7 for about half the price--not sure what all it does but check it out too. I'd say if you are just starting to develop your skills you might want to go ahead and go big on the design program as you're sure to get into more involved quilts in the future. Just my opinion.

I too have EQ7 - marvelous for designing quilts, pieced and applique blocks. There are loads of videos on Youtube showing features of both programs. It depends how much you want to spend, but I wouldn't swap for a different one.

Put EQ7 in your shopping cart on the Quilt for a Day site, and you will see their discount. It's usually the cheapest price around. I use EQ7 all the time and wouldn't be without it.

I have EQ7 and rarely use it. I'm not much of a designer......and apparently not much of a computer whiz as I feel like I'm starting over each time.
It sounds like you are creative and computer literate so I'm sure you will succeed in which ever program you choose.

I love EQ7

I have never owned the EQ7, but have thought about it. You have to scan your fabrics into the program? So you have to own a printer/scanner...is this correct? I only have the printer.

I have EQ7 and am struggling with the learning curve. Each time I start with the basic lessons and I think eventually it will come. I'm a little computer challenged. It seems like the program does a lot, but then the company wants to sell you more books to use with it and I don't understand why I would need that book. There is someone on this board that is very helpful. I asked a question and she explained it and it worked. My problem was that I knew the name of the pattern in question but could not find it. It was there, but listed under a category I was not using. Marcia

lindaschipper and others, you do not have to scan in fabrics to use EQ7. There are tons of fabrics that come with the software and each month electric quilt offers free downloads of fabric from various designers or themes. Of course, you can go to some of the fabric company sites and see if they offer free downloads as well. There are great tutorials with EQ and lots of information on the electric quilt site.

If you purchase different fabrics, you do have to scan. I'm not partial to any fabric house, in fact, I just buy the color and design I want and don't care who made it if it's good fabric. So I have oddballs that don't show since they are not in the top of the design list or color of the year. I pick what I like from a store or stores.

It's easy enough to scan. Some software for scanning now includes your cell phone.

I can get annoyed with EQ 6 and 7. I can use Adobe Illustrator well enough to design what I want.
I'm familiar enough with Bezier curves and editing lines. What gets me is how it saves and editing layers.
Those are totally different. It also won't import SVG or AI files. These are both common vector files.
Inkscape (free) does SVG and Adobe does both.

I love EQ7 and use it all the time. One of the best things about it is the support from the company. Any time I've had questions doing something they respond quickly and clearly and stick with me until I get it working the way I need it. A great product and company!

It is a great program..I have an older version, as I don't sit at the computer and "design"......my projects are copies of something I've seen in book or magazine or online ...with instruction...so no need to do that. Actually the only time I use it is if I'm not sure about amt of fab needed...so I'll go thru the motions of "creating"...just put on whatever fab bits the program has..then print out fab needed info.....and even that I do very seldom.......

Printer/scanner combinations are really cheap. My old printer/scanner died and I went to office depot. I didn't shop around as this was for the office and I needed it now, and only paid about $250 for one. There were some that were much cheaper and perfect for home use. I always buy HP. They are a bit more when you buy them but the print cartridges are half what Lexmark's are so I figure that over the years, I come out ahead with the HP. Plus they work well with my HP computers and there's lots of online support if you have problems.

I use EQ7 all the time and love it. I take pictures (jpg) of my fabrics and import them into the program. Works like a charm! EQ mini will not allow you to import your own scans or pics, but you can import the EQ provided extra fabrics, or some manufacturer's (fab) files

I have a version of EQ that I don't use. Seems like I spent a lot of time on the computer designing a quilt, but when I go the the quilt shop, the fabric "speaks to me" and tells me what to do with it...and I dump the design I made with EQ. I suppose if you buy the fabric first you can scan it into EQ, but how do you know how much fabric to buy to begin with? I think if you are trying to do an original design or complex design, EQ would be a good support. But for my level of quilting, I really don't use it.

Hi Marcia,
I recently purchased EQ7, too.(Eleanor Burns site) and there is definately a learning curve, but with any program that offer so many entities it's worth doing the free tutorials. I printed my manual also.
I do best with classes I can watch, so I just signed up for an online class through their website. It is a forever class like the Craftsy ones, and you can ask questions to the teacher. Also, if u r a student, there is a facebook page the students can post their work and give/ recieve tips! With my embroidery software I could take classes forever before discovering all there is to know, so this is no where as complicated!

you can scan you fabrics in but lots of companies will let you do it from their site for free or you can use a generic one or just make each section a certain color, so no, you don't have to have a printer/scanner

I have EQ7 and love it. BTW Electric Quilt still has 25%off on EQ7 and EQ mini today. It can be downloaded and done in a matter of minutes. Good luck with your decision.

I have EQ7 & Quilt-Pro. I use Quilt-Pro all the time. The learning curve on Quilt-Pro is a lot quicker & easier.

No, you do not have to own a scanner.

There are a couple of different ways to import fabric images into EQ. You can take a picture of the fabric with your phone's camera and upload it to the program (EQ has instructions on how to do this). You can also download and import fabric images from the internet. I find this to be the easiest, because most of the time when I take a picture of fabric, I get a moire effect.

EQ and Moda both have free downloadable files full of fabrics, I'm sure there are other sites as well, I'm just not aware of them. You can also right-click and save ANY fabric photo, it does not have to be in the EQ, Moda, or any other collection. It simply has to be an image file of the particular fabric you want to use.

I just purchased the EQ 7 mini. It was in my price range. Thank you all.