The Quilter's Corner
By: Leanne Smith
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The following links will take you to websites that are not affiliated with TQC in any way. They are places I used frequently when learning the art of quilting. All of the tips, techniques and suggestions on these pages belong solely to their authors. |
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Welcome! |
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You can quilt! Anyone can! Even if you have never touched a needle in your life, you can quilt! |
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If you are looking for a computer program to help you custom create and design your very own quilt, here is an exciting new tool that I discovered. It could open up a world of possibilities for the medium to advanced quilter. If you have a love for quilting, and are also adept at using a computer, this program might be right up your alley! What is Electric Quilt? Electric Quilt is much more than you'd expect to find in a computer program for quilt design. I've tried two other programs intended to help a quilter design their projects, but both left me feeling I'd really been ripped off at the cash register. Then one weekend, a friend of mine let me try this program out on her computer and, I must admit, I was hooked from the first hour! After a small tutorial from my friend, I was able to begin creating my own quilt patterns using scanned in fabric--not just bland computer generated colors. And, after I was happy with the one that I created, my friend was able to print out specific step-by-step instructions that the program generated for me to create the quilt, including a straightforward guideline for the fabric yardage I'd need to buy. Since purchasing this program six months ago, I've created dozens of unique quilt designs--all of them specifically measured for the size of my bed, using real fabrics I scanned into the computer myself! I was able to test numerous border colors against the quilt designs on the computer without ever cutting a single length of fabric. It's amazing how many options and features I have available to me that I couldn't hope to envision in my mind. From having no border on a quilt to adding on two, three or as many different colored borders and designs as you want, there was no end to the possibilities I saw. I may try and photograph one of my better creations, along with a showing the different designs I initially came up with using EQ5. It would probably shock you to see what I was able to design on paper in just an hour... I am not offering the program up for sale on TQC. I'm simply giving you my honest opinion of the best program I've run across for creating my own designs. I originally sought to find just such a program after I became bored with trying to find new patterns and color schemes in magazines and books. I was tired of spending $5 to $10 on each magazine, just to gain one or two patterns that I thought I'd like to try out. Where can it be purchased? If you want to learn more about Electric Quilt, visit their website online. There is a complete visual tutorial included with the program to help you learn how to use this complex program, giving you complete access to a range of quilting projects you probably could only dream about before. My suggestion for purchasing it though, go to Amazon.com! The program is located in a multitude of stores at a wide variety of prices across the country, depending on who you speak to. I found it the cheapest and fastest to get through Amazon.com. But don't take my word for it! Go ahead to Electric Quilt's website and check it out for yourself! Visit: Electric Quilt |
Do you have information, tips or suggestions that would improve this portion of TQC? Share it with me! Did you spot a bad link? Is there a sign up fee or form to fill out on any of these websites? Does it suddenly cost money to read any of the instructions?