Would the Quilt Design Wizard help?

[Margarita]

I have all the fabric for a quilt called Highlight and want to incorporate some dresden blocks and some split circles instead of some of the plain squares, I do have a large design wall but this is a queen size quilt and I am so stuck. Have seriously considered scanning individual components of blocks, printing them and colour photocopying to "play" with them and get it right. I just cannot "see" it on the design wall, or I have to cut all the blocks I think I will need and then find I have hacked up some gorgeous material un-necessarily. This is doing my head in, so then I looked on Amazon and see there is a thing called the Quilt Design Wizard. Would that help - I can spring for the $20 or so but the EQ7 is too expensive. Maybe there is a simple solution to this that I just don't know about. Just when I should really be making some simple quilted Christmas tree ornaments to send to my daughter in the UK this is doing my stubborn head in and I am loathe to leave it until 2013 unless I can work out what I am going to do!! :?

[kathyst2]

Margarita, I think Quilt Design wizard is a program that has a limited number of blocks available to use, in a limited number of sets. I got it for my Mom, who doesn't like computers. There aren't any very complex blocks in their library. Not sure it would do what you want!
Kathy

[Margo]

You get what you pay for!

[Margarita]

Well I am glad not to pay out the $20, I shall have to research the EQ7 and see what it does and if I could do it. I think I will put it all away for now and see how I feel in the New Year when I look again, thanks for the replies.

[Zarah]

Before computers I would work on a see through paper put on top of the pattern print and then draw different suggestions to myself. I think you could do that to just get a visual feeling for how your ideas would work. This is just a pencil drawing.
Then you could put some colors on it, or even use blocks from a copy of your pattern and then play around with it in colors.
I think that EQ7 would help, but there is a learning curve there too.

[Zarah]

there was a show on TQS, I forget which one, where they showed just using the Paint program that comes on most computers. Take a photo (or draw a basic one in Paint) and then shrink the photo and copy, paste, etc. to get the layout you want. Could even do this in Word (insert photo, highlight, copy, paste) and in fact, maybe that was the program used.

Perhaps that would work for this? Like your photocopying idea, w/o actually having to print a bunch.

[Zarah]

there was a show on TQS, I forget which one, where they showed just using the Paint program that comes on most computers. Take a photo (or draw a basic one in Paint) and then shrink the photo and copy, paste, etc. to get the layout you want. Could even do this in Word (insert photo, highlight, copy, paste) and in fact, maybe that was the program used.

Perhaps that would work for this? Like your photocopying idea, w/o actually having to print a bunch.

I use a combination of this (Paint) with paper & pencils for designing WotRott. I am currently doing a course on how to use Gimp, which is similiar to Photoshop, but available free, and reckon that this will make designing even easier - once I can remember where to find all the doo-hickies it has :wink:

[Margo]

there was a show on TQS, I forget which one, where they showed just using the Paint program that comes on most computers. Take a photo (or draw a basic one in Paint) and then shrink the photo and copy, paste, etc. to get the layout you want. Could even do this in Word (insert photo, highlight, copy, paste) and in fact, maybe that was the program used.

Perhaps that would work for this? Like your photocopying idea, w/o actually having to print a bunch.

You may be talking about Show 1004 with Nancy Prince. She is using PhotoShop Elements at minute 28 in the video:
http://watch/watch-shows/video/show-...ng-with-thread

[Margo]

No, Margo, it's an older show....maybe series 700 or 800......definitely was using either Word or Paint, and she showed how you can just insert photo (of your block or fabric or whatever), shrink it, copy that photo, paste it next to the 1st, then copy the 2, paste those 2 next to the first 2, then highlight the whole row and paste below for however many rows you wish to do. Fast and easy "design wall" method.

It *might* have been the show with the Mexican tile inspired quilts. I know she showed some ways of printing out the block and pasting onto little foam core samples, and she might be the one who showed also about the "high tech" way of doing it in Word. Can't remember for sure. anyway, it's a good little trick

[Margo]

Hmmmm....not ringing a bell, but sounds useful!! Anyone remember where that info is????

[Margo]

For what it's worth...Electric Quilt 7 costs $189.95 USD http://electricquilt.com/online-shop/electric-quilt-7/

PhotoShop Elements is usually about $100 but you can find it on sale for $49 http://dealshout.com/computers/adobe...FQGFnQodvSkASw

And there are free trial downloads: http://www.adobe.com/cfusion/tdrc/in...nts&loc=us

Of course, any software requires a learning curve. On line classes for using PSE for designing quilts are available through Step On Pins: http://moodle.steponpins.com/

[Margarita]

Thank you Margo, I love the idea of classes for using PSE - makes buying it worthwhile.

[Margarita]

Hmmmm....not ringing a bell, but sounds useful!! Anyone remember where that info is????

found it

episode 811 with Cheryl Lynch. I'm not a star member so can't link the actual video, but that's the one where she shows how she uses Word to design/look at designs.

[Margo]

Good catch Heather!!! An excellent show to revisit! The info we are looking for starts at minute 19:25
http://watch/watch-shows/video/show-...nspired-quilts

[Margarita]

I never expected a completely new solution to the problem,what a lovely surprise. I just watched the show and I can do that, it even looks like fun and what I really like is that if I get stuck I can just go back and watch again! Thank you so much.