EQ7 Stencils and Thread Tool…

  Today let’s talk about adding quilting to our designs….

Layer 3 is used to set stencils or quilting designs, thread and embroidery.

There is a Block Library catagory 07Stencils. These designs will show up on the Stencils tab. But, any motif or block can be used as a stencil. When set on layer 3 blocks will appear as an outline image (today’s tutorial).

Here I’ve zoomed in to the upper left corner of the quilt. You can zoom in and out as needed.

• Click Set Block tool . I’m going to use a block as a stencil. Select the Four X block and drag it to the quilt. The block will appear as a black outline or stencil.

 

The block is bigger than our quilt square and needs to be adjusted.The steps to set and adjust a stencil will be similar to setting the motif design on Layer 2.

• Click the Adjust tool and click the stencil to select it.
• On the Graph Pad, resize the stencil to 3 x 3 which is the size of the corner block.

• Drag the stencil in to place over the corner block. You can use the arrow keys on the keyboard or the tool bar to fine tune your moving.

TADA! A quilting stencil has been added….But wait there’s more….

 

Set Thread Tool

Let’s add the Set Thread tool . This is a hidden tool that needs to be added to the tool bar.

• Click Customize Tool Bar>Click Add Remove Buttons>Check the Set Thread tool to add it.
• Click the Set Thread tool on the tool bar and a dialog box will open.

Set the following…

Check COLOR and select a color thread.
Check STYLE and click the dashed line
Check WEIGHT and click the second line thickness.

• Click the little arrow on the corner of the Set Thread tool to open the flyout menu. Select the tool you want to color with.

Thread Paintbrush – colors one line at a time
Thread Spraycan – colors all lines in the block at once
Thread Color Swap – colors all the lines in the quilt layer

• Click on the lines of the Four X block to recolor it with thread. Click Refesh to remove any remaining black lines.
• Save to Sketchook . This step is important to register the changes to the design. If you skip this step it will only recognise the default black block when using copy and paste.
• You can use copy and paste to place the stencil on other blocks as needed.

Align Tool

Let’s make sure our stencils are perfectly aligned.

• Using the Adjsut tool, click the first stencil on the top row. Hold the Shift key and click second stencil on the top row to select them as a group.
• On the Graph Pad click the Align Top . This will use the first stencil as a guide to align the second one.
• Use this process to align stencils horizontally or vertically as needed.

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Hope you learned a new trick or two.

Hope over to enter the giveaway from Electric Quilt.

More blogs posting tips, tricks and tutorials today.

Tina of Quilting Affection

Carole of From My Carolina Home

Marian of Seams to be Sew

Pamela of Pamela Quilts

Carol of FunThreads Designs (me)

Quiltshop Gal