Marking Quilts

[Janice]

Are there good books on "how to mark a quilt "?

I work very hard on design, layout and marking.

I can,easily spend a day or more figuring out a design and how it will fit, a day or more putting the design on paper. Transfering the design to the quilt is another day, This isn't even a small or tedious design. I love the finished look but I want a better method, easier and less time consuming. Do you have any ideas or is there a book or books that have good information about designing and marking a quilt? Thanks, Janice

[Primitive1]

Kim Brunner has a good class on Craftsy on using templates that covers marking the quilt as well....

[ffq-lar]

I can only add my experience, but I try to mark the "bones" and freehand the rest. Unless you're charging custom rates to cover three days of thinking, designing, drafting, and transferring the designs to the top, you're shortchanging yourself---and I hope your customers know how lucky they are!  

As for "bones", if I'm stitching an original design in a block, I mark the first two completely so I know I have a logical pathway that might let me jump to an adjacent block or one where I can SID the outside of the block first. I pay attention and get a rhythm going. I check the first stitched block to make sure it's symmetrical, is dense enough, and is well-stitched. Then I stitch the second block. To mark the next blocks, I use a template (circle, arc, oval, whatever will do the job) to mark only guidelines. Spines if feathers or scrolls, teardrops where feathers will change direction, boundaries of feathers, maybe mark the center of the block, etc. Then I hope that I can quilt duplicates all across.   If I'm not on auto-pilot by the fifth block, I've made it too complicated!

 

Sometimes I use card stock, stencil plastic, or copy paper to cut an S-curve spine. Flipping it over gives a mirrored spine, helpful when dividing feathers in the center of a border. I have a dressmakers flexible curve that can copy any drawn curve to use to make a spine, flipped to mirror. Circles and arc templates are probably my most-used objects for marking.

 

Favorites for inspiration--Deloa Jones'  "Sampler Solutions"

      Sue Heinz--several books available online.  

      Darlene Epps "Heirloom Feathers"

[Busy Quilting]

I have just purchase the Precise Pantograph System with the idea of using it for those blocks where you want to put something more complex, that requires a lot of marking, but don't want to mark.

 

Yet to put it on my machine and try it out but I am hoping it will save me all the pre marking time.

[ffq-lar]

That's a great idea Lyn, and a good use of design books or pantos you already own. My issue with that would be getting the block design exactly lined up, but carefully marking the exact size of the block on the paper design would help make sure you fit the design inside the block and "hit the marks" as you stitch. Much easier than tracing a kazillion of the same design before loading.

[Busy Quilting]

Linda that is how I plan to use it.

The front laser I found difficult to get completely square, since it was at an angle.

Now I can draw or sketch a complex design any size to fit a block and work from the back to quilt it.