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Applique Rulers - Recommendations?


Hawaii

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I am in the market for a ruler to help me with quilting around an applique. I am leaning towards Deloa's appliguide, but are there others out there?

Please share your opinions/experiences/recommendations - I am a firm believer on "from a multitude of counselors"!

Mahalo...

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Hi Barbara. I used Deloa's Appliguide on the pansy quilt and really liked it a lot. this was the first appliqued quilt I had done so I don't have any other experience to tell you about. I liked it because I could either use it around my hoping foot or I also just laid it on the edge of the applique and held on to it like any ruler and it worked great both ways.

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The one I have is a huge heart shape, and it works well, but I would think Deloa's would be a better purchase, as it will fit better into your hand. I have big hands and this one is still to large even for me...when I get a few dollars ahead I too will be getting the one from Deloa.

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I have the one that Bonnie mentioned, but don't find it helpful. I am not comfortable with having it around the foot, I didn't feel I could move it easily. I much prefer to just use by itty bitty and guide it around the applique. The itty bitty is much more flexible as far as where I want to put it as it is not attached to the foot. The combo of the Itty Bitty and ER wheels makes stitching around applique quite easy.

Barbara, you will see soon how the wheels help with the detail work ;)

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I also use the Appliguide for curves and do like it, I also use the itty bitty for those straight lines and have something that curves in for those circles to go around. I guess I am used to keeping a ruler on the same side of my hopping foot so I use a combination of these three. I too am not comfortable hooking something to the hopping foot.

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I have Linda Taylor's Applique Helper. It is straight on one side, and scalloped on the other, about 10 inches long and 2.5 inches wide. It has a hole for the hopping foot and goes on easily. It's a lot handier than putting on my micro handles to do close work. You can hold it with both hands just like the micro handles but it's even closer to the work than the micro handles. You do need an extended base underneath the quilt.

I usually just take the bull by the horns and eyeball it around the applique. Deloa's appliguide sounds and looks like a jewel of a tool.

http://www.deloasquiltshop.com/deloasonlinestore/appliguide.html

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I just started using DeLoa's appliguide and love it. It has helped me tremendously when stitching around flowers with lots of twists and turns. I had been using the itty bitty, which is still my favorite for straight lines. When using it you do feel the hopping foot jumping up and down and that took some getting used to, but all in all, I'm so happy I bought it.

Jessica

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Okay,

More questions:

For those using the appliguide, I can see there is a cut out for the foot and some use it, some don't (out of fear?) - is there a possibility of the foot jumping out and hitting the ruler??? Or does it fit snugly?

Does it take eye/hand coordination, to move the machine and guide the ruler against the applique? I never was good at patting my head and rubbing my tummy!!

I do have a "Little Girl" ruler that I use all the time, for guiding and straight lines; and a set of circles, swags (Thank you, Mary Beth), and a set of Terry Twist Rulers. But nothing applique specific.

Thank you ALL for your recommendations.

Barb

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I also have Deloa's appliguide, and just used it to outline all the faux applique blocks on my Baltimore album wedding quilt. It works like a dream, altho I did figure out that you can cross your eyes if you focus right on the needle and hopping foot. I seemed to think I needed to watch there to make sure it didn't come out of the guide! Anyway, just like your regular quilting, it seems to work better if you look a few stitches ahead and guide towards those spots. But I loved it!!

PS It also seemed to be more stable when I remembered to hold it down on the quilt with my whole hand - - less chance of it hopping up with the hopping foot.

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When I'm stitching with my LT guide, I have to remember to NOT press down on the ruler. But at the same time I don't want to lift it either. When I press down, it's causing friction and the machine doesn't like the drag. When I lift up, the ruler becomes unstable and there's more chance of the hopping foot hopping where it shouldn't! I try to focus on using the ruler to move the hopping foot, keeping it even/level with the band of metal that is the foot. Does that make sense? Rulers can be our friends and they can cause trouble at the same time. Just be careful----and have fun!

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It does feel like the foot might hop right out of it but it hasn't happened.....yet. I actually don't think it will. I haven't had a problem with eye hand coordination and find it easy to use as long as I remember to control with both arms evenly. My tendency at first was to primarily use the muscles in my right arm, which was the one holding onto the machine. I did much better though when I gave some of the responsibility to my left arm too. I don't know if that makes any sense to anybody but me.

Jessica

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i have deloa's guide, and i'm not crazy about it....i use my microdrive handles when i outline applique. (i use my left hand on the guide and my right hand on the microdrive's right handle. i put the left one up outta the way) it takes some 'holding-your-mouth-just-right" but once you get a rhythm, it's good to go from there.

deloa's guide (at least for me) has never jumped out and jammed anything. i'm not a fan because it doesn't rotate around the foot. the shape of the hole for the foot pretty much keeps it in front of the foot, but sometimes you need it to swing behind so you can see...

i use the itty bitty, and i have lakeside quilt company's applique guide thing...it has 4 divots for the hopping foot

i like it the bestest....

JMHO...

post--13461902721525_thumb.jpg

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