Club EQ Challenge 3 inch blocks

December Club EQ

Barb Vlack, Quilting Heroine and EQ Guru, has announced the December ClubEQ challenge, and it is perfect for Inklingoists!

Design to Size

The challenge is to design with certain shapes that can be cut with an Accuquilt die cutter, but it is also open to quilters who don’t have access to one.

Designing for a specific size is a perfect introduction to ClubEQ for anyone planning to enter the Inklingo contest. Love the lines. Quilt more! which starts next month.

Limited Shapes and Sizes

The December challenge is to use certain squares and triangles.

The Inklingo LTL Contest next month will offer more shape choices, but the EQ strategy remains the same, so I’ve prepared an example. Designing for a specific size is simply a matter of setting up the quilt layout correctly.

Is it inklingoable?

This step is important for the contest next month.

I confirmed that 3-inch squares, 3-inch HSTs (half-square triangles), and 3-inch QSTs (quarter-square triangles) are all inklingoable by checking the Inklingo Index of Shapes under the Support tab.

These are all 3-inch blocks, finished—square, HST, QST, etc.

Inklingo triangles (and other shapes) are named by their finished size, so there is no need for math, such as adding or subtracting 7/8 or 1.25 inches.

Where to get the blocks in EQ?

Barb gave a great hint in her email announcement: “This is also a good time to get acquainted with Electric Quilt LIBRARIES > BlockLibrary > Search > By Category > Rectangles and Triangles.”

Many blocks have been provided in the “block library” in Electric Quilt, so you don’t have to draw them from scratch; just place them in a quilt.

I started by creating a new project and loading up the sketchbook with blocks that use squares, HST, and QST.

Since the rules require 3-inch shapes, I can see that some blocks are 6 x 6, some are 9 x 9, and some are 12 x 12.

(One of the ones shown in the sketchbook above would not work, because if the square is 3 inches, the HST would be 1.5 inches, and if the HST were 3 inches, the square would be 6 inches. They are not the sizes I want for the challenge. Can you spot it?)

These three blocks are all displayed the same size in the EQ sketchbook; however, with 3-inch units, they measure 6, 9, and 12 inches.

I must remember the sizes when setting up the quilt layout and be careful to use the blocks in the appropriate spaces.

I started with sixteen 9-inch star blocks and added a border (3 inches).

I changed my mind about using blue, and it just took a few moments to “swap colors!” This is amazing!

I added more 6 and 9-inch borders until the quilt was bed size. EQ calculates it for me! In this case, 85 x 85. Then I placed 6 and 9-inch blocks in the spaces.

I changed my mind about colors a few times, as you can see.

Then I made a few tweaks to “Layer 2” to superimpose a block in each corner. I had never used Layer 2 before, but I found everything I needed to know in EQ Help.

I liked the way it blended the “borders” I had started with, so I kept playing on Layer 2. Isn’t this cool?

If I want to, I can find fabric swatches in the “fabric library” and improve the design.

This little example assumes you are familiar with the basics of EQ—setting up a new project, creating a new quilt layout, getting blocks from the library into the sketchbook, and adding borders. They are all easy, simple steps that every EQer learns quickly.

Accuquilt and Inklingo

Quilters love perfect shapes without measuring or math.

With Inklingo, you use the Inkjet printer and ink you already have to print, cut, and sew!

12 QST printing with Inklingo

Inklingo gives you perfect shapes without measuring or math, PLUS perfect stitching lines and matching marks on the fabric—for a tiny fraction of the cost of a die cutter and dies! Inklingo also uses fabric efficiently, so you don’t waste money or run out of fabric.

Inklingo quilters cut along a perfect, precise line—several layers at a time with a rotary cutter—instead of turning a crank. Inklingo quilters can use scissors instead if they prefer a more portable option.

You don’t need EQ to use Inklingo, but it is fun to design in EQ with Inklingo shapes!

Monkey and I are considering doing other examples using Barb’s December shapes.

Please let me know if you have any questions about this, okay?

Linda & Monkey