Quilted Diamonds FAQ

Quilted Diamonds and Quilted Diamonds 2 by Linda Franz

Q. Are the diamonds in Quilted Diamonds 2 (QD2) the same as the diamonds in Quilted Diamonds (QD1)?

A. No! They are all different!

The diamonds in both books are the same size, so you can mix and match but the designs are all different.

Quilted Diamonds 2 by Linda Franz

I sewed three versions of each of the diamonds in QD2 and I photographed them from the back too! What other publisher would require an author to provide photos of the back of her work? (Tough boss, eh?)

Print shapes on fabric with Inklingo

Q. Can I print all of the shapes for Quilted Diamonds with Inklingo?

A. NO!

A few setting shapes for QD diamonds are inklingo-able, but both QD1 and QD2 were published years before Inklingo was invented.

The diamonds in QD1 and QD2 are NOT inklingo-able and probably never will be.

There are hundreds of diamonds in the two books with hundreds of odd shapes, and sometimes a particular shape is only used one time in one diamond. This works perfectly with the freezer paper template method taught in the books—complete design freedom!

However, most Inklingo shape collections have 5 or 6 shapes (some exceptions). A QD shape collection would require HUNDREDS of different shapes. It could not be a $15 or $20 Inklingo shape collection!

Inklingo for Quilted Diamonds

The new Inklingo for QD shape collection (INKQD) is a small, inexpensive shape collection with a few setting pieces, so if you piece some diamonds from QD1 or QD2, Inklingo will make it easier to assemble a quilt top. You can turn your hand pieced diamonds into squares by machine too!

I think this new shape collection is a nice way to ease into Inklingo if you haven’t tried it yet. (Where have you been since 2006?)

Hand piecing with a running stitch

Q. What technique is taught in the books?

A. Hand piecing with a running stitch. (NOT English Paper Piecing)

The pre-Inklingo hand piecing technique taught in the books is WONDERFUL and it is still the technique I prefer to use when I print the shapes on fabric with Inklingo.

The QD method uses freezer paper templates and a running stitch. It is faster, simpler, more precise, and more portable than English Paper Piecing. It is my favorite technique although I also enjoy machine piecing and appliqué with Inklingo.

Linda Franz on Simply Quilts 2002

A Little History of Quilted Diamonds

In 2002—when I was young—I was on Simply Quilts with Alex Anderson with Quilted Diamonds, so I was quite well known for hand piecing when I invented Inklingo.

In the early years, I felt that Quilted Diamonds limited Inklingo—that QD made it hard to spread the word because as soon as anyone heard my name, they thought “hand piecing,” “dinky little pieces,” and “fussy miniature work.” To my surprise, some designers did not see the potential for machine piecing and appliqué at all! Imagine!

I resisted re-printing Quilted Diamonds 2 for years because I thought it might hurt Inklingo. I think the fact that Inklingo is fabulous for machine piecing and appliqué is established now, so I don’t worry much about that anymore.

There is one more reason for re-printing QD2 now too. Almost every day I hear from quilters who are looking for an alternative to EPP (all the rage in some places), so I thought it could help many quilters if I brought back QD2 with the hand piecing lesson.

Quilted Diamonds

Q. What can I do with the CDs for Quilted Diamonds?

A. If you have Electric Quilt software (EQ4 or newer), you can print the diamond designs instead of tracing them onto freezer paper to make templates.

This is a very frequent Quilted Diamonds FAQ. At the time the books were published, EQ4 was the latest thing from Electric Quilt.  Now we use EQ7! In 2002, I was the first author or publisher to offer an optional CD, so quilters could print instead of trace. It was revolutionary.

The QD CDs are $10 extra. The CDs do NOT allow you to print on fabric in the way we do for Inklingo. It would be a mess of black ink everywhere because EQ does not print the outlines in anything but black ink—the worst!

Quilted Diamonds 2 DVD lesson

Q. Should I buy Quilted Diamonds (QD1) first?

A. Not necessarily.

The hand piecing technique is the same in QD1 and QD2, but if you are just buying one book, I recommend QD2 because it includes the 2-hour lesson on DVD for the same price—great value!

It is like taking a private lesson with me.

The hand piecing method in my Quilted Diamonds books is the one I recommend to quilters who write to me almost every day looking for an alternative to English Paper Piecing—what we call “English Paper Piecing Rescue.

When Inklingo shapes are available, it simplifies and speeds up the preparation compared to using freezer paper templates, but even if you have to make all of the freezer paper templates yourself à la QD, it is still much faster and more precise for most quilters compared to any of the methods taught for EPP.

Love & Friendship from QD1

In QD1, in addition to hand piecing instructions, there are comprehensive, illustrated chapters on appliqué, the setting for Love & Friendship (above), quilting designs, and my famous instructions for a scalloped binding, which are not in QD2.

Q. Where can I order?

A. There are descriptions of the books and “add to cart” buttons on these pages:

Main Quilted Diamonds Page

QD1 (Quilted Diamonds, the first book, with or without CD)

QD2 (Quilted Diamonds 2, with or without CD)

INKQD (shape collection, only $15 for a limited time)

Postage

A NOTE ABOUT POSTAGE – USA

I can fit 2 books in one Priority or Global Priority envelope!

However, f you want 3 books, two envelopes are required. I cannot fit QD1, QD2, Millefiori Quilts, or Millefiori Quilts 2 in one flat-rate envelope.

A NOTE ABOUT POSTAGE – CANADA

Unfortunately, Canada Post restricts the thickness of flat-rate Xpresspost envelopes, so if you order two books, postage from the USA to Canada usually costs less. I look at every order individually and provide the least expensive option.

There is never a “handling fee” and I refund the difference if there is an option that costs less than the postage added by the website.

UPDATING THE WEBSITE

I received the reprint of Quilted Diamonds 2 from the printer two weeks ago, but I had not finished the shape collection and I was not quite ready to make an announcement. I was bursting with the news!

However, I knew that many quilters would want both Millefiori Quilts 2 and Quilted Diamonds 2 and if they were announced at the same time, quilters could order both and save on postage.

I could not control the timing of Millefiori 2, so it all happened fast. I did not have time to polish the pages for Quilted Diamonds on the website the way I wanted to. I will be doing that work when the first rush of orders is looked after. In the meantime, I hope these FAQs will help.

If you have any other questions, please ask!

Inklingo on Facebook

ARE YOU SUBSCRIBED?

I will be sharing more photos on the Inklingo Facebook page too.

Thank you for visiting!

Linda & Monkey

Love Inklingo badge

25 Signs YOU are an Inklingo Quilter

11 thoughts on “Quilted Diamonds FAQ”

  1. Hello I have admired your work and also have had your inklingo book for a long time. Now I have more time to experiment with different patterns.
    I have seen a log cabin quilt based of a triangle centre.
    Have you made a log cabin this way and joined the blocks on point. Also please Do you have any tips I can use. I live in Australia.
    Many thanks.
    Sylvia

    Reply
  2. Hi Linda, have 2 questions:
    Do QD1 & QD2 have the same # of patterns for diamonds in each?

    Would the centers of the 300 Hexagons fit in these diamonds?

    Thanks!
    JEC

    Reply
  3. Hi Linda,
    is it possible the CDs being downloadable? I have had QD1& QD2 for years, but I didn’t use EQ. Now I am using EQ7, would like to have those files too. Thanks!

    Reply
  4. I’m so happy you’ve decided to reprint QD2 I have QD1 and have always wanted the second book and CD. Thank you so much for all you do Linda.

    Reply
  5. Thanks so much for reminding me about your hand piecing lesson in QD2. I’ve owned it for a long time, but haven’t watched it recently. I just watched it again. It’s just as good now, I learned a lot (again) and have decided to make my Millafore hexagon quilt by your hand piecing method. I just don’t like EPP, but I do like hand piecing.
    I will be recommending it to all my friends.

    Reply

Leave a Reply to Cindy Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.