Introduction to Inklingo
Printing on fabric makes it more likely you can finish what you start and love the results. This short video explains how the printing works.
Inklingo Shape Collections are big PDF files which open with Adobe Reader, so you can print pages of shapes on fabric. Fabric goes through the printer just like paper when it is ironed to freezer paper.
I draw the layouts of shapes to use fabric efficiently. You print them. It ensures that you start with precise shapes, so it is easier for you to sew.
Printing on fabric makes everything possible, whether you are sewing hexagons, triangles, or any other design.
Three simple things work together to make Inklingo perfect for quilters.
- Test Pages
- Custom Page Sizes
- Layouts of Shapes
Most quilters are hooked on Inklingo as soon as they see their first sheet of fabric printed with Inklingo shapes, so we want you to print your first sheet now.
The lines are very fine and perfect, and the advantages are clear—it is easier to cut on a line without any measuring, and it is easier to sew with a line to follow.
TRY IT NOW
Print your first shapes in the next few minutes by following the steps on this page.
Print a test on a scrap of fabric and be confident that the ink in your printer will wash out even after pressing. All 20 Inklingo colors probably will wash out.
It doesn’t hurt to leave ink in the quilt, but you need to test to be sure it will not bleed or show on the front. (Illustrated on the blog)
Test Pages give you confidence.
Inklingo uses a feature in the software of ordinary printers which allows you to print any size to use fabric efficiently to get exactly the number of shapes you need.
Before Inklingo, I had only printed standard sizes and I did not know I could enter other sizes in the print dialog box. It’s easy, but there are step-by-step instructions under the Getting Started tab.
When you have done it once, you are an expert. You can print the shapes for anything from Grandmother’s Flower Garden to New York Beauty and Feathered Star!
I recommend an ordinary 8.5 inch wide printer for Inklingo, but all of the layouts are 13 x 19. This gives us many more options for printing exactly what we need without wasting fabric. Sometimes 11.75 or 12 inches is just right.
This flexibility is great for yardage or for scraps and Jelly Rolls. It also means it is easier to see how much fabric is required.
Inklingo PDFs have hundreds of pages because each layout of shapes is provided 20 times on 20 pages, each a different ink color and line weight to show on almost any fabric.
When you have the lines printed on the fabric, you can sew by hand or by machine.
“If you’re waffling about Inklingo, stop. Get out that freezer paper, and fabric, and get printing. What’s the worst that can happen?
You’ll fall in love with the best quilting tool invented since the rotary cutter!” – Dorothy in South Carolina
“I tried printing on fabric/freezer paper for the first time yesterday — it worked perfectly! Frankly I was a wee bit dubious. But seeing how perfectly — and easily — it worked the first time I’m already a convert!” – Terri in California
“I was hesitant at first, and I love this method. I’ve pieced quilts for more years than I would like to admit but I am more than pleased with the accuracy of Inklingo. I think once you get past the fear of printing on fabric it is all easy street. I am ready for another Inklingo project. Love Inklingo.” – Betty in Oklahoma
“I am looking forward to using Inklingo with the mystery quilt. I LOVE Inklingo! It’s fun and relaxing and soooo precise.” – Hannelore in Michigan
“I know it at first it might seem a little daunting but once you start printing, it’s a such cinch that you don’t want to use anything else. It’s easier than rotary cutting, foundation paper piecing, EPP, hand piecing with FP etc.” – Karen in Nova Scotia
Most quilters are hooked on Inklingo as soon as they see their first sheet of fabric printed with Inklingo shapes, so we want you to print your first sheet now.
The lines are very fine and perfect, and the advantages are clear—it is easier to cut on a line without any measuring, and it is easier to sew with a line to follow.
TRY IT NOW
Print your first shapes in the next few minutes by following the steps on this page.