A little quilt designing fun with Electric Quilt!

Do you love dreaming up your own quilt designs and bringing them to life? If so, have you ever tried Electric Quilt Software?

My journey with Electric Quilt began way back with EQ5! Over the years, I’ve had so much fun designing quilts with the software, including my very first published pattern, Feathered Christmas. Back then, I relied on several of EQs wonderful books to learn the program, and while they were incredibly helpful, there’s nothing quite like watching someone demonstrate a technique, right?

So when Electric Quilt invited me to take and review one of their classes, I was thrilled! And even after years of using the software, I discovered a few new tricks along the way.

Electric Quilt provided complimentary access to the class in exchange for my review. All opinions are my own.

What is Electric Quilt?

If you’re unfamiliar with EQ8, it’s an amazing tool for designing quilts of practically any size. The software includes thousands of quilt blocks you can use as they are, modify, or create your own. You can audition fabrics from the software’s library or import your own, experiment with color combinations, print templates for piecing, applique, foundation paper piecing, and even calculate fabric yardage!

The class

Electric Quilt offers a series of online classes, beginning with Beginner, followed by Next Steps, and Master Skills. There’s also a Foundation Paper Piecing Class which in next on my wish list!

Since I’ve been using EQ for so many years, I jumped right into the Master Skills Class. However, if you haven’t taken any of their classes, I recommend starting with the Beginner Class and working your way through. Each class builds on the previous one, and you don’t want to miss all those helpful tips along the way.

The online classroom is easy to navigate, with well organized video lessons, downloadable resources, and practice files for both Mac and Windows. You can work at your own pace, ask questions, and even upload your practice quilts!

And a special shout-out to our instructor, Jenny! She’s fabulous at explaining techniques clearly and sharing those little tips that make learning even the more advanced features enjoyable.

So, what will you learn?

The class begins with designing on-point-quilts, covering everything from measurements and layouts to adding blocks and creating your own designs.

Then comes one of my favorite parts, playing with color and fabrics! You’ll learn how to experiments with different colorways, import fabrics, and see how dramatically color placement can change a quilt’s appearance. And you know me, I LOVE color! I could easily spend hours playing with all the possibilities, haha!

Next, you’ll explore Baby Blocks, creating fascinating optical illusions and secondary designs simply by changing color and block placement. It’s amazing what you can accomplish with a few shapes and a little imagination!

Another lesson I especially enjoyed was learning how to take a photograph of those leftover orphan blocks we all seem to collect and bring them into EQ8 to create an entirely new quilt. What a wonderful way to give those forgotten blocks new life!

And there’s so much more! You’ll explore working with curves, drawing intricate stars, foundation paper piecing, designing medallion quilts, and even creating a quilt label. Yes, quilt labels! Something we should all remember to add to our quilts, right?

Final thoughts

What I loved most was discovering new ways to use the tools I’ve had at my fingertips for years. Sometimes it’s the little shortcuts or a different approach to something you’ve been doing forever that makes all the difference!

Would I recommend the class? Absolutely! Whether you’re new to EQ8 or have been designing for years, there’s always something new to learn. If you’re just beginning your EQ journey, start with the Beginner Class and build your skills from there.

A little something for you!

If  you’ve been thinking about purchasing EQ8 or upgrading your software, Electric Quilt has generously provided a 25% discount!

Simply enter __ at checkout.

A big thank you to Electric Quilt for inviting me to experience the Master Skills Class. I had such a wonderful time and can’t wait to put some of these newly discovered techniques to work!

Now I’d love to hear from you! Do you use Electric Quilt to design your quilts, or is it something you’ve been thinking about trying? Let me know in the comments!

Happy quilting and designing,

Cherry