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EQ Lessons: Sashing

by Andrea Poulimenos

Did you know you can set your Block Worktable to be the size of a sash? Well just take a look at what we came up with for all these sash ideas...

 

Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it's Flying Geese!

First let's make sure we are all looking at the same thing.

1. Open EQ and start a new project.
2. Name it "EQ Lesson-Sashing1".
3. From the top menu, choose WORKTABLE - Work on Quilt.
4. From the top menu, choose QUILT - New Quilt - Horizontal.
5. Click on the Layout tab at the bottom. Enter the following for your settings:
   

   Number of Blocks: 4 horizontal, 5 vertical
   Size of Blocks: 10" x 10"
   Sashing: 2" x 2"
   Sash border: no check

6. Click on the Layer 1 tab at the bottom of your screen.
7. From the top menu, click on LIBRARIES - Block Library - EQ Libraries - 3 Paper Piecing - Flying Geese.
8. Hold your cursor over one of the blocks at the right. The name should appear as a tooltip.
9. You want to copy "Flying Geese I", "Flying Geese IV", and "Flying Geese V". These are the flying geese with 2, 3, and 4 triangles in them. To copy a block from the library, just click on it so it is selected. Then click on the Copy button.
10. Click on the Close button to close the Block Library once you have copied those three blocks.
11. On the Right toolbar: click on the Set tool.
12. Click on the "Flying Geese I" block (it has 2 triangles in it) in the palette, so it is selected.
13. Position your cursor over one of the sashes, hold down the CTRL key on your keyboard, and click (with the left mouse button) on that empty sash to set the selected block into all the sashes in that direction.
14. Hold down the CTRL key again and click on an empty sash to fill in the remaining sashes.
15. Right toolbar: click on the Rotate tool.
16. Position your cursor over one of the sash blocks that is going in the wrong direction. Hold down the CTRL key on your keyboard, and click (with the left mouse button) on that sash block to rotate it and every block that it is similar to.

    You should now have the geese in your sashes, but let's add some interest and rotate a few to get similar patches pointing at the cornerstones (blocks in the "corners" where each sash meets).

17. Now hold down the ALT key on your keyboard instead. While holding down the ALT key, click twice with the Rotate tool on one of the sashes. Three out of four isn't bad, but let's fix the last one.
18. Hold down the ALT key again, click twice on the last sash block that is pointing in the wrong direction.
19. Click on the Paintbrush tool and recolor as you wish.
20. When your happy with the look, click on the Save in Sketchbook button to save a copy of this quilt.
21. Repeat Steps 10 through 19 for the "Flying Geese IV" and "Flying Geese V" blocks to see what a difference one extra triangle makes.

    Imagine what your quilt would look like if you set in a block like this instead.

22. From the left toolbar, click on the View Sketchbook button.
23. Click on the Blocks tab.
24. Click on the "Flying Geese V" block that has 4 triangles, so it is selected.
25. Click on the Edit button.
26. Click on the Select tool at the right.
27. Hold down the SHIFT key on your keyboard as you click on each of the 3 lines in the top 2 triangles. The lines will become darker once you have them selected.
28. Click on the little black square in the bottom left of the Select tool . This will bring up the Symmetry pop-up window.
29. Click on the button that says "Rot 180". This will flip these 2 triangles upside down.
30. Your cursor should look like a crosshair with arrows at each end ... this means you can move the lines since they are still selected.
31. Click and hold with the left mouse button on one of the bolded lines. Move your mouse around as you're still holding down the left mouse button, and notice how the 2 triangles move with you.
32. Release the left mouse button once the side corner (red dot in picture above) meets up with the corner of the EasyDraw block outline.
33. Click on the Refresh button (Magnifying Glass with "=" inside).
34. Bottom tabs: click on the Color Tab.
35. Use the Paintbrush tool to color the block as you wish.
    (Note: If you lose any lines after clicking on the Refresh button, after switching to the Color Tab, or the color bleeds from one patch through to the next,... then in Step 31 the side corner did not meet up with the corner of the EasyDraw block outline well enough. Switch back to the EasyDraw tab and redraw any lines with the Line tool .)
36. When you are happy with the coloring, click on the Save in Sketchbook button .
37. From the top menu, choose WORKTABLE - Work on Quilt.
38. Follow Steps 10 through 19 to set in this new block you just drew. You may need to click on furthest right button to scroll to the colored version of the block if you only see the line drawing.
39. Click on the Save in Sketchbook button to save a copy of this quilt in your sketchbook.
40. To print out the block, click on the Select tool . Then click on one of the horizontal sash blocks.
41. From the menu at the top, choose FILE - Print - Templates.
42. Put a check next to "Size from Quilt", then click Print.

Lines Don't Have to be Boring

Look at the Sash strips. They are 10" long by 2" wide. We'll draw sash blocks that size. First we'll change the size of the block we draw in.

43. From the top menu, choose WORKTABLE - Work on Block.
44. From the top menu, choose BLOCK - New Block - Easy Draw.
45. Then choose BLOCK - Drawing Board Setup.
46. Enter the following for your settings:

    Snap to Grid Points: 40 horizontal, 24 vertical
    Block Size: 10" horizontal, 2" vertical

    Snap to Grid Points are important when Snap to Grid is enabled. These grid points "pick up" the lines when you draw. Setting the horizontal Grid points to 40 on a 10" block means we will have a grid point every 1/4". If the length of your block were not divisible by the number of Grid points you set, you would notice that the lines would "jump" or "snap" to the wrong places.

47. Click OK. Now the box you draw in is a rectangle the same size as your sash.
48. Right toolbar: click on the little black box in the bottom left corner of the Grid tool. This will bring up the "Grid Setup" pop-up window.
49. Set Columns = 1 and Rows = 3.
50. Start with your cursor in the top-left corner of the block... click and hold with the left mouse button as you move your cursor from the top-left to the bottom right of the block. Release your left mouse button.
51. Bottom tabs: Switch from EasyDraw to the Color tab.
52. Click on the Paintbrush tool . Color the block as you wish, and click on the Save in Sketchbook button .
53. Switch back from the Color tab to the EasyDraw tab.
54. Right toolbar: click on the Select tool .
55. Click on the line that is at 2/3" so it is highlighted. Click and hold on that line, and move it up to the 1/2" mark on the ruler.

    Note: if you don't know where in the world 2/3" would be, you probably don't have your Rulers turned on. Click on View in the top menu. Is there a check next to Rulers? If there is a check, just click on View again. If there isn't a check, move your cursor down to Rulers in that menu and click on it.

56. Move the other line from 1 1/3" to 1 1/2".
57. Switch from EasyDraw to the Color tab.
58. Click on the Paintbrush tool .
59. Color the block as you wish, and click on the Save in Sketchbook button .
60. From the top menu, choose WORKTABLE - Work on Quilt.
61. On the Right toolbar: click on the Set tool.
62. Click on the first block that we drew, so it is selected. Just under the enlarged block are what look like VCR play buttons ...click on the furthest right one to go to the colored version of the block.
63. Position your cursor over one of the sashes, hold down the CTRL key on your keyboard, and click (with the left mouse button) on that sash to set the selected block into all the sashes in that direction.
64. Hold down the CTRL key again and click on an empty sash to fill in the remaining sashes.
65. Right toolbar: click on the Rotate tool.
66. Position your cursor over one of the sash blocks that isn't going the correct direction. Hold down the CTRL key on your keyboard, and click (with the left mouse button) on that sash block to rotate it and also all the other blocks that it is similar to.
67. Click on the Paintbrush tool , and color in the cornerstone block (square block where the sashes meet).
68. Recolor as you wish.
69. Once you've found a coloring you like, click on the Save in Sketchbook button to save this quilt.
70. Click on the Set tool again .
71. Click on the 2nd block that we drew so it is selected. (Click the right arrow button to display the colored version of the block.)
72. Use the same CTRL + click, then rotate procedure (in Steps 63-66) to set this block into your quilt sashes.
73. Recolor as you wish , and save a copy in your sketchbook .

So, now we have 2 quilts in our sketchbook.

gives us

gives us

Imagine what your quilt would look like if you set one of these blocks in the cornerstone.

Or, what would happen if you rotated the blocks this way instead?

Better yet, the 2 blocks we drew are great for editing.

74. Click on your View Sketchbook button .
75. Click on the Blocks tab.
76. Click on one of the blocks we drew, so it is selected.
77. Click on Edit.
78. Use the Line tool to add extra lines.
79. At the bottom, switch to the Color tab.
80. Color this new version and click on Save in Sketchbook .
81. From the top menu, choose WORKTABLE - Work on Quilt.
82. Set the colored version of your new block into the sashes and see what happens. Rotate and recolor as necessary.
83. Click on Save in Sketchbook to save a copy of your quilt in the sketchbook.
84. From the menu at the top, choose FILE - Save to save your project.
85. To print out a sash block, click on the Select tool . Then click on one of the horizontal sash blocks.
86. From the menu at the top, choose FILE - Print - Templates.
87. Put a check next to "Size from Quilt", then click Print.

Your first sash project is done. Next time you design a quilt, try adding some interest with your sashing.

Or, if you're looking for a good going-away present for someone, try a smaller version of these quilts as a signature quilt. Have everyone in the office sign a plain muslin square, and sew the sashing in between.