CONTENTS: Announcements -  Ask EQ -  Free Stuff -  Works For Me -  Show & Tell -  Quilter Community -  Quilt University -  A Quilt for Sean -  Club EQ -  Make it Simpler Paper Piecing -  EQ Mac Users Group -  Let's Make Marshmallows -  EQ & HP Sponsor Computer Labs -  Coming Soon from EQ -  Our Booth in Houston

EQ the Mouse

Ask EQ

Our mascot, EQ the Mouse, answers frequently asked questions. This time he gets some help from Barb Vlack, author of EQ5 Quilt Design.

Q: How can I see the size of my project?

A: To see the size of your project:

1 Click FILE - Open.

2 When the Open/New box appears, click the tab for opening a project.

3 Click the "Click here to open a project not listed above" folder at bottom-left.

4 Find your project and click once on it to select it.

5 Right-click and choose Properties. The project size shows there.

Coloring

Q: When I color a block and Save in Sketchbook, why don't I see my coloring?

A: You sometimes need to use the colorings arrows, in the Blocks palette and in the Sketchbook, if you do not see your colorings.

Here's some explanation:

Colorings get "stacked" on the block drawing. Each time you color a block, and click Save in Sketchbook, a new coloring gets stacked on top of your block drawing.

Each block can hold up to 10 different colorings. For the 11th coloring, a new block drawing gets saved, and the whole stacking process begins again. Blocks that you take out of the library have 2 colorings already -- grayscale and full-color.

To page back and forward through the stacked colorings you use the small arrows beneath the blocks -- these arrows appear in the Sketchbook - Blocks tab and also on the Blocks palette.

So, to see your colorings, use the arrows:

Left-most arrow = Back to the first -- always the line drawing of the block.

Second from left = Back to the previous

Third from left = Forward to the next

Right-most arrow = Last coloring

Printing

Q: Can two Dear Jane blocks (or EQ blocks) be printed on one page?.

A: Barb Vlack resplies: You can print two different 4 1/2" blocks on one page, in Block mode only, with a little manipulation. It's a two-step process. You print one block at the top of the page, then turn the page around to print the second block. The page is 8 1/2 " x 11". If you want a foundation pattern of two blocks, this will work only if the foundation is one unit and you do not print the seam allowance around the outside of the block.

1 Choose the Print option of Block.

2 Click Page Setup. Change the bottom margin of your paper to 6.0 inches.

3 Click OK.

4 On the Options tab, do _not_ check "Print block name."

5 Print out block #1.

6 Take the paper out of the printer and turn it around so the bottom edge is now the top edge of the next printout. Your options should remain set from the previous printout, but it's always good to check.

7 Print out the next block. You cannot get rid of the little ID statement at the bottom of the page, but I would just ignore it. OR you can print two copies of one block on a single page by going to Options in the Print dialog box. Do _not_ check "Print block name." _Do_ check "Print as many as fit." On the Page Setup, be sure your bottom margin is .5".

I operate from my laptop just about all the time, and my little printer is usually at my side. So it is no problem for me to turn the paper with hardly any additional effort. I would definitely want to print two copies on one page of freezer paper, cut 8 1/2" x 11". However, if I am cutting my own freezer paper, I could just as easily cut it 8 1/2" x 14" and then I could print out a foundation pattern with seam allowances. Just manipulate the bottom margin in page setup to make EQ position all the pattern pieces at the top of the page instead of the center. Always Preview before printing and make adjustments.

Q: Why can't I get rotary cutting instructions for plain blocks I've colored on my Baby Blocks table runner from the EQ5 Layout Library?

A: EQ5 won't give you rotary cutting instructions for your Baby Block block because it knows you just colored the block space, and there really isn't a block set into the space. So fool EQ5 by setting a block into the space. To do this:

1 Click WORKTABLE - Work on block.

2 Click the Color tab.

3 Color the block any color (it doesn't matter what color—you just want the block colored so you can set it onto the quilt.)

4 Click Save in Sketchbook. EQ5 will ask if you want to save a blank block. Click Yes.

5 Click WORKTABLE—Work on quilt. If you have that project open, you should see your baby block tablerunner there.

6 Click the Set tool. If you don't see your blank block showing with color, click the right-pointing arrow beneath the block to display your block coloring.

7 Click to set the block into any block space, just for printing purposes.

8 Click FILE - Print - and you will now be able to choose Rotary Cutting.

A word about rotary cutting:

Rotary cutting dimensions are nearly always approximations. For example, the 7/8 inch that quilters conventionally add for half-square triangles is really .85355 inches, rounded off to the nearest 1/8 inch so that we can read it on the ruler. Experienced quilters in fact cut a little "shy" in this case, since .85355 is a little less than 7/8.

This applies, of course, to the dimensions given in EQ5 rotary cutting printouts. Because of this, the rotary cutting instructions may not always be the best guide to cutting your block.

Here are some things that you should know when deciding on the best type of pattern to use for a given block.

1. EQ5 gives the conventional results. In simple cases, rectangles and triangles in even sizes, for example, EQ5 gives the same results as conventional quilter's wisdom. It adds 1 1/4 inch to the finished size of quarter-square triangles, for example, just like the books.

But, EQ5 gives rotary cutting dimensions even in cases where the conventional rules of thumb do not apply. Here you need to be aware that rounding off to the nearest 1/8 or 1/16 inch may produce inaccuracies. The inaccuracies produced by rounding off can become significant if the finished sizes of patches are not easily measured on common rulers.

2. Templates may be used as a check. EQ5 templates are always accurate. If you are uncertain about rotary cutting dimensions in some case, print the templates as a check. The actual (unrounded) dimensions for rotary cutting may be measured from the dotted (seam allowance) lines on the templates. First extend the dotted lines until they cross. Then measure the resulting total length and height.

Sew Precise

Q: I have all three Sew Precise programs. Can I link them?

A: Yes. If you all three Sew Precise programs and have them installed on your computer, you can choose to have all of them displayed in Sew Precise 4. Here's how to link them all to Sew Precise 4:

1 Choose Link Sew Precise... from the FILE menu to display the link dialog.

2 Click the Browse button and navigate to the Lib folder of your other versions of Sew Precise. If you've chosen the default installation locations for the other versions, you'll find them in the following locations:

Sew Precise 1&2:C:\Program Files\Sew Precise\Lib

Sew Precise 3:C:\Program Files\Shirley Liby Designs for Sew Precise!\Lib

Drawing

Q: How can I draw a 60 degree diamond?

A: Barb Vlack tells you how:

1. Click WORKTABLE - Work on Block.

2 Click BLOCK - New Block - EasyDraw.

3 Click BLOCK - Drawing Board Setup. Make the Snap to Grid Points 24 Horizontal 24 Vertical. Make the Block Size 6 Horizontal 6 Vertical.

[Note: if you have Advanced Drawing Features turned on, you want Snap to grid and Snap to Nodes on.

3 Click OK.

4 Click VIEW. Rulers should have a checkmark next to it. Click on Rulers if it is unchecked.

5 Click the Line tool.

6 Draw a diagonal line across the block from the upper-left corner to the lower-right corner.

7 Click on the black square on the Edit tool (or right-oclick on the worktable to get the Edit Arc box.

8 Click the diagonal line, to select it.

9 Click the word Thirds on the Edit Arc box.

Now comes some drawing that is not going to look like the target block ... yet.

10 Click the Line tool.

11 Draw a diagonal line connecting the grid dot at 2" on the top outline of the block to the grid dot at 4" on the right side of the block.

12 Draw another diagonal line connecting the grid dot at 2" on the left side of the block to the grid dot at 4" on the bottom outline of the block.

13 Draw a 4" square in the upper-left corner of the block. You'll be drawing horizontal and vertical lines at 4", using the rulers as guides. One corner of this square will meet a grid dot on the diagonal line.

14 Draw another 4" square in the lower-right corner of the block. You'll be drawing horizontal and vertical lines at 2", using the rulers as guides. Again, one corner of this square will meet a grid dot on the diagonal line.

15 Click the Color tab and color your block.

16 Click Save in Sketchbook.

17 Click WORKTABLE - Work on Quilt.

18 Click QUILT - New Quilt - Baby Blocks.

19 Click the Layout tab to change number of blocks and size. Set the block size large with a reduced number of blocks.

20 Click Layer 1.

21 Click the block in the Blocks palette. Click the right-pointing arrow if you do not see your block in color -- to see your coloring.

22 Use CTRL + click to set the block in all spaces. You will have to rotate some block sets to get them seated properly. OR you can set this block into a Variable Point quilt layout with the blocks sized in the proportion of 1:1.75.

23 Click the Select tool.

24 Click on a block in the quilt

25 Click FILE - Print and choose your pattern option. Be sure to choose "Size from quilt" in order to skew the square block to a 60 degree diamond. If you're wanting a foundation pattern from this block, you may have to manually select the sections.

Importing

Q: Is there any way to import embroidery designs into EQ5?

A: You can only import .bmp (bitmap) designs. So if you wanted to make your embroidery designs .bmp designs you can bring them in in the same way you would import pictures (photos) and use them in your quilt. See page 162-3 in the EQ5 Design Cookbook, "Importing Pictures." Your backgrounds won't be transparent, unfortunately, as we needed to do some special stuff to make the embroidery backgrounds in the program to be transparent. But you can see what they look like in the quilt even though they'll have a white background around them. You would use them in the same way you would use photographs, as described in the Cookbook.

Q: How can I import .jpg photos?

A: You'll need to convert the .jpg photos to .bmp photos. You can do this through Paint, which comes with Windows. Page 158 in your lime green EQ5 Design Cookbook has illustrations of how to find it. You will open the .jpg photo you would like to import in Paint. Click File > Save As. Choose one of the *.bmp options from the "Save as type:" list. Click the Save button. Repeat for each photo you would like to import.

Now, to import the photos you've turned into bitmaps, see page 162-3 in the EQ5 Design Cookbook.

CONTENTS: Announcements -  Ask EQ -  Free Stuff -  Works For Me -  Show & Tell -  Quilter Community -  Quilt University -  A Quilt for Sean -  Club EQ -  Make it Simpler Paper Piecing -  EQ Mac Users Group -  Let's Make Marshmallows -  EQ & HP Sponsor Computer Labs -  Coming Soon from EQ -  Our Booth in Houston