A Nice Acrylic Board Addition
Quilting friends just r.o.c.k. don’t you think?! I mean seriously, is there a nicer group of people anywhere? I don’t think so. Several quilting friends suggested that I pick up a sheet of plexiglass to audition quilting patterns. I was able to do so this weekend, and it is so cool! It’s technically an acrylic board which may or may not be the same as plexiglass?
Pre Acrylic Board
I have been testing out quilting patterns before. In the past, I used paper like this example for one of the GK table runners.
Nothing wrong with using paper and pencil or pen, but it does make it difficult to change your mind.
Edit: Oddly enough, Gail from Quilting Gail wrote on article today about how she decides how to quilt something. She uses a plastic sheet that is 4′ x 4′. She can practice her design, wipe it off and then roll it up and get it out of the way. How cool is that. Check out Gail’s article for another option! Talk about being on the same wavelength, hey?!
New Acrylic Board
I found a good sized acrylic board at Menard’s Saturday morning. It’s 18″ x 24″ and we happened to have a blue dry erase marker already at home. That’s the kind of supplies one has on hand when one member of the household is a teacher! Anyhoo, here is my test design for Luke’s Plus Playtime quilt:
And the coolest part?!! All the doodles wiped away with a piece of paper toweling leaving no hint of what was there. All the scribbles are just to reflect stippling – I don’t know if that’s how I will actually quilt it, but it sure if fun to test drive patterns. By the by, it’s pretty darn hard to get a picture of just an acrylic board . . . so I had to give it a test drive. ~smile~
So, thank you quilty friends for all your great suggestions and support. They are truly appreciated.
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That’s interesting, I have some clear plastic but a rigid sheet would be easier to use. I wonder where I could get one in the UK.
I’m found of using clear table vinyl and a wet erase marker. Before, I used a dry erase, but found that if one left it on the vinyl too long, it was incredibly hard to completely remove, even with the special cleaner. So, now it’s all wet erase for me – a few spritzes of water and clean again, ready for another design!
that’s a great idea, I never would have thought of that.
That looks great! I had a piece of plexi (or acrylic, I don’t think there’s a nickle’s worth of difference) when I had the longarm, and I used it for a lot of things, but it was helpful for practicing a design I wanted to try on an area of a quilt! The more you do it with pen or pencil, the better it goes on the longarm. I don’t know if that works the same way on a domestic machine, but it might! I referred to it as “laying down brain tracks”. =)
This is a great idea and, yes, quilting friends rock!
Agreed! Quilty friends are the best 😊You are one of mine!
Thanks for sharing Roseanne, I did not know about using an acrylic board. It will definitely reduce all the crumple paper I clutter my sewing space with 😉
I love my acrylic for trying out quilting patterns. One suggestion I would make…put blue painter’s tape all around the edge of the acrylic, just so you don’t accidentally draw with a marker off the edge and onto a quilt. That would be heartbreaking!! I’ve done that with mine and I’ve never marked up a quilt accidentally.
You may want to wrap the edge of your acrylic with some blue tape or another something to show your edge. That will help to keep your doodles confined to the sheet and not accidentally on your fabric. It’s beyond hard to get out the dry erase marker…please don’t ask me how I know. It was a painful experience.
This is too funny!!! I just posted about my plastic sheet that I use to help decide quilting. I will go back & edit it and add a link to your post!
Happy Quilting! 🙂
I have been wanting to find an acrylic board and didn’t know where to look. I should have known..Menards!!! I see date night with Tu-Na Helper happening soon. This time I’ll suggest it and surprise him.
brilliant! Just brilliant!
Hello Roseanne, This is an excellent idea! What a great way to test out ideas for FMQ especially or even with a walking foot. You and your readers are fabulous at sharing these ideas. Just one of the reasons, I enjoy your blog so much. The main reason though, is your superb fun personality that just “bubbles” (hee,hee,,hee) throughout each post! Thank you for sharing and have another fantastic day!
What a great idea to test out your quilting patterns before hand.
Did Vicki give you this idea???? She hasn’t shared it with me, so I’m going to have to chat with her again 🙂 Sounds like hubby and I need another date night at Menards! So, when you are at the grocery store and an idea for a quilt design hits you, you can pull out your phone and use this fun little app called You Doodle. You can do the same thing as the acrylic board, but on a smaller scale with your finger or a stylus. It works pretty well in a pinch.
Glad you found one, don’t forget the tape on the edges!
What a cool idea! I need to keep that in mind if I ever plan out my quilting before hand! Hasn’t happened yet, but it might one day!
Great! I just used mine yesterday. They are so useful.