Wooden Quilts of WA

You can order Barn Blocks in the Mail.

The Chamber of Commerce of Conconully, WA hosts a "Wooden Quilts" trail through town and the surrounding region. Currently, there are 80 blocks.

A special feature of these blocks are the addition of medallion silhouettes, like this fish.

You can order customized replicas of the Conconully Blocks through this clever portal. 

Choose your block, colors, and medallion!

Available in 4 plywood sizes, $50 - $160. 

More PreQuilt

Last week when I wrote about all the WOW PreQuilt Features, I became extra interested in how this  creative "randomizer" evolved. So I've asked PreQuilt inventor Gar Liu to share more news here about how PreQuilt started and where it is going.

To begin with, a brief history. [Literally short-- PreQuilt is just one year old!]
PreQuilt began last July with Laura Henneberry's (Commonwealth Quilts) Circus Tent Quilt.

And it has evolved quickly from a color picking app, to an HST design tool, to a full application design platform. More designers joined, wishing coloring pages for their quilts too. Quilter/programmer Steph Skardal supplied the fabric catalogue. The latest feature is the custom block design tool. 

Have you tried PreQuilt? Check out the color randomizer in this video.

According to Gar, PreQuilt's best features are the one's that short-cut repetitive tasks, such as selecting quilt quadrants or checkerboard blocks for quilt design editing. This way, designers can stay focused on their planning, without getting discouraged by minutia. 
Gar says, "We hope that PreQuilt can leave people in an art director's position where they make decisions and then come in to tweak. Something like a self driving car where you can put your hands on the wheel at anytime to take back control."

Coming next for PreQuilt.....fabric calculations AND ombre mapping!

Happy Anniversary to Gar, Laura, and PreQuilt! And best wishes for many more creative years. Thanks for inviting us all to share in your amazing design tool :)

PreQuilt is WOW

This was a hard Totally Tech Tuesday report to write because I was HAVING SO MUCH FUN studying PreQuilt that I didn't want to stop, even to write.

PreQuilt by Gar Liu and Laura Henneberry, is more than a quilt design tool. It is also a pattern shop and comprehensive color picker. What does that mean? Well......

To begin with, get a quilt design:

• Shop designer quilt patterns ($12+)
• Try 5 Starter Kit designs
• Design your own quilt
• Mix your quilt from 24 block library
• Create your own blocks from 11 basic shapes including hexagon
• Keep your quilt private, or receive a URL when you opt-in for public sharing.
• Choose from 27 fun quilt top "Colour Pages"

Next, choose fabric colors - the exact designer name and number - from 9 contemporary fabric houses:  Kona, Free Spirit, American Made Brand, AGF, Michael Miller, Moda, Riley Blake, RJR, Paintbrush Studio. 

• Search all brands together or limit selections to what your LQS stocks. 
• Look for specific colors by rainbow or alphabetically by name [I especially like this "A-Z" feature for finding your go-to blender.]
• Still can't find the exact color you need? A standard RBG color picking option is also included.
• Create and save a "custom palette."

Then....yes, there's more!.....download your new design, including block count and color ID chart. Yes, you heard that right -  you get a shopping list of the exact colors you just picked.

The most exciting feature in PreQuilt are the randomizers. 

In Quilt Design, you can "randomize" your block selection, placement and/or rotation. Check out this random quilt pattern I made using just 2 blocks , Rail Fence and Zeus:

You can imagine what happens when you randomize color picking! 

Lock in colors you like, then keep randomizing until you find ideal color placements for every patch.

Do you want to hear more about PreQuilt? Okay, here are some nuts and bolts:

• PreQuilt works on any platform; mobile, laptop, etc., but not Internet Explorer. You only need a modern browser and you are in.
• There are 3 access levels: Demo (no registration required), Free Forever, and Basic ($50/year).
• Every tool has a handy "learn about" link to an instructional YouTube video. However, not all of these links automatically open in new windows. Take precautions so you don't loose your work when surfing off for a quick lesson. 
• Hack: scroll mouse to easily enlarge quilt view

Have you tried PreQuilt? I'm wondering if PreQuilt has expanded your views on color theory? Or, if you have tried the design platform, go ahead and leave your PreQuilt pattern link in the comments, I'd love to see your design!