The Complete Quilt Design Planner is here!

I have been hinting at this new pattern on Instagram and Facebook for several weeks, and am so happy to announce its official release today. The Complete Quilt Design Planner booklet is something I’ve been working on for a long time, and thinking about for longer. You want an to design a quilt the easy way, this is it!
 
The wonderful people that make up my own creative community, my “tribe” includes many different kinds of makers and artisans, not just quilt makers. I am extremely fortunate to be surrounded by some truly innovative creatives. They see the quilts I make and usually say things like “I have all these (insert a collection of shirts, t-shirts, special fabrics, etc here) and I would love to make a quilt with them, but I don’t know how.” Its always a “someday quilt” they speak of. Modern quilts, traditional quilts, they don’t really have a true concept of the details like that, they just have a general feeling that the idea of making a quilt is beyond their reach. Meanwhile, those special collections languish in a closet or box, stored away and never enjoyed to their fullest.
All the while I’m looking at the beautiful  work they do and asking what do you mean you don’t know how? You can do this! And this! After several of these types conversations, I started thinking hard about a tool to get those folks making that “someday” quilt. The challenge literally kept me up at night.
There are a million ways (at least) to make a quilt. There are just as many standards and “rules” in quilt making. But The Complete Quilt Design Planner booklet is made for anyone who simply wants to take beautiful, cherished, or special, or maybe just leftover fabric, and just make a plan to create a quilt. No learning fussy pattern-y or rule-y things. Period.
This design planner will show you how.
I’ll let you in on a little known fact-
When I made my first quilt, I do not know what I did not know. It was for my daughter, using her baby clothes, and it was a clumsy attempt at best. Although I didn’t know that and I didn’t really care.
You know what? I still love that quilt! It will never win a quilt show. It is simple squares, sewn together in the most rudimentary way. That is all okay with me. I cherish it because it is made of my teenage daughter’s beautiful baby clothes, and carries many memories in it. I’m so glad I have that quilt full of memories, out to be used and remind us of those days, rather than having all those sweet baby clothes stored away in a box where I’ll never see them. (I showed that quilt on the blog ages ago and I will dig out the picture and show it again. I also shared a bit about it in my CreativeLive quilting class.)

Above: My own quilt, planned and executed using The Complete Quilt Design Planner

     The Complete Quilt Design Planner booklet is all based around the concept of 5″ squares of fabric. The beauty of a 5″ square, referred to in quiltspeak as a charm square, is that size is just large enough to include details like a shirt pocket or small logo, embroidery or some other special detail from a piece of clothing. But a 5″ square size is not so huge that you can’t cut it from small or even tiny garments like baby clothes.
The other bonus to a 5″ square is that if you don’t have a collection of fabrics from the past, you can pick out your favorite new fabrics from your local quilt shop! Often when new lines come out, they will have the option of buying a set of charm squares- a pre-cut set of 42-44 five inch squares representing the whole line. So you’ll get a little of everything! If you favorite new fabrics don’t come in a charm pack collection, or if you have a lot of fabrics you’d like to cut up and use, the pattern will have all the details included to figure out how many 5 inch squares you can cut from the fabric you have, and will also guide you to know how much fabric you will need to buy.

The first thing you’ll notice is that the pattern gives multiple size options- from a patchwork pillow to a King sized bed quilt. I wanted this pattern to be used over and over again, and offering multiple size info will allow you to figure out what you need no matter what size you’re planning.
For each of these sizes, there is a corresponding blank coloring sheet. These sheets are also meant to be used over and over, so I suggest you make a copy of the size you are planning and use the copy to color in with your design, keeping the original pattern in tact for future patchwork projects. Copy off the quilt size you’re planning, grab some colored pencils or markers, and begin to create your design. Their are tips to guide you when coloring in your design to help you decide if you will make a medallion design (where the pattern has a central area, or medallion, like the sample I made above), or an even patchwork pattern going across the squares.
Once you have created your design, you will need to figure up the amount of yardage you need per color. This is where the simple math/swatch worksheet included in your pattern comes in. You will tape a swatch of each of the fabrics you plan to use (or color in the square if you don’t have the fabric yet) to determine Color 1, Color 2, etc. From there, you will be able to figure out the number of 5 inch squares each color will need, and from that, how much fabric you will need per color. It is very easy using this method, I promise!
There are design tips throughout the pattern booklet. There are links to techniques like how to baste your quilt layers together, make a design wall, etc. I have also created videos on my youtube channel to show how I bind my quilts.
What you should know is that this pattern will NOT show you how to make a specific quilt, like the one I made above. It is for YOU to design your own quilt, of your own design. I had some wonderful pattern testers of all skill levels test this pattern out for me, and they all came up with their own design using the planner. You can too! Please share your creation online using the hashtag #wisecraftcompletequiltplanner so we can all get inspired by what you’re making with the pattern.
The PDF pattern is available for instant download in both my Etsy and Craftsy shops (download and get started right away!). Printed patterns are available. Quilt and sewing shops interested in wholesale please visit this page or email me at blairwisecraft@gmail.com.
And, as always, ask questions! If you buy the pattern and are confused or frustrated about any part of it, that’s no fun for anyone! Email me at blairwisecraft@gmail.com and I’m happy to help!