Quilting With Rulers: Free Motion Made Simple

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Consistently stitch versatile, modern quilting designs using specialty rulers. Does free-motion quilting make you nervous? Get ahold of your stitches with a simple tool longarm quilters have been using for years — specialty rulers! Designer and Midnight Quilt Show host Angela Walters shows you how to use machine quilting rulers to achieve consistent results, whether you’re aiming for straight, curvy, round or allover designs. With Angela’s expert guidance and approachable style, you’ll gain free-motion confidence and have some fun along the way.

Ruler Basics

Get started as Angela discusses what to look for when purchasing longarm quilting rulers, how to achieve consistent results, plus other considerations like size and thickness. Then she shows you how to set up your machine, install a special ruler foot, and perform basic maneuvers to help you get comfortable.

Straight Lines

Explore a variety of straight rulers as you learn how to use them to stitch in the ditch. They provide a lot more freedom, and require less turning, than a walking foot. After that, Angela shows you how to quilt her Offset Squares and Starburst designs with rulers.

Serpentine Lines & Waves

See how to add consistent curves to your quilting with serpentine and wave rulers. Angela shows you how to use the ruler’s markings to evenly echo the lines, use reference points to keep your waves straight, as well as some inspiring design variations.

Circles & Curves

Angela gives her advice on choosing circle rulers. Learn to quilt an all-over clamshell design or allover arc variation. As you quilt your rows, you’ll understand how to use the ruler’s reference points to stay on track. Afterwards, discover a floral design that you can use in feature blocks.

Echoing

Echoing, or repeating quilted lines, is an easy way to “shrink” sections that need quilting. Plus you can highlight or hide areas of your quilt, depending on how you use it. In this lesson, find out how to use rulers to achieve evenly spaced echoes for both straight and scalloped lines.

Ruler Combinations

Finally, dive deeper into all the ruler possibilities as Angela shows you how to combine different rulers in the same quilting design to create eye-catching effects. Then, learn to create your own custom designs by adding free-motion quilting to ruler-quilted frameworks.