09 Using Printed Fabric

// First PreQuilt Quilt //

Our Ribbon Star quilt progress:

• Select your quilt grid

• Import or design your quilt block

• Choose your quilt fabric colors

• Add blocks to quilt grid

• Finessing your quilt (optional)

• Add sashing (optional)

• Add borders (optional)

• Add binding

• Using printed fabric swatches (optional)

  • Shop linked online quilt stores

  • Use printed fabric swatches

• Download quilt map, blocks & swatches

PRO TIP: We usually like to first use the solid fabric libraries to find color combinations for a quilt. Then, if we'd like to use printed fabric instead of solids, we replace the solid fabric with a printed fabric swatch in a similar color.

Now that we have our quilt designed using solid fabric, you might want to replace the solid fabric with printed fabric.

01 Shopping Linked Quilt Stores

ALERT: When a Color Tag is changed (either from a solid to another solid - or from a solid to a printed fabric swatch), everything that is linked to that Color Tag will also change.

Since our quilt blocks are designed using Color Tags, we can easily replace the solid fabric used in our quilt with printed fabric. All we need to do is replace the solid fabric that is linked to a Color Tag with the desired printed fabric swatch.

There are multiple different ways to add printed fabric swatches to PreQuilt. One method was detailed in the Binding Guide in Step 08. I'm going to show you another way here - using the Fabric Dashboard and the linked Online Quilt Stores to shop fabrics in our colors.

1. From the main Dashboard, click on the FABRIC tab. This will take you to the Fabric Dashboard.

   
2. Click on the tile called 'Import from an online store'.

   
3. Click on the 'Browse' button for your preferred online fabric store - I'm going to pick my local quilt shop, Fabric Spark, for this example.

   • Disclaimer: These are free collaborations with online fabric shops. Fabric swatches are pulled from in stock inventory. If a fabric sells out, it is removed from the shop.

   • Disclaimer: There is no cost to use or import these digital fabric swatches. PreQuilt also does not profit from the use of these swatches.

   
4. Click on the 'Colors' tab to search fabric by color. Then click on the name of the color you're looking for.

   • Disclaimer: Each fabric shop organizes their fabric in different way. Not every shop has a search by color option.

   
5. Click on the 'Save' button found under the printed fabric swatches you're interested in adding to your Fabric Dashboard. You can add as many as you'd like!

   
6. When you're finished, click on the button in the top right corner to return to the Fabric Dashboard.
7. Your Fabric Dashboard will now have all your imported printed fabric swatches.

   

02 Using Printed Fabric Swatches

Now that we have all our fabric swatches loaded onto our Fabric Dashboard, we can now use them in our quilt by editing our Color Tags.

1. Click on the COLOR TAGS tab on the left side control panel.

   
2. Click on the 'Edit' button next to the Color Tag you'd like to change. I'm going to start with Fabric D.

   
3. The fabric library panel will slide out. Click on the PRINTS tab.

   
4. Click on the 'Select' button under the printed fabric swatch you'd like to use for Color Tag D.

   
5. Change the scale so that it's accurate to the size of the block.

   
6. Once finished, click on the button to exit and save.
7. All the blocks that use Color Tag D have now changed to our fabric selected printed fabric swatch.

8. Repeat Steps 02.2-6 for all the Color Tags you'd like to use printed fabric swatches for.

9. In this example, I changed all the Color Tags, except for the background fabric (A), to use printed fabric.

   

   Quilt using printed fabric swatches & solid background