QuiltPaper & Gridmaker FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I …
Work with grid lines
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By default the major grid opens with a green color and medium line weight.
To create a fine line graph paper —
Switch to a palette that is shades of a single color.
Assign each line a different shade (major grid darker and dividers lighter) AND set each line weight to light.
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There are three settings available for grid lines:
On/Off
Tap the square color tile to turn a line on or off.Color
Tap a color circle to change line color. To switch to a different palette, open Palette tool to switch color palette or create a custom palette with ‘+Add’.Line weight
Tap a different line weight to change the heaviness of the line.MORE DETAIL on Palette tool.
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Find the Palette icon near the bottom of the side tool bar and tap to open.
The Palette tool opens on the current palette. Scroll through the Palettes. Because the grid instantly changes color as you scroll you can really compare palettes. Pause the wheel on the palette you want and return to editing your grid.
MORE DETAIL on Palette tool.
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To start, open the Palette menu on the side tool bar. It opens on the current palette.
Tap '+ Add' to open palette creation . (Tip: Scroll to a palette with colors close to the palette you want to create before tapping +Add.)
MORE DETAIL on Palette tool.
Tap a color to see its RGB value. There are two ways to change it:
Use the +/- keys to step the RGB value
Tap in the number box to open the key board to enter a number
The color tile instantly updates as the RGB value changes. If that tile's color is displayed on the grid, the line on the grid is instantly updated as well.
Give the new palette a name and dismiss the popup. The new palette is listed at the top of the menu. It is available to every graph paper.
If you find it frustrating to set RGB colors, search the internet for a websites that suggest RGB color palettes.
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The Palette tool for line colors includes ‘Non-Photo Blue’.
Scroll to find this color palette near the bottom of the list. For situations that call for it, this palette can make working with any paper easier and make a more polished final grid.
MORE DETAIL on Palette tool.
Go to MORE DETAILS to see an example using the Music paper in GridMaker.
Control layout and printing
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Printing graph paper with grids that are precise is challenging for many home and office printers. The process of sending a file to a printer and how it processes it for printing can introduce slight distortions that affect grid accuracy.
IF your printer is not printing precisely accurate grids, correcting the distortion may require a bit of perseverance because printed results vary with combination of the printer and software (printer drivers) being used. While some printers can print to the edge of a page, most do not. Some printer drivers (software) compensate for the un-printable page margins and adjust (scale) what is being printed so that everything fits on the page. Unfortunately, it can take a bit of trial and error to correct the problems introduced by the printers and drivers that use scaling. For many tasks, a slight shrink in what is being printed does not matter. However, if you need precise sizing (for example, to print graph paper!), it matters a lot!
There is no single, quick fix. Go to MORE DETAILS for suggestions which should help you find a way to control your printer’s scaling.
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There are two levels of settings.
Under More ‘•••’ menu, Default Paper Settings control new papers:
Set page size to Letter or A4
Set grid to inches or metric cm or mm
Set line weight used when printing PDFs
Then — on each paper, under More ‘•••’ — are overrides of the default Paper Settings. The exception is line weight override which is with Share PDF.
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The bottom tool on the menu is Page Settings. Open it to see the edge of the paper, shown by the blue dotted line that appears around the grid. As the paper size or margins are changed the blue line instantly adjusts. MORE DETAILS
There are three controls:
• Paper size and orientation (Portrait or Landscape). The paper sizes are consistent with 'Page Defaults' setting of Letter or A4.
• Margins are set individually. Tap 'Set to Margin Defaults' to quickly reset all the settings. The units are consistent with 'Page Dimension Units' setting of inch or metric.
*** TIP: For a 3-hole punch, increase the left margin to 1 1/4". The diagram will show the wider left margin. ***• Tiling sets overall placement of a single grid or multiple, smaller grids on a page.
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GridMaker and QuiltPaper can create a grid using a project's actual dimensions.
There are two advantages for using actual sizes to make a grid —
It is just a little bit easier to create a sheet of graph paper for a specific project because you don’t have to consider the scaling needed to fit the grid on a page.
It eliminates the need for scaling calculations to translate a completed design to a project’s actual dimensions.
To create a grid at actual size requires only three steps —
Open Page Settings, the last tool on the menu.
Scroll page size to Custom.
Set the dimensions.
Go to MORE DETAILS to see an example using the Diagonal paper to create a unique graph paper for planning a large quilt at its actual size, 106" x 95".
The grid will likely be very full, so use pinch-and-zoom as you work across the grid.
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Some projects require more powerful tools than what is available in Paint. The PDF created by GridMaker and QuiltPaper can be imported into any drawing app that can import and edit a PDF.
One app we like and use is Graphic. [Graphic is available for the Apple Mac, iPad and iPhone. We have no association with Graphic other than we use it.]
A few tips for using Graphic that likely apply to other tools —
• When you bring a PDF into Graphic, “Import as Vector Objects” so you can add lines/text, and have access to all the lines in the drawing.
• Place “Smart Guides” on the paper's grid lines. This will force edits to snap to the paper's grid rather than Graphic’s internal grid points. This should make it easier to draw on your own lines, particularly with an Apple pencil.
Create unique graph paper to fit projects
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Using Quilt Paper --
The HST & HRT paper makes it possible to create and print your own triangle papers at whatever size HST triangles your project needs.
Here are a few tips for using this paper —
• Set Square (1:1) to ON and set the side dimension of the HST.
• Set the sewing line weight (dotted line) to fine to make exact sewing easier.
• Adjust the seam allowance width if fabric requires.
• Set Shade Finished Triangle to ON so it is easier to see the layout.
• Print a test page to confirm your printer is not scaling the image.
• Open the Size Check tool and tap a color to add a scale box
• Print a test paper and measure the size box
• If you need to make a correction try this —
•Open More and choose PDF
• Share PDF to a desktop
•Print PDF from desktop
• If that didn’t work, read this guidance on how to make adjustments to print at the exact size.
One final note — If you get the message "Unable to draw graph for current settings" it may be the rectangles are too big to fit on the page with the current settings. To adjust —
• Open the bottom tool, Page Settings, and set the margins to zero to increase the area available for printing.
• If the margin adjustment was not enough, you'll need to take additional steps to create your templates: adjust the settings for actual size printing and then print on a printer that can handle the size of paper you specified (may require using a large format printer at a copy shop.)
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Using Quilt Paper --
The HST & HRT paper makes it possible to create and print HRT templates at whatever size your project needs. Using a template makes it easy to assemble half rectangles.
Here are a few tips for making the templates —
• Start by setting the finished size of the rectangle - set Square switch to ‘off’.
• Set the sewing line weight (dotted line) to fine to make exact sewing easier.
• Adjust the seam allowance width if fabric requires.
• Set Shade Finished Triangle to ON so it is easier to see the layout.
• Print a test page to confirm your printer is not scaling the image.
• Open the Size Check tool and tap a color to add a scale box
• Print a test paper and measure the size box
• If you need to make a correction try this —
•Open More and choose PDF
• Share PDF to a desktop
•Print PDF from desktop
• If that didn’t work, read this guidance on how to make adjustments to print at the exact size.
• TIP: If you get the message "Unable to draw graph for current settings" it may be the rectangles are too big to fit on the page with the current settings. To adjust —
• Open the bottom tool, Page Settings, and set the margins to zero to increase the area available for printing.
• If the margin adjustment was not enough, you'll need to take additional steps to create your templates: adjust the settings for actual size printing and then print on a printer that can handle the size of paper you specified (may require using a large format printer at a copy shop.)
Here are a few tips for using the templates —
• Cut one fabric at a time. If you want to layer two fabrics both fabrics must be facing the same direction (That is, facing right side up or both facing right side down)
• Secure a sheet of triangle paper on top of the fabrics
• Cut along the solid lines, including the triangle tips
• Remove the paper, keeping each side of the HRT separate
• Prepare for assembly by placing fabrics facing right side up, pairs together. Put one rectangle over the other by flipping one fabric so right sides are together, aligned along the diagonal, with matched up squared off ends.
• Finish unit assembly by sewing along the diagonal, then press open your HRT.
One final suggestion on making templates —
An inkjet printer can be used to print the template onto the plain side (not waxed) of a sheet of freezer paper trimmed to 8.5"x11". Then the paper can be secured to the fabric using a hot iron to the plain side of the freezer paper (placed waxed side down on the fabric) to secure the paper. After cutting, the freezer paper can either be pulled away before sewing, or if the paper was secured to the back of the fabric, it can be left on to guide sewing and then removed before pressing the rectangle open.
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Using Quilt Paper --
A Barn Quilt is not a quilt but a single block painted on a large square board and hung outside on a Barn. The charm of Barn Quilts has caught on and inspired city dwellers to make and place a Barn Quilt on their home or fence.
Go to MORE DETAILS for a detailed outline on how to proceed.
Here are the basics:
The key to designing a Barn Quilt is getting the dimensions to fit a pre-cut 2'x2' project board — the actual measured size is 23 ¾" x 23 ¾" . That is the size of the block.
• Open the paper with the grid you want to use to design your Barn Quilt.
• Use Page Settings, the bottom tool, to set a custom page size of 23 ¾” x 23 ¾” with margins set to zero.
• The paper is now set to the actual size of the Barn Quilt and ready for you to make your layout and then open in Paint to finish your design.
Grid Paper has a Quick Pick for a 16 patch Barn Quilt. It is a good example of a layout with border and patch sizes for a 23 ¾” x 23 ¾” block.
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Most technical projects are much easier to plan and execute when outlined using a graph paper that has exactly the right grid layout, size, and units.
For example, making a pattern for a knitting project is much easier when the grid is set to match the knit pitch. Go to MORE DETAILS for a detailed overview of how to create a graph paper for knitting.
No matter your project, the basic steps are the same —
• Determine the grid size needed — consider using metric to get the precision you need.
• Determine the divisions you need for your graph paper. Is one level enough, or will the paper be easier to work if it has some subdivisions.
• Create the graph paper you need — controlling not only the grid layout but line color and weight, margins, and page size.
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Every paper has a set of Quick Picks. They are pre-defined templates ready to use as is, or as a short-cut to getting started creating a unique graph paper.
Quilt Paper has an additional, special set of English Paper Piecing Quick Picks of EPP template layouts.
To use a Quick Pick, tap to open a copy in that paper's editor. The original Quick Pic remains listed and unchanged.
The paper created after editing the Quick Pick is saved with that respective paper. And it is listed with all your other papers in the File Folder at the top of the QuiltPaper home page.
The Quick Pick button on the home page is a subset of all the Quick Picks. It is good way to get a glimpse at the add-on papers you are considering purchasing to see if they would be helpful. The locks on the thumbnails indicate that a particular paper has not yet been purchased. Individual papers can be purchased at the same price as the app or purchase the bundle to unlock all the papers for the price of 5 additional papers (Yes, of course credit is given for previous paper purchases.)
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Of course tapping on a grid, square by square does the job to color a design into a grid. However, there is a unique mode that can make it faster to paint in a regular pattern — Long Press.
Here is a brief outline on how to use the Pattern Painting tools, go here for MORE DETAILS.
In Paint, find the painting options — in the bottom row of tools, the set just before the color tiles. There are two modes. On the left is the Background paint mode, on the right is Long Press.
Tap Long Press to open as a popup.
• At the top of the pop-up is a legend that updates with changes to the settings. The red tile shows the point of the long press and the green tile shows where paint is placed along the major grid.
• Settings adjust the Pattern, Repeat and Direction.
• Behind the pop-up is the graph paper with an added gray overlay to emphasize the major grid.
A few TIPS for using Pattern Painting —
• When working on a design, take a minute to try out different combinations to find one that will really work for you.
• To change the color of a long press paint, set the paint brush to the new color and repeat Long Press.
• To undo a long press paint, set paint brush to 'no color' [white box with red slash choice] and repeat Long Press.
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It turns out that when a grid is shared, all of its data is transferred — including the active palettes for that Grid Paper in Paint. You can take advantage of this as a way to share a custom palette.
To share a custom palette —
Open a grid in Paint to add the palette(s) to it. Confirm the palettes included by reviewing the palettes list (shown above the color tiles.)
Use Share option in Paint — Share Design — to export the xfrData file.
Accept the transfer on the receiving device by choosing 'Import'.
To confirm a successful transfer open any paper in Paint, open the Paint Brush and tap the '+' above the colors to see the transferred palettes added to Palettes.
The transferred palettes have been added to the Palettes Library and are now available to every paper.
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SVG is a special file format. The letters 'SVG' are short for Scalable Vector Graphics. What is especially interesting about SVG to makers and creators is this is the file format accepted by many laser cutters and cutting machines.
To create an SVG file from a custom grid —
Create a Grid Paper with the shapes at the actual size you need.
Use the Share button in the top Toolbar to Share SVG and save to Files.
Transfer the SVG from files to the destination device or software.
Go to MORE DETAILS to see this process described in detail.