Updated May 2025 to better guide you through choosing your ideal appliqué method—part of the new Appliqué Unplugged series!
🖼 Design Transfers: Let There Be Light (and Less Guesswork)
You’ve got your templates ready—now how do you get them onto your fabric without going full origami? This post shines a light (literally) on the easiest ways to trace your appliqué shapes with accuracy and ease.
🪟 Tried-and-True Tracing Methods:
- Window Method: Old-school and free. Tape your pattern to a window, place fabric or freezer paper on top, and trace away. Great for sunny days and nostalgic vibes.
- It works well for large pieces, especially if you have a big window.
- Drawing on vertical surfaces can be difficult.
- You need a tape strong enough to hold the fabric, yet won’t leave a sticky residue on you window.
- Keep in mind it only works during the day, unless you live near a strong streetlamp!
- Lightbox Love: A quilter’s best friend for those late-night stitching sessions.
- Get clear lines without cramping your neck or hand.
- They are portable and come in various sizes. Even so, they may be too small for large motifs.
- Tablet Hack: Turn your tablet into a makeshift lightbox—just be sure to turn off auto-sleep.
- Take any clear horizontal surface – like a sewing table extension, glass table, even a spare window! Put a light under it.
- Think ring light, cell phone, flash light or even work light. Then, put your pattern and fabric on top and trace away.
- Clear Clipboard + LED Light: Low-budget, high-impact combo. Clamp your template, slide a light underneath, and go.
✍️ Best Tools for Tracing:
- Freezer paper (shiny side down!)
- Air-erase markers (for temporary lines)
- Chalk pencils (for dark fabrics)
- DO NOT USE: Heat-sensitive pens like Frixion—unless you want ghost lines haunting your quilt.
🧩 Bonus Tip:
Trace onto freezer paper instead of the fabric, then fuse the template on top of your fabric for clean, reusable shapes. (More on that in the freezer paper post.)
If you want to see these methods in action, watch our short video.
Happy Quilting!
It was nice to be reminded of the different ways to trace an object. Back in my early teaching days, we use the opaque projector to trace and enlarge objects. Most people probably don’t even know what that is. I do like my light pad.
I remember tracing paper from art classes. Then, mom had her wax sheets and tracing wheel for our sewing projects. There are so many more options available now.