Playing With My New iPad Toys!

Earlier this year, I decided to do what my husband calls a tech refresh.  Both my iPhone and iPad were a few years old and starting to malfunction in exceedingly inconvenient ways so it was time.  As I've been getting older, my vision certainly isn't getting better, so I had already decided to purchase the larger format iPad Pro; accessories I hadn't seen before were also intriguing and helped lead to this decision.

So I purchased the iPad, the cover with the built in keyboard (although that has to be exchanged because the space bar has died, already!) and the Apple Pencil.  My hopes for the pencil would be twofold -- that I could use it as a drawing board using the Notes app when I'm teaching on camera in front of a classroom and that it would serve as a tool to draw on quilt photos to audition quilt designs.

With that in mind, I started researching programs that would allow me to do that.  Starting by Googling "best apps for Apple Pencil", I found You Doodle!  I can choose a photo from my camera roll (or take one with the iPad) and draw on it to my heart's content with my Pencil.  Now I can narrow down design choices and then practice them a little, developing muscle memory without wasting fabric or thread!

Working on the presents quilt, I brought in a photo and practiced a bit.  I think I would like a piece of ribbon on either side of the bow at the top of each gift, but I really don't like how that looks.  However, I'm really liking the triple heart arrangement! I started drawing in the upper right hand corner and then decided it would be easier if there was a diagonal line marked to define where the points at the top of the hearts should go. After that, they were easier -- the last set is at the bottom right and i'm pretty happy with that.

 

Now that I've decided on the heart design, I can stitch those in.  Still not crazy about the ribbon, though -- anybody have any ideas for how to quilt those small spaces? I have my Pencil in hand!