Design quilts at any size!

Start with a layout from the library, or choose a pre-designed Quick Quilt project for instant inspiration. For complete control, design your layout from scratch! Choose any layout style—from traditional, to modern, to a completely custom design. Adjust your layout settings to make your quilt exactly as you like. Create custom-designed layouts and borders too!

Draw block patterns of all sizes and styles!

EQ8 has full drawing capabilities to create any kind of block. Draft your block from scratch, use the built-in grids or import a photo or sketch to trace.

The Block Library is full of over 6,700 pre-drawn designs ready for you to use in your quilt designs. Use these blocks as they are, or edit them to add your own touch. Use existing blocks to create completely new ones with the Serendipity feature!

Scan and import fabric

Scan your fabric or take a picture of it, then import the image into EQ8. Use the scaling, straightening and cropping tools to make sure your fabric looks as accurate as possible.

You can also add fabrics from the web! Download fabric images from a website, then import into EQ8. The EQ8 Fabric Library comes pre-loaded with 6,200 fabrics from top manufacturers!

Calculate yardage

Get yardage estimates for your quilt, including borders! You choose the appropriate fabric width to get the most accurate requirements. Using fat quarters? No problem! If you make changes to your quilt, your yardage automatically updates. No math involved! Printouts include the fabric name and SKU.

Print patterns

Print patterns for the blocks in your quilt. EQ uses the sizes you defined for the blocks and adds the seam allowance, where necessary. Choose to print templates, foundation patterns, rotary cutting charts and pictures of your blocks and quilts.

Export images

Are you submitting your quilt design to a magazine? EQ8 exports high-resolution images perfect for print publications.

Export web images to post on your blog, website or on social media. Link your Facebook account to EQ8 so you can easily share images of your designs with your friends and followers.

Updated User Interface

The user interface has been redesigned for faster learning and more complete designing. Its friendly new look introduces large interface elements, customizable workspace, help tips, and guided designing—creating the most intuitive version yet!

Home Screen to Get You Started

The Home Screen is a convenient way to perform commonly used actions quickly and easily. It’s perfect for directing users to the worktable and tools they need for their project.

Customize the Start-up Project

EQ8 comes with blocks, fabrics and threads pre-loaded in every new project. It’s quick and easy to delete all of these designs and create your own start-up project, with or without any blocks, fabrics or threads using the Save Palette as Default feature. Make every new project the way YOU want it!

Quick Quilt T-Shirt Quilt Project, and More!

EQ8 comes with 11 new Quick Quilt projects with 75 quilts, including quilt labels, t-shirt quilts, table runners, traditional and modern. Use these projects just as they are, make adjustments to block settings and colors, or simply use them as inspiration for your own project.

Fabric Preview

The detachable Fabric Preview window lets you customize your workspace to display the selected fabric swatch in its own window – in any size. This is perfect for viewing the print of the fabric in a larger scale.

Applique Patchmaker Tools

Create stars, posies and quilting stencils with simple-to-use controls. No drawing involved! These new applique tools make creating these shapes easy and fun!

Interactive WreathMaker

Watch your wreath come alive with the interactive preview added to the all-time favorite tool: WreathMaker. This preview takes the guessing game out of creating beautiful wreath designs.

Import Fabric: Straighten, Scale and Crop

Want to use your own fabric in your EQ design? Take a photo of your fabric with your camera, or scan it with a scanner. Use the Straighten and Scale Fabric tools to ensure your fabric looks just the same on-screen as it will in your actual quilt. Straighten, scale and crop to the repeat!

Edit Design Name from the Print Dialog

Ooops! You’re ready to print your block, but you realize you didn’t give it a name! No one wants an Unnamed printout. Now you can add a name to your block or quilt directly from the print dialog. Easy peasy!

Quilt First, Then Borders

Design your quilt’s center layout, then choose to preview the center while you add borders. Previewing your completed quilt center while adding borders helps with alignment and style choices.

Design and Print Quilt Labels Right in EQ8

Design your quilt label on the Quilt Worktable using any of the design tools and the Applique Text tool. Once you’re finished, add your label to the Sketchbook as a photo! This puts a printable version of your label in the Photos section of your Sketchbook so you can print it from the Image Worktable’s Photo Layout.

EasyDraw is Even Better

It’s the enhancement you’ve been asking for! As you continue to add and remove lines and arcs to an existing EasyDraw block drawing, EQ8 preserves the existing coloring as you go. You will love it!

Easy Access to the Library From Every Worktable

Make your workflow more efficient by opening the library for blocks, fabrics, photos or embroidery right from the worktable, right when you need it. Don’t have exactly what you need in your palette? Click the Open Library button directly in the palette!

Edit Designs Directly From the Library

Did you find a design you like in the Library? Click the Edit to Worktable button to work on this design right away. Clicking this button automatically adds this design to your Project Sketchbook AND puts it on the worktable ready to be edited. There’s no need to locate it in your Sketchbook first. This feature is available in the Block Library, Layout Library and Photo Library.

Hide Patch Outlines in Quilt

This new tool makes easy one-click access for toggling on and off the outlines for blocks and patches, resulting in more realistic-looking quilts on the computer screen.

Easier Custom Quilt Design Tools

Designing custom quilts is so much easier with the palette controls right at your fingertips. Let the block size and position snap right into place using the Adjust tool and the grid settings.

Turn Quilt Layers On and Off While Designing

Make your workflow more efficient by opening the library for blocks, fabrics, photos or embroidery right from the worktable, right when you need it. Don’t have exactly what you need in your palette? Click the Open Library button directly in the palette!

Preserve Aspect Ratio

Resizing blocks on Layers 2 and 3 and Layer 1 of Custom Quilts is effortless when this option is checked. Type a new width and let the height auto adjust to keep the proportions intact. Or, manually resize the block with the Adjust tool by dragging a corner larger or smaller. Both the width and height will adjust proportionally.

Customizable Interface

Choose from large, labeled tools, or small tools. Tips in the palette can be visible, or hidden. Palettes can dock on the right or left side of the screen and expanded larger to view more items at a time. Use the Preferences dialog to see all the customizing capabilities.

No More Hidden Tools

All tools are visible and larger on your workspace for quick access—no tools are hidden in menus! The tools are labeled to help familiarize you with each tool for faster learning.

Worktable Ribbon

The new worktable ribbon includes helpful tabs and illustrated icons to help you make the best choices for your design. See a sample of every layout and border style before you make your selection!

Zoom In and Zoom Out

Use the CTRL key and your mouse’s scroll wheel to zoom in and out on the worktable. (Mac users use Command instead of CTRL.)

Export Images for Print, Web and Facebook

Are you submitting your quilt design to a magazine? EQ8 exports high-resolution images perfect for print publications. Export web images to post on your blog, website or on social media. Let your quilt designs shine on social media by sharing directly to your Facebook page. Your friends will love seeing what you’re designing in EQ8!

Help Tips in the Software

Built-in tips for every tool appear in the palettes along with “Read More” buttons for more extensive help. Use these tips to help you learn your software quickly!

Additional Features and Enhancements

• Library dialogs now have a Select All button for selecting all the items in a style at once.
• The name of the selected design displays in the library dialog.
• The Color palette has been improved and reorganized.
• The block colorings now stack by 2 instead of 10.
• The opacity of Layer 1 was increased to see more of the Layer 1 content when using the Eye icons to hide and show layers.
• Quilts in the Sketchbook display better and draw more quickly.
• The default grid on the Quilt Worktable snaps to 1/2 inch.
• The quilt grid snap settings are turned on by default.
• Can now export images at 72 DPI, along with 75, 150, 300 and 600 DPI.
• Improved update system to keep your software up-to-date.
• When you print a block from the Block Worktable, the print dialog automatically sets the block size to the size in which the block was drawn.

System Requirements

• Windows 10, Windows 8.1, or Windows 7 with Service Pack 1
• macOS High Sierra (10.13), Sierra (10.12), El Capitan (10.11), Yosemite (10.10)
• If you want to run EQ8 on BOTH platforms, you must purchase the Migration Kit to get the installation files for the second platform. This option is coming in 2018.
• Internet access required for downloading, activating, periodic validation and accessing the support materials. You can be disconnected from the internet for general use of the software.
• Unlimited installations. Two (2) computers may be simultaneously active. Activations can be easily transferred between computers.
• 850 MB of available hard-disk space for installation; additional free space required during installation.
• Screen resolution of 1280 x 1024 or greater. (A Minimum of 1024 x 768 is required.)