Westalee Rulers and Templates
A few years ago, when Leonie West had the idea of creating a special foot and templates that would allow owners of ordinary domestic sewing machines to quilt their own projects in a controlled way, she couldn’t possibly have foreseen just where this would take her and her husband Bill. Today, machine quilting with Westalee templates has become a part of the crafting process for many patchwork and quilters.
Westalee Rulers are an innovative system of foot & ruler that allow you to achieve the creative quilting you’ve always dreamed of from your very own domestic sewing machine. It opens up design possibilities that are normally the reserve of long-arm machine quilters.
How Westalee Works:
The Westalee Ruler Foot has been designed to work specifically with the Westalee Quilting Templates. The ruler foot is designed to float just above the quilt sandwich and has no hopping mechanism which would get in the way of your hands and impede your vision. This also allows for more control and greater ease of movement.
The ruler foot is exactly ½” in diameter. This means that when you move the foot around a template your machine will always stitch a consistent ¼” away from the edge of the template, which is a huge help when you plan and quilt your designs. It enables you to use your ruler from all sides and work inside and outside the templates, plus there is no flat spot in your quilting caused by the cut out at the front of the foot.
Check out this video below to see exactly what can be achieved with the Westalee Ruler Foot.
What’s Your Shank?
Westalee set out with the aim of making these rulers as accessible to as many domestic machine users as possible. The result means that there are four different types of foot available to cover the many different makes of sewing machine available on the market, including Pfaff, Janome, Brother, Juki, Husqvarna Viking and more!
The four types of foot are High Shank, Low Shank, Medium Shank and High Shank Special.
Here’s a handy guide to figure out what shank your machine is in case you’re not sure;
There are a few machines that require a Medium or High Shank Special. Some the the most popular of these are listed below (note that new models are being added all the time):
For more information about which shank ruler foot you should use, plus a fairly comprehensive list, see our e-book.
For more information about which shank ruler foot you should use, plus a fairly comprehensive list, see our e-book.
A New World of Quilting Possibilities!
The essence of the Westalee Ruler concept is that it enables you to free motion quilt, but in a controlled way. If you would love to give free motion quilting a go but have always shied away from it then Westalee Rulers are here to guide you.
There are so many different templates on offer, so let’s take a look at a few examples of what you can actually achieve:
What about other Quilting Systems?
Inevitably a great product attracts imitators and therefore you will come across other template manufacturers. We don’t sell any other manufacturer’s ruler foot and quilting templates because we haven’t found one that offers the quality, accuracy and support that Westalee does. If you are tempted to invest in another brand consider these questions before you buy.
1) Is the Ruler Foot a true ½" foot and is it made of a durable material?
The Westalee Foot is a true ½" meaning your stitches are always a 1/4" from the template edge. This is important when planning designs and the accurate positioning of the design on your quilt . We cannot guarantee that other ruler feet will work with Westalee rulers. The Westalee foot is made from a strong, non-marking alloy, not plastic or aluminium.
2) Are the templates accurate and marked with appropriate guidelines?
All Westalee templates have the appropriate markings and rotating templates include a pin for greater accuracy. The examples above can be achieved by anyone with a little practise. Without a pin it is very difficult to achieve that accuracy.
3) Is support offered?
The Ruler Foot and many of the Westalee templates, including all the ones in the starter sets have videos (accessible through You Tube) that explain how to use them as well as instructions in the pack.
4) Are there templates for Low and High shank machines?
Not all sewing machines are the same which is why there are two thicknesses of template, Low (3mm) and High (4.5mm) to cater for different presser bar heights. Some templates come in a one-thickness-fits-all height which may not be the case at all.
5) Are the templates going to meet my quilting needs?
Some templates look like they have potential, but can you see the result? Is there an example quilt (not just a demonstration piece)? We recommend Starter Set 1 for beginners and Angela Attwood’s stunning quilt (below) show just what can be achieved.
And if you’re still not convinced that these rulers are a game changer, here’s what your fellow creators have to say;
So, are your fingers itching to try? Take a browse of our range on the Cotton Patch website to see what catches your eye, though if you are brand new to Westalee then we would highly recommend beginning with the Ruler Foot Starter Set which includes the Westalee Ruler Foot, the 12" Arc template, an adjustment guide and stable tape.
If you fancy taking a class then check out our Classes page to see if there is a ruler work teacher near to you.
p.s If you're going to the Festival of Quilts 2018...
The essence of the Westalee Ruler concept is that it enables you to free motion quilt, but in a controlled way. If you would love to give free motion quilting a go but have always shied away from it then Westalee Rulers are here to guide you.
There are so many different templates on offer, so let’s take a look at a few examples of what you can actually achieve:
What about other Quilting Systems?
Inevitably a great product attracts imitators and therefore you will come across other template manufacturers. We don’t sell any other manufacturer’s ruler foot and quilting templates because we haven’t found one that offers the quality, accuracy and support that Westalee does. If you are tempted to invest in another brand consider these questions before you buy.
2) Are the templates accurate and marked with appropriate guidelines?
All Westalee templates have the appropriate markings and rotating templates include a pin for greater accuracy. The examples above can be achieved by anyone with a little practise. Without a pin it is very difficult to achieve that accuracy.
3) Is support offered?
The Ruler Foot and many of the Westalee templates, including all the ones in the starter sets have videos (accessible through You Tube) that explain how to use them as well as instructions in the pack.
4) Are there templates for Low and High shank machines?
Not all sewing machines are the same which is why there are two thicknesses of template, Low (3mm) and High (4.5mm) to cater for different presser bar heights. Some templates come in a one-thickness-fits-all height which may not be the case at all.
5) Are the templates going to meet my quilting needs?
Some templates look like they have potential, but can you see the result? Is there an example quilt (not just a demonstration piece)? We recommend Starter Set 1 for beginners and Angela Attwood’s stunning quilt (below) show just what can be achieved.
And if you’re still not convinced that these rulers are a game changer, here’s what your fellow creators have to say;
So, are your fingers itching to try? Take a browse of our range on the Cotton Patch website to see what catches your eye, though if you are brand new to Westalee then we would highly recommend beginning with the Ruler Foot Starter Set which includes the Westalee Ruler Foot, the 12" Arc template, an adjustment guide and stable tape.
If you fancy taking a class then check out our Classes page to see if there is a ruler work teacher near to you.
p.s If you're going to the Festival of Quilts 2018...
We hope this post has shed some light on Westalee and given you some inspiration!
Happy creating!
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