Testimonials

A Basic Tool All Quilters Should Own.

~Nancy Smith and Lynda Milligan.
McCall's Quilting June 2007

Featured Product

Add-A-Quarter

Special edition Pink color for Breast Cancer Awareness. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to help fight breast cancer. The Add-A-Quarter™ combines the speed of rotary cutting quilt pieces with the accuracy of using templates.
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CM Designs, About Us

Diane Donnelly, Carolyn Cullinan McCormick, Megan McCormick, Carol Netwal

Story of the Add-A-Quarter

One day I was making a quilt for a dear friend that required templates; (she had to be a dear friend for me to use templates).  I became frustrated with the time it took to individually mark and cut out each piece, so decided to find a better method.  My answer was the Add-A-Quarter, which automatically adds the quarter inch seam allowance and allows one to use their rotary cutter and cut multiple pieces, all at one time.  As all quilters do I shared my idea with my friends and they all wanted one.  You have to remember this was long before paper piecing became so popular.

I did my research and discovered there was no other product being produced like mine.  I started the process of getting a patent, learning about injection molding and coming up with a business plan.  I was very fortunate to have wonderful friends that helped me along the way.  My dear friend Diane Donnelly was always there for me to bounce ideas off.  We would walk our dogs every morning and talk about “the ruler".  I have to confess that without the amazing support of my husband Larry there probably would not be an Add-A-Quarter.  He was always encouraging me to take the chance and see what happens.  It has been a remarkable adventure. 

One of the most difficult problems was coming up with a name.  When I was in college I pumped gas at a gas station to earn extra money.  This will date me, but it was way back when gas was $.52 a gallon and attendants filled your tank and washed your windows, (that would be me).  My bosses name was Ben; he was a large man with a southern accent.  When I would rush out to help a customer he would say “that a girl".   I had spent a lot of time with the development of the “ruler" but was unable to come up with a suitable name for the product.  It seemed that my mind was always working on that problem, but nothing clicked. One morning, many, many years had passed since I worked for Ben I was brushing my teeth thinking about him. He had passed on because of cancer and how he would say “that a girl".  This got me thinking about how the ruler would add a quarter thus the name Add-A-Quarter.  Thanks Ben!

In 1995 we started selling the product under the business name of CM Designs. 

It didn’t take long for the paper piecing world to discover the Add-A-Quarter™.  It is now a standard “must have" tool for anyone wanting to paper piece.  We have since produced the Add-An-Eighth™, which uses the same technique to add a mere eighth inch seam allowance for miniatures.  In addition we wanted to apply the same technique to flannels, so developed the Add-Three-Eighths™, which gives a wider seam allowance for flannel.

I hope that you enjoy using the Add-A-Quarter™.