Creative Nudge – African Prints

It All Starts with the Fabric…

Tonight I am writing to you from…Newark Airport! My first 2 flights from Birmingham to Shannon were fine, but there was a weather delay at Newark and now I am waiting for a replacement plane to come from Cancun. The airport is full of people who are delayed. That’s ok. My laptop is full of beautiful photos from the Festival of Quilts, and the creative juices are bubbling over after seeing the variety of talent and ideas from all over Europe.

As I mentioned in the previous newsletter, there were a lot of quilts with big bold African prints. This is one of my favorites, and it may remind you of the quilt I featured last week, inspired by Paula Nadelstern’s work. This HUGE (king size) star quilt is made (almost) entirely of imported African prints – titled ‘Fly Away With Me’ by Hilde Hoogwaerts. Isn’t it fantastic? This large piece made quite an impression in person, with the black background.

We all inspire each other in so many ways, on so many levels, when we put our ideas into a quilt and send it off to an exhibit. We absorb colors and inspiration from magazines, classes, festivals, etc…then our quilts burst forth having germinated in this simmering stew of visual input. Our quilt is sent out into the world, much as we send our children out into the world, and what a gift if our work can inspire someone else! So I want to express my thanks to all the quilters who contributed to this Festival of Quilts, and to all of you who were inspired to go home and start a new quilt for next year!

Fabric is often the starting point of our inspiration. We see a fabric we love, we have to have it, and it is a starting point for a new project. A quilt like this reminds me of why I love my job so much. It brings me so much delight to see a fabulous new fabric design for the first time, knowing that it will bring joy and creative germination for so many of you.

sharing your Passion for Fabric…
Luana and Paul

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Luana’s Travel Calendar:
Oct 16-22 – Winnipeg & Churchill, Manitoba Canada
Oct 25-31 – Quilt Market & Festival – Houston
Nov 13-17 – Color Marketing Group – Tuscon AZ

eQuilter Classroom:
Sept 13-15 – Cas Holmes – FRCQ Workshop
Oct 8-10 – Jacqueline de Jonge – Enchanting Stars & Dream Flight – Registration OPEN
April 13-15 2020 – Susan Carlson
June 1-5 2020 – Paula Nadelstern