Free eQuilter Pattern – Wild Meadow

Posted on August 20, 2019 by Luana

Your view of a wild flowering meadow is surrounded by a blossoming
Pinwheel border, in this week’s Free Quilt Pattern.

This 61″ x 67″ quilt is like a Garden Window, with a view onto a flower garden in the foreground, and a dreamy landscape in the distance.

The central digital-printed panel is surrounded by coordinates from the collection, plus 2 Hoffman Hand-Dyes, to make this bright and cheery quilt that will give the illusion of a garden view, wherever it hangs.

… featuring the ‘Wild Meadow’ collection by Chong-A Hwang for Timeless Treasures.

Don’t miss the popular ‘Love is Adoring Animals‘ and ‘Arcadia Garden‘ quilt patterns!

Order the pattern as configured, or customize it to your liking with any of our thousands of fabrics. Just place your desired fabrics in your Wish List, and these fabrics will appear in the Fabric Selector below the pattern.

Click Here for a Video Tutorial of the Free Pattern Designer.
Download Instructions for the pattern at the bottom of the pattern designer page.

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Free eQuilter Pattern – Mystic Mandalas

Posted on August 19, 2019 by Luana

Here’s a special Weekend Free Quilt Pattern for those who are cosmically inclined – a flock of Swirling Mandalas in a Starry Sky.

This generous 63″ x 80″ bed quilt is perfect for the college student going off to study Astrophysics or Astronomy … or maybe for your own front porch while you watch for shooting stars on a chilly autumn night? (with a snuggly Flannel backing perhaps?)

Watch out – the aging hippie next door might say ‘Cosmic, dude!’ and borrow this one indefinitely. Don’t worry, this one is easy to make, with large swirling mandala blocks and coordinates from our exclusive digital-printed collection. Make 2 and give one away for Christmas!

… featuring the ‘Prism Mandalas’ collection by the Rubin Design Studio, designed exclusively for eQuilter.

Don’t miss the popular ‘Love is Adoring Animals‘ and ‘Arcadia Garden‘ quilt patterns!

Order the pattern as configured, or customize it to your liking with any of our thousands of fabrics. Just place your desired fabrics in your Wish List, and these fabrics will appear in the Fabric Selector below the pattern.

Click Here for a Video Tutorial of the Free Pattern Designer.
Download Instructions for the pattern at the bottom of the pattern designer page.

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Looking Forward to Fall Season

Posted on August 17, 2019 by Luana

Aug 24 and Sept 28 are the next two dates for our Charity Sewing Days. Please make a note, and RSVP if you plan to attend. (See updated travel and classroom dates below)

This week I snuck out of town for one day, to attend a giant trade conference for the garment industry. I have been going to these trade shows since 1980, because of my roots in the fashion industry. It is a great way for me to look for trends that are due to trickle down to our quilt textile industry.

One of my interests as you may know is environmental protection, including topics like endangered species, and sustainable textile and garment production. One of the reasons I love our industry is because many of our high quality suppliers actually care about these topics too. In addition you may be interested to know that many of the overseas factories used by our suppliers, are geared up for European standards, which have a much higher bar for environmental protection and human rights than US standards. It is cheaper/easier for the factories to just continue to operate at these European standards, than to drop the standards for their US customers. For cheap fabrics produced for chain stores, not so much. And yes, in case you have wondered, there IS a difference when you pay extra for organic fabrics. It is obvious and measurable when tested in labs.

As for the trends from the trade show – you’ll be seeing the fruits of my trend-harvesting here at eQuilter over the next year! I found some new sources that are very exciting.

This week we are sending out supply lists and class prep instructions for students in Jacqueline de Jonge‘s Oct 8-10 workshop. You will need to choose between the 2 patterns (Dream Flight or Enchanting Stars) so we can send the correct instructions. If you have been thinking about signing up – now is the time! A link to our local Hampton Inn with our corporate discount rate is at the bottom of the registration page. Jacqueline is one of those very special creative people I have met in my travels, and I am so delighted that she agreed to come teach here at eQuilter this Fall. Her sweet personality, wild color sense and amazing piecing techniques have earned her a loyal following around the world.

Sophie has started her senior year of high school which is rather surreal, but she is planning to join me in Houston this Fall, and the Tokyo Quilt Festival in January. In the meantime she is a TA (teachers assistant) for the Boulder High orchestra teacher, and is taking Calculus and Physics. Our oldest son Mason is leaving for Australia today, flying to Perth, and will be visiting one of our old industry friends who lives in Western Australia. If any of you would like to meet Mason while he is in that part of the world (within 5 hours of Perth) let us know and we’ll put you in touch. He is now the Director of Operations of Rockley Music Foundation.

Thank you for telling your friends about our online fabric service – we appreciate your support!

sharing your Passion for Fabric…
Luana and Paul

********

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
Jan 24-29, 2020 – Tokyo Quilt Festival – 1 day with Lisa Walton’s Japan Tour

eQuilter Classroom:
Aug 24 – 10 am to 4 pm – Charity Sewing Day
Sept 13-15 – Cas Holmes – FRCQ Workshop
Sept 28 – 10 am to 4 pm – Charity Sewing Day
Oct 8-10 – Jacqueline de Jonge – Enchanting Stars & Dream Flight – Registration OPEN
April 13-15 2020 – Susan Carlson
June 1-5 2020 – Paula Nadelstern

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Creative Nudge – Sunset at the Taj Mahal

Posted on August 14, 2019 by Luana

Today I am bringing you another favorite quilt from the Festival of Quilts in Birmingham UK. This is “Taj Mahal at Sunset” by Pippa Wardman. The skill and artistry in this quilt are just stunning. Her use of color and value to indicate the 3-dimensional mass of one of the most famous pieces of architecture in the world, combined with her beautiful machine quilting, made this a favorite at the quilt festival.

I have set it in a frame of peacocks, flowers and feathers. I visited the Taj Mahal at Sunrise several years ago, and in that quiet moment of golden light, I imagined the shimmering dome surrounded by flowering gardens and peacocks.

We also just notified our “Love Your Mother” artists that our exhibit has been accepted into the Festival of Quilts in Birmingham UK next year, which will be July 30 to Aug 2, 2020. We are all excited to share our quilts about Mother Earth with our friends in the UK and Europe.

2 Reminders:
Sign up now for Lisa Walton’s Japan & Tokyo Quilt Festival Tour: Sophie and I will join you for a day on the tour!

International Superstar Jacqueline de Jonge will be here Oct 8-10 and we still have a few seats open. Discounted hotel rates at our neighboring Hampton Inn. See registration page for more details!

sharing your Passion for Fabric…
Luana and Paul

****************
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

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Free eQuilter Pattern – Night Life Magical Evening

Posted on August 13, 2019 by Luana

This week’s eQuilter Free Quilt Pattern features the Bright City Lights of favorite designer Chong-A Hwang’s ‘Night Life’ collection.

The Rainbow hues and Electric energy of the central panel are reflected in the vivid ‘Rainbow Ombre’ coordinate used in the surrounding inner border and binding. This same color and energy continues in the vibrant, diagonally-striped outer border, contrasting the ‘Rainbow Sparks’ feather print with bold black lines.

Make this stunning 47″ x 65″ quilt as a wall-hanging or lap quilt;
‘Night Life Magical Evening‘ is sure to brighten any room!

… featuring the ‘Night Life’ collection by Chong-A Hwang for Timeless Treasures.

Don’t miss the popular ‘Love is Adoring Animals‘ and ‘On the Go Zoo‘ quilt patterns!

Order the pattern as configured, or customize it to your liking with any of our thousands of fabrics. Just place your desired fabrics in your Wish List, and these fabrics will appear in the Fabric Selector below the pattern.

Click Here for a Video Tutorial of the Free Pattern Designer.
Download Instructions for the pattern at the bottom of the pattern designer page.

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Free eQuilter Pattern – Sunshine Flower Girls

Posted on August 12, 2019 by Luana

Nymphs and Elves, Sunflowers and Poppies….
are the themes for this Woodland Floral Free Quilt Pattern. Digital-printed Fairy portrait panels alternate with pieced blocks, set with allover flowers and Hoffman Hand-Dyes.

Deep Woodland hues provide a contrast for the bright Reds and Yellows of the summer flowers. As always, you can change the color story of this quilt and design your own quilt by placing other colors in your Wish List and then dragging them into the quilt design. Have you tried our editable Quilt Pattern Designer yet? If not – be warned – it is deliciously addictive!

This 60″ x 68″ quilt will bring the magic of Nature into your home, to keep the warmth of Summer Flowers with you all year long.

… featuring the ‘Magical Garden’ collection by the Rubin Design Studio, designed exclusively for eQuilter.

Don’t miss the popular ‘Love is Adoring Animals‘ and ‘Catitude Christmas‘ quilt patterns!

Order the pattern as configured, or customize it to your liking with any of our thousands of fabrics. Just place your desired fabrics in your Wish List, and these fabrics will appear in the Fabric Selector below the pattern.

Click Here for a Video Tutorial of the Free Pattern Designer.
Download Instructions for the pattern at the bottom of the pattern designer page.

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Cooler Days Around the Corner

Posted on August 12, 2019 by Luana

This week I flew back from Birmingham UK, but the rest of my week didn’t go as planned. My mom had a fall in the nursing home, and ended up at the ER and then the hospital, so I’ve spent the last few days in her hospital room. So I will need another week to get to the quilt photos I took at the Festival of Quilts.

Sophie starts her senior year of high school next week, so we are rushing to get school supplies, school clothes, the school haircut, etc. She is prepping for college applications and auditions, and is going to be a TA (teaching assistant) for her orchestra teacher. It is surreal for our youngest kid to be headed into her last year of public education. She will be coming to Houston with me this Fall, for both Market and Festival. Many of you have followed her story since we adopted her at 8 months old in China, after being abandoned at 2 days old. She loves hanging out with quilters, and wants to go to Houston one more time before college takes over her life.

SAQA president Lisa Walton is leading a tour to the Tokyo Quilt Festival and Japan in Jan 2020, and Sophie and I plan to hang out with the group for a day or two. Some of you have been asking if I will lead a tour to Japan again, but I don’t have anything in the works now. If you are interested in a Japan tour and the Tokyo Quilt Festival look for links and info on this page, and contact the tour organizer THIS WEEK before registration closes. This will be a small intimate travel group with lots of unique textile experiences.

I know many of you are prepping your kids to return to school, secretly gleeful because this means you will have MORE TIME FOR QUILTING! The extreme heat of this summer is hopefully waning now, and with cooler days on the horizon, we can start up those Fall and Holiday sewing projects.

sharing your Passion for Fabric…
Luana and Paul

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Japan Quilt & Craft Tour – January 23 – February 4 2020

Posted on August 10, 2019 by Luana

I’ve been going to the Tokyo Quilt Festival for 11 years, but I started traveling to Japan in the early 80s when I worked as a designer in the garment industry. 10 years ago I led a tour to Japan and the quilt festival, and since then many Westerners have joined tours to experience the amazing Tokyo Quilt Festival.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/luanarubin/collections/72157625847630591/

I don’t have any plans to lead a tour to Japan next year, but if you would like to experience Japan and the quilt festival, I suggest you consider traveling with Lisa Walton who is the current president of SAQA. She is a lot of fun to be with, is very knowledgeable about quilts and textile arts, and has put together a great textile tour of Japan along with the Tokyo Quilt Festival.

This tour starts in Tokyo and ends in Osaka so anyone from anywhere in the world can join in!

 

You can read more about her tour here:
(Please note that the price is in Australian dollars – the current price in US dollars is approximately $4750 based on today’s currency rate.)
https://lisawaltonartist.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Japan-Quilt-Show-Tour-2020.pdf

Sophie and I will be traveling to the Tokyo Quiltfest, and we will meet up with Lisa’s group in Tokyo. We plan to have a dinner with the group in Tokyo, and also to spend a daytrip out with the group. So this is the next best thing to traveling with me on a tour!

I encourage you to contact the tour organizers ASAP because registration is closing soon. This will be a small intimate travel group with lots of great textile, dyeing and craft experiences. (See short video overview here.)

Ph: 61 (07) 5513 1433 Fax: 61 (07) 5524 4699 Mobile: 61-0409 904 787
Toll Free 1 800 646 056

Web: www.allabouttravel.travel

Lisa’s email: [email protected]
Agent email: [email protected]

Hope to see you in Japan with Sophie and Lisa!

– Luana

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Free eQuilter Pattern – Wild Safari

Posted on August 9, 2019 by Luana

This week’s Exclusive Free Quilt Pattern celebrates wildlife around the world with Jason Yenter‘s artistic safari panel and coordinates.

Colorful wild animal frames feature Toucan, Leopard, Peacock, Zebra, Giraffe, Elephant, Tree Frog, Lion and Flamingo, set within with vibrant jungle backgrounds.

The design features multi-color coordinates of Leopard’s Spots and Jungle Kaleidoscope, finished with a radiant Rainforest Fern Stripe outer border.

This generous 70″ x 70″ quilt makes a wonderful bed quilt, or hang it on the wall to bring a Safari ambiance to any room.

… featuring the ‘Safari’ collection by Jason Yenter for In The Beginning Fabrics.

Don’t miss the popular ‘Love is Adoring Animals‘ and ‘Catitude Christmas‘ quilt patterns!

Order the pattern as configured, or customize it to your liking with any of our thousands of fabrics. Just place your desired fabrics in your Wish List, and these fabrics will appear in the Fabric Selector below the pattern.

Click Here for a Video Tutorial of the Free Pattern Designer.
Download Instructions for the pattern at the bottom of the pattern designer page.

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Creative Nudge – African Prints

Posted on August 7, 2019 by Luana

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

****************
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

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Posted in Creativity, Design, Trends | 1 Comment