Quilt Artists

Posted on April 8, 2019 by Luana

It has been a crazy week here, with a busy weekend coming up. Sophie is the lead audio tech for the Boulder High School’s production of Les Miserables, and last night they had 825 people show up! We are just about to leave for the matinee, and tonight is the final performance. This is one of our family’s favorite musicals so it is a thrill to see our local high school production.

In case you missed it, last weekend I was at the Chicago Quilt Festival, then Monday I was in the Quilting Arts TV studio doing a couple more segments for next season. We do carry the DVDs but last week you guys wiped out our stock so we are trying to get them back in stock asap! If you are anxiously awaiting this shipment, let Customer Service know and they will contact you when back in stock, which is the case with any of our products by the way. Unlike many other retailers, when something sells out, we DO work to get it back in stock asap whenever possible.

My fellow BERNINA ambassadors Ricky Tims and Alex Anderson are filming The Quilt Show in Denver this weekend, and so we have several well known and talented quilt artists in town and dropping by to visit the eQuilter classroom hopefully we can sign some of them up to teach in the next year or two. This summer we have Jane and Cindy coming to teach Garment Embellishment, Sacred Altar Quilts, Shibori and Ice-Dyeing, and I can tell you both of these ladies are wildly creative and lots of FUN! Please click through to the workshop page and consider joining us for a weekend in beautiful Boulder Colorado in the next few months.

sharing your Passion for Fabric…
Luana and Paul

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eQuilter Classroom & Travel Calendar:
Apr 12-14 – Jean Wells for FRCQ workshop – in eQuilter Classroom
Apr 20 – Charity Sewing Day – EWB Nepal Presentation – Please RSVP
Apr 23-29 – Nantes France (lecture Fri 4/26)
May 16-19 – Quilt Market
May 24-25 – Dairy Barn – Quilt National Opening – Athens OH
June 11-15 – Quilt Canada Ottawa – (lecture Fri 6/14)
June 28-30 – Jane Tenorio-Coscarelli workshop – Embellished Garments & Alter Quilts – eQuilter Classroom
July 11-14, 2019 – Cindy Lohbeck – Shibori, Ice-Dyeing and Ombre Dyeing Workshops @ eQuilter
4 Classes $50 each – $80-$100 Materials Fee
Oct 8-10 – Jacqueline de Jonge – eQuilter Classroom
Oct 17-22 – Polar Bear Tour – REGISTER NOW for $1000 eQuilter Discount


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Free Pattern – Catitude Christmas

Posted on April 5, 2019 by Luana

Is it EVER too early to think about making that next Christmas quilt?
The answer is NO, especially when it involves CATS.

This week’s exclusive eQuilter Free Quilt Pattern features the latest version of Ann Lauer’s wildly popular Cat-i-tude designs, and it is Meow-velously clever. It depicts the story of Christmas Eve kitties, entranced with the holiday decorations and the Christmas Tree ornaments.

If you have a cat in the house, we are pretty sure you’ve seen your favorite feline batting at a glass ball or chewing on a strand of glittering tinsel. This 50″ x 61″ quilt is lavishly adorned with opulent Gold Metallic, because… you know… your kitty is worth it!

We expect this free quilt design collection to sell out, and holiday collections are not reprinted, so grab this before it’s gone like the Ghost of Christmas Past.

… featuring from the ‘Cat-i-tude Christmas’ collection by Ann Lauer for Benartex.

Don’t miss the popular ‘Painted Horse‘ and ‘Jungle Giraffes‘ 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 – Rainbow Star in Chicago

Posted on April 3, 2019 by Luana

This morning I was in Cleveland and there was snow on the ground, but tonight I am back in Boulder and the grass we seeded at our new building is starting to come up! Yay!

Over the weekend I was at the Chicago Spring Quilt Festival, and I loved this happy Rainbow Leaf quilt by Elsie Campbell in the Aurifil Color exhibit. I know Elsie from the Bernina Ambassador program, and it was such a delight to admire the gorgeous quilting in the white ‘negative space’ in this quilt, and then realize I know the talented maker. This quilt was machine quilted, but also hand-appliqued and embellished. I love seeing quilts that mix handwork and machine stitching, for maximum impact.

The quilt image is set in a collage frame of Flower, Bird and Galaxy prints we have in stock now.

Many thanks to the 3 ‘Love Your Mother’ artists who came to Chicago to participate in the Gallery Talk. Annette, Janice and Melissa each spoke about their quilts, and their concerns for Mother Earth. The Human Rights ‘OURstory’ exhibit was hanging a couple aisles away, and there were several powerful statements made in that group of quilts as well. This project was organized by Susanne Miller Jones, who also did the HerStory project last year.

sharing your Passion for Fabric…
Luana and Paul

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eQuilter Classroom & Travel Calendar:
Apr 12-14 – Jean Wells for FRCQ workshop – in eQuilter Classroom
April 20 – Charity Sewing Group – EWB Nepal Presentation – RSVP
Apr 23-29 – Nantes France (lecture Fri 4/26)
May 16-19 – Quilt Market
May 24-25 – Dairy Barn – Quilt National Opening – Athens OH
June 11-15 – Quilt Canada Ottawa – (lecture Fri 6/14)
June 27-30 – Jane Tenorio-Coscarelli – Altar Quilts & Embellished Garments Workshops
July 11-14, 2019 – Cindy Lohbeck – Shibori, Ice-Dyeing and Ombre Dyeing Workshops
Oct 8-10 – Jacqueline de Jonge – eQuilter Classroom
Oct 17-22 – Polar Bear Tour – REGISTER NOW!

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Free eQuilter Pattern – Luminous Stars

Posted on April 2, 2019 by Luana

Take a Spacewalk (and no worries about the size of the Spacesuit !) floating above the Earth, in this week’s Free Quilt Pattern … with the planets of the Solar System drifting in the distance. The golden Sun shines in the starry sky, reflecting off the blue ocean.

This 76″ x 84″ bed quilt features a 36″ x 44″ digital printed panel, surrounded by a pieced border with coordinate stars and Kona Solid Black.

This quilt design is a great gift for an astronomer, astronaut, or Sci-Fi fan. Astrologers and amateur star-gazers alike will appreciate the jewel-like colors which really POP against the solid back border.

… featuring the ‘Stargazers’ collection by Adrian Chesterman for Robert Kaufman Fabrics.

Don’t miss the popular ‘Painted Horse‘ and ‘Jungle Giraffes‘ 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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Chicago Quilt Festival

Posted on April 1, 2019 by Luana

Today I am writing to you from the Chicago Quilt Festival, in Rosemont next to O’Hare Airport. I am here to host our ‘Love Your Mother‘ exhibit, and to give a Gallery Talk with 3 of the artists.

This is the last year this event will be in Chicago. There are discussions to move it to another city next year. There were lots of enthusiastic quilters who showed up for this event, and I met many eQuilter customers in the crowd. I was surprised at the international connections at this show – ran into someone I met in Tokyo – also met a Swedish quilter who I missed while in Sweden but with whom I’ve communicated over Facebook. In the SAQA booth I met another artist who had a quilt in the ‘Water is Life‘ exhibit. It is always great to make these deeper connections in person at these gatherings.

Last night I had dinner with Peggy, another artist who was in the ‘Water Is Life’ exhibit. We worked together to hang the show when it premiered at the United Nations in Geneva, and also spent time with the curator in Rome. Our textile art has given us quite an international friendship. Making quilts can bring amazing opportunities!

Monday I am in the Quilting Arts TV studio to film a couple segments about quilting trends. Then I need to get home so I can see the Boulder High School production of Les Miserables! (Sophie is the Head of the Sound Tech Dept for the show.) Then Sophie has her SAT and AP tests in April. The school year is winding down fast. In August Sophie will begin her Senior year of High School. How did that happen?

sharing your Passion for Fabric…
Luana and Paul

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Free eQuilter Pattern – Carnivale

Posted on March 29, 2019 by Luana

It may still be Lent, but you can start planning to ‘Party like it’s Carnivale‘ for next year,
with this week’s exclusive eQuilter Free Quilt Pattern.

We’ve combined some of our favorite celebratory designs with a hard-to-stock Mardi Gras print from Kaufman, so this is kind of a one-shot-deal…snap it up now if it tickles your fancy.

Whether you dance in the streets in New Orleans, Samba in Brazil, Calypso in Trinidad, or wear a powdered wig in Venice (or just play the part in a local party) this 69″ x 69″ quilt will keep the party going all year long!

… featuring the ‘Carnivale’ collection by Debi Payne for Quilting Treasures.

Don’t miss the popular ‘Jungle Giraffes‘ and ‘Great Horned Owl‘ 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 – Yellow = Happy

Posted on March 27, 2019 by Luana

What is it about the combination of Yellow and Blue that makes us so happy? Is it the color of Sunshine and Blue Sky? Or maybe it reminds us of Daffodils and Hyacinth? I also think of textile designs from Provence and Italy. Sipping lemonade next to blue waters…or maybe it just means Spring and Summertime?

Yellow is becoming a more important color in fashion and home dec, so that means we see more of it in quilt designs. An interesting twist on this color trend is combining Yellow with the analogous color combination of Turquoise, Robins Egg Blue and Periwinkle. Yellow is such a sunny happy color, but we haven’t thought about this color for a few decades. However it is time to bring a little Sunshine back into our lives!

This beautiful quilt detail is from the Tokyo Quilt Festival, and it features Yellow PomPoms, soaring Swallows and swirling Ribbons over a Turquoise/Blue medallion. I’ve pasted a photo of the quiltmaker’s name (from the Japanese artist statement) in the corner, and set it in a frame of Springy fabrics in stock now. I hope it brings you a smile today.

Friday I am headed to the Chicago Quilt Festival, to host our Love Your Mother exhibit. I will be giving a gallery talk in the exhibit at 2 pm on Saturday, along with 3 of the artists. Please come and see these beautiful 17 quilts, made with our Love Your Mother challenge fabrics, expressing feelings about what is happening to our Mother Earth.

Sunday I hop over to Cleveland, and will be in the Quilting Arts TV studio with Susan Brubaker Knapp on Monday. If you’d like to check out some of my previous appearances on QA TV, check out our video page.

We have 6 workshops and 1 Polar Bear Tour available for registration now…details below. The $1000 eQuilter discount is still available for a few more spots on the Polar Bear tour, but going fast!

sharing your Passion for Fabric…
Luana and Paul

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eQuilter Classroom & Travel Calendar:
Mar 28-30 – ‘Love Your Mother’ exhibit at Spring Quilt Festival in Chicago
Apr 1 – Quilting Arts TV, Cleveland
Apr 12-14 – Jean Wells for FRCQ workshop – in eQuilter Classroom
April 20 – Charity Sewing Group – EWB Nepal Presentation – RSVP
Apr 23-29 – Nantes France (lecture Fri 4/26)
May 16-19 – Quilt Market
May 24-25 – Dairy Barn – Quilt National Opening – Athens OH
June 11-15 – Quilt Canada Ottawa – (lecture Fri 6/14)
June 27-30 – Jane Tenorio-Coscarelli – Altar Quilts & Embellished Garments Workshops
July 11-14, 2019 – Cindy Lohbeck – Shibori, Ice-Dyeing and Ombre Dyeing Workshops
Oct 8-10 – Jacqueline de Jonge – eQuilter Classroom
Oct 17-22 – Polar Bear Tour – REGISTER NOW!

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Free eQuilter Pattern – Painted Horse

Posted on March 26, 2019 by Luana

Here at eQuilter we are not afraid of big bold COLOR, because we know that’s what our customers LOVE! This week’s Free Quilt Pattern features a Neon Technicolor galloping HORSE – one of our most popular digital printed panels.

Set off this wild rainbow with brilliant digital coordinates, that really POP against the Kona Solid Black. This 42″ x 60″ quilt is a conversation starter in any room where it hangs, and it makes a fantastic gift for the Horse-Lover in your life.

… featuring the ‘Painted Horse’ collection by Chong-A Hwang for Timeless Treasures.

Don’t miss the popular ‘Jungle Giraffes‘ and ‘Great Horned Owl‘ 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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SPRING has Sprung

Posted on March 25, 2019 by Luana

Are you going to the Spring Quilt Festival in Chicago next weekend? If so please come to my Gallery Talk in the Love Your Mother exhibit at 2 pm on Saturday. We will also have 3 of the artists on hand to talk about their work. You can see a preview of the quilts HERE.

In case you missed the Wednesday Creative Nudge, I have a few spots available for the Oct Polar Bear Tour with a special $1K eQuilter discount…contact Aly at NatHab asap to guarantee your spot.

We have just opened registration for 2 workshops with Jane Tenorio-Coscarelli in June. If you love Day of the Dead Sugar Skulls, Frida Kahlo and Guadalupe fabrics, you will love Jane’s creative style!

Next week we will be moving my mom from Rehab to a nursing care facility, after her recent hospital stay. I know many of you have met my sweet mom over the years, and I have to give her credit that she never told me I couldn’t pursue a creative career in the arts. Now I encourage our kids to follow their hearts when it comes to school and career, and I thank her for teaching me about compassion and patience.

Looking ahead, I will be giving my “International Quilt Trends” power point lecture in Nantes France in April, and at Quilt Canada in Ottawa in June. You will see we have 3 very special teachers listed for our eQuilter Classroom this year, so I hope I will see you at a quilt festival, or spend time with you in my studio/classroom in the coming year.

sharing your Passion for Fabric…
Luana and Paul

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Free eQuilter Pattern – Perfect Pups

Posted on March 22, 2019 by Luana

Do you dream of snuggling with adorable puppies when you go to sleep at night?
This week’s exclusive eQuilter Free Quilt Pattern can give you a head start on those sweet doggie dreams!

This KING SIZE (93″ x 121″) quilt features 16 different dog breeds as delightful puppy vignettes, from our exclusive eQuilter line of digital fabrics. We’ve framed them with paw prints, and a Hoffman Hand-Dye sashing, to make a generously sized bed quilt that will bring Puppy Smiles (the best kind!) every night.

You can send this out to a longarm quilting service, but if you are quilting at home, you might want to pick up Batting and Backing now as well. We’ve suggested a coordinating 108″ Backing, but you can of course choose from our 250 backing prints to match your bedroom decor. (And as always, you can change the color of the Hoffman Hand-Dye sashing if desired.)

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

Don’t miss the popular ‘Jungle Giraffes‘ and ‘Great Horned Owl‘ 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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