Decorative Arts in Cuba

Posted on May 25, 2016 by Luana

HavanaMuseumDeco_700

If you are following my travels for the month of May, you may know that after my Cuba Arts Tour I stopped in Florida for a couple days, came home for a day, then went to Quilt Market in Salt Lake City. Whew! I am glad to be home now!

In this week’s photo-and-fabric collage, we are looking down into the entry hall of the Museum of Decorative Arts in the Vedado district of Havana.

The museum was originally the winter home of Countess of Revilla de Camargo. The grand house was inspired by the French Renaissance, and was built 1924-1927 in a Neo-Classical style. It was filled with French antiques, including rugs, ceramics, period furniture, plus more modern collectibles like Lalique glass.

In the center of the vestibule floor is an inlaid marble design that reminded me of a quilt block. In the top right of the collage is a beautiful chandelier, and in the bottom left is a close-up of the most valuable piece of furniture/art in the museum. Our handsome young art historian guide Emilio took us through the house and pointed out the highlights. Fortunately after the revolution, it was recognized to be worth saving, and the state converted it from a residence, to a museum.

If you have a passion for travel, photography, art and design inspiration, check out my photos from Cuba and the Polar Bear trip, and perhaps consider joining me later this year in Havana or Churchill.

Our daughter Sophie is graduating from 8th grade and middle school this Thursday. Some of you have followed her story since we adopted her from China when she was 8 months old. How did we get from 8 months old to 8th grade?! She will be starting high school in August!

sharing your Passion for Fabric…
~Luana

2016 Calendar:
May 1-31 – The Golden Hour – SAQA Call for Entries
July 20-29 – Seville & Granada
Sept 18-25 – Cuba Arts Tour #2 – details here!
Nov 15-20 – Luana’s Polar Bear Tour – 3 spots left!

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Free Pattern – Love and Peace

Posted on May 24, 2016 by Luana

Love_Peace

This week’s Free Quilt Pattern is from a holiday collection, but we see it as a quilt with a message that transcends any season. The 55″ x 65″ size makes it perfect for a wallhanging or a lap quilt.

Three White Doves perch in the branches of a tree glimmering with stars and snowflakes. It is set on a background with a brilliant sunrise color story, with shades of gold, persimmon, flame, plum and berry.

Collection coordinates are set into a pieced white border that sets off the center panel like a jewel box!

…from the Love & Peace collection by Sarah Summers for Quilting Treasures.

You may order the pattern as configured, or customize it to your liking with any of our over 20,000 fabrics. Just place your desired fabrics in your Wish List, and these fabrics will appear in the Fabric Selector below the pattern.

This pattern was designed in EQ7, which is available here at eQuilter.

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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Quilt Market Preview

Posted on May 23, 2016 by Luana

This weekend we are in Salt Lake City at Quilt Market – ordering lots of great fabric collections that will arrive in our warehouse in the next several months.

Here are several of the collections that inspired us on the first day.

Super Nova Digital – Ombre Bull’s-eye panels by Jeanie Sumrall-Ajero
Sewing with Singer – Charming vintage scenes of mother and daughter sewing.
Vincent Van Gogh 2 – Sunflowers & brushstroke textures
Marks by Valori Wells – linoleum / woodblock faux prints
Country Manor by Darlene Zimmerman
Tigerfish Batiks by McKenna Ryan
Valley of the Kings – Egyptian!
Grafic by Latifah Saafir for Me + You
Mystic Meadow DIGITAL – realistic flowers, painterly abstracts and a unique plaid
Land That I Love – DIGITAL Statue of Liberty and flag Panel
Samba DIGITAL – abstract multi-color
Stacy Michelle Batiks
Studio Alphabet – DIGITAL ‘adult’ ABC panel by Marcia Derse
Artworks DIGITAL – Brooklyn & Bay Bridge, Cascade Waterfall
Out of Africa by Tina Higgins
Sundance by Lane Kendrick – Horses in a canyon
The Traveler by Kori Kumi for Santoro
Quilting B’s by J. Wecker Frisch – based on the Beatitudes
Just what the Doctor Ordered by Dan Morris – medical for him & her
Natural World by Snow Leopard Designs – Philip Jacobs
Slow & Steady by Tula Pink
Cool Breeze by Jane Sassaman
Eternal Sunshine by Amy Butler
Little House on the Prairie: Mansfield and Prairie Scenics by Kathy Hall
The Very Hungry Caterpillar: I Love You by Eric Carle
Encyclopedia Galactica by Suite 1500 – DIGITAL vintage planetary chart panel
Hummingbird Song by Joy La Forme – DIGITAL cottage garden panel
Crab Shack by Two Can Designs – drawings by a child with autism
Festive Holiday and Animal Wonderland – great DIGITAL collections
Irresistible Iris by Ann Lauer from Grizzly Gulch Gallery
The Music In Me by Maria Kalinowski – Benartex – notes, instruments, music
Digital Garden – Roses by Elizabeth’s Studio
Dance Of The Dragonfly by Kanvas studio
Licensed Kids – Jungle Book, Batman vs Superman, Yogi Bear
Campbell’s Soup, Miller Coors beer, Jurassic World, E.T., Jaws, Nightmare Before Christmas, Disney Villains, Finding Dory, WWE wrestling, Marvel Characters.
Across the Universe – by Deborah Edwards – Large 42″ x 80″ DIGITAL astronaut panel
Naturescapes by Deborah Edwards – water, grass, bark, planks, sky, rock
Fields of Gold by Phillip Allder – Tiger

Off to another day of ordering gorgeous fabrics for our wonderful customers!

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Free Pattern – Yoga is for Everyone

Posted on May 20, 2016 by Luana

Yoga

You’ll be laughing out loud with your ‘Yoga is for Everyone’ eQuilter Exclusive free pattern, featuring a variety of happy farm animals in comical yoga poses!

Your favorite farm animals are framed in agile yoga postures, while accented with calming and peaceful hand dyes. Yoga students and animal lover will treasure this lighthearted 52″ square quilt.

…from the ‘Yoga is for Everyone’ collection by Looking Good for Elizabeth’s Studio.

You may order the pattern as configured, or customize it to your liking with any of our over 20,000 fabrics. Just place your desired fabrics in your Wish List, and these fabrics will appear in the Fabric Selector below the pattern.

This pattern was designed in EQ7, which is available here at eQuilter.

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 – Faces and Music of Cuba

Posted on May 18, 2016 by Luana

TrinidadDress_700This morning I got up at 4 am EDT to drive up to Tampa and catch a flight home, after visiting old friends in Sarasota Florida. I am still digesting all that I saw and experienced in my week in Cuba.

I have been thinking a lot about Ricky and Lucy Ricardo, and their partnership on I Love Lucy. This mirrored the real-life marriage and partnership of Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball. Desi was a Cuban-born actor and musician, whose family fled the 1933 revolution of dictator Batista, coming to America when Desi was about 16.

When I watched I Love Lucy as a kid, I was unknowingly soaking up some Cuban culture and music, which jumped out at me randomly on my trip to Cuba last week. There are whole pages on the internet dedicated to Ricky’s Cuban-English quotes, spoken with that heavy Cuban accent. His Latin band the Desi Arnaz Orchestra gave me a childhood exposure to Latin Jazz, and now it is my favorite type of music to play while working in my studio. (Buena Vista Social Club)

I Love Lucy was in Black and White, but now I am also being influenced by the Afro-Cuban and Cuban-Caribbean colors that are sure to drive color trends in all areas of design, as the US opens up to this island nation.

This is a collage of photos I’ve taken in Trinidad and Havana Cuba, plus some floral fabrics in stock at eQuilter.com

sharing your Passion for Fabric…
~Luana

2016 Calendar:
May 1-31 – The Golden Hour – SAQA Call for Entries
May 20-22 – Quilt Market
July 20-29 – Seville & Granada
Sept 18-25 – Cuba Arts Tour #2 – details here!
Nov 15-20 – Luana’s Polar Bear Tour – 3 spots left!

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Free Pattern – Majestic Eagles

Posted on May 17, 2016 by Luana

MajesticEagles

Don’t miss this week’s Free and fabulous ‘Majestic Eagles’ quilt pattern, featuring realistic Bald Eagle frames, soaring eagle landscapes, and delicate eagle feather coordinates.

Snuggle up beneath your 53″ x 79″ quilt, and you’ll feel at home among magnificent eagles, mountain lakes and towering pine trees.

…from the ‘Majestic Eagles’ collection by Hautman Brothers for Quilting Treasures.

You may order the pattern as configured, or customize it to your liking with any of our over 20,000 fabrics. Just place your desired fabrics in your Wish List, and these fabrics will appear in the Fabric Selector below the pattern.

This pattern was designed in EQ7, which is available here at eQuilter.

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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Sunset Greetings from Cuba!

Posted on May 16, 2016 by Luana

I am writing to you from my waterfront hotel in the historic city of Cienfuegos in Cuba. It is our group’s last night here in Cuba, and we have a couple hours of free time before our farewell dinner. (*sniff*) Today we went to the UNESCO World Heritage site of Trinidad, and saw a few unique things on the way like the migration of thousands of crabs trying to cross the road! Trinidad has a very specific color palette of historic hues which are mandated for use on the well-preserved 18th Century architecture, which is a combination of Caribbean, Cuban, and European influences. On the way back from Trinidad on the bus this afternoon, we were playing Jungle Book (Bare Necessities), Frank Sinatra and Salsa music, and we laughed so hard we had tears running down our cheeks…a fantastic week with an awesome group.

With limited internet access and being the mother hen to our group, I have not had time to post many photos yet, but I’ll get to that next week…before I leave for Quilt Market! We had such a great group – the quilters brought their husbands, daughters and best friends so we had a wide perspective on our tour. Tomorrow early morning we fly back to Miami, then I am renting a car and driving up to Sarasota to visit my old roommate from Hong Kong. (She was the head patternmaker for Oscar de La Renta when I first met her.) I’ll be back in the office Weds and then flying to Salt Lake Thursday – and I will be happy when I am back home for Sophie’s graduation from 8th grade the following week!

I am going to do ONE more tour to Cuba before the hordes of tourists hit. I can already see that there are more tourists here than when I went last September. If you want to see Cuba before the masses of tourists, I strongly recommend you check out our Cuban Arts Tour.

Also the Polar Bear Tour still has a couple spots left, and it will definitely sell out! If you are more of a wildlife lover this is a great opportunity to see the iconic bears, while traveling with a like-minded group. We have lots of hot chocolate on the big white Tundra Rover!

We have some surprises coming soon with new fabrics, classes, creative retreats and other fun stuff, so keep an eye out for our newsletters. Our 2000 sq ft classroom in Boulder Colorado will be ready for booking soon and we can’t wait to start meeting our friends and customers in person!

Calendar:
May 8-15 – Luana’s CUBA ARTS TOUR #1 – Sold Out
May 1-31 – The Golden Hour – SAQA Call for Entries
May 20-22 – Quilt Market
July 20-29 – Seville & Granada
Sept 18-25 – Cuba Arts Tour #2 – details here!
Nov 15-20 – Luana’s POLAR BEAR Tour – almost full!

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Free Pattern – Animal Spirits

Posted on May 13, 2016 by Luana

5.12

Now is the time to snap up your ‘Animal Spirits’ eQuilter Exclusive free pattern, which combines two of our favorite panels: Pacific Northwest Animal Guides and Beloved Marine Animals.

Each animal is intricately detailed with colorful and majestic Northwood totem scenes.

Your 53″ x 57″ quilt features Dolphins, Orca and Sperm Whales, Flounder, Salmon and Crabs, along with Bald Eagles, Bears, Elk, Moose, Ravens and Wolves.

…from the ‘Animal Spirits’ collection by Sue Coccia for Robert Kaufman Fabrics.

You may order the pattern as configured, or customize it to your liking with any of our over 20,000 fabrics. Just place your desired fabrics in your Wish List, and these fabrics will appear in the Fabric Selector below the pattern.

This pattern was designed in EQ7, which is available here at eQuilter.

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 – Hello from Cuba!

Posted on May 11, 2016 by Luana

Cuba!

I am writing to you from the historic Hotel Nacional in Havana Cuba, where I am spending my 3rd day with my intrepid group of travelers. Tonight after dinner I thought I was going to bed, when I heard a salsa beat coming from underneath my window. At first I was annoyed but then I realized I wanted to get up and dance, so I got dressed and went downstairs.

After following my nose past a smaller band, I walked to the other side of the hotel under my room, and found a concert hall with the Buena Vista Social Club rocking out with an irresistible cha-cha beat! The band leader was playing the haunting melody of Oye Como Va on a saxophone, a lady trombone player dazzled us with her sequins and her sassy riffs, and a pair of dancers were putting on a show. Wow! I decided it was much better to join the party than try to go to sleep.

As you may remember, I took a trip to Cuba last September, and due to popular demand, decided to lead a tour to Cuba this month. The excitement in the air is palpable, but the numbers of American tourists planning to come here when travel restrictions are lifted is a little scary. I will lead one more tour here in September, and then I just want to get out of the way as the hordes descend.

In the meantime I am taking photos like crazy, trying to capture the pure essence of Cuban culture before American culture washes over the island. The classic colorful cars from the 50’s are probably best known, but for me it is the Cuban Jazz that is most delightful. I just know these Cuban Caribbean colors are going to be a big trend influence going into the next year, and so many things about Cuban art and music and culture are going to wash back over the US.

We’ve had lectures every morning from experts – a retired Cuban ambassador, a Reuters journalist, an architect…helping us to understand what is happening on this island nation. Today we went to some art galleries run by young artists, expressing the diaspora of the Cuban people. We’re eating Cuban black beans and rice and plantains, driving past the old mansions built by sugar dynasties, hoping that the Cuban passion for living will sustain this unique culture.

This is a collage of photos I’ve taken in the last couple days, plus some tropical fabrics in stock at eQuilter.com

sharing your Passion for Fabric…
~Luana

2016 Calendar:
May 8-15 – Luana’s CUBA ARTS TOUR – Now Playing!
May 1-31 – The Golden Hour – SAQA Call for Entries
May 20-22 – Quilt Market
July 20-29 – Seville & Granada
Sept 18-25 – Cuba Arts Tour #2 – details here!
Nov 15-20 – Luana’s Polar Bear Tour – 3 spots left!

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Free Pattern – Northern Lights

Posted on May 10, 2016 by Luana

Polar bear

This week’s free eQuilter pattern features our remarkable Polar Bear panel with a radiant Aurora Borealis backdrop.

Snuggle up with your 50″ x 56″ Northern Lights / Polar Bear lap quilt, and you’ll be the envy of nature lovers everywhere!
…from the ‘Northern Lights’ collection by Liz Dillon for Quilting Treasures.

You may order the pattern as configured, or customize it to your liking with any of our over 20,000 fabrics. Just place your desired fabrics in your Wish List, and these fabrics will appear in the Fabric Selector below the pattern.

This pattern was designed in EQ7, which is available here at eQuilter.

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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