Creative Nudge – China Costume Exhibit

Posted on May 20, 2015 by Luana

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I am writing to you from New York City, after a very inspiring weekend of Quilt Market, a New York design show, and the costume exhibit on China at the Metropolitan Museum.

It was also one of those travel weeks that leaves one wondering… why do I travel? My first night I arrived at my hotel and they had no room for me. When I flew from Minneapolis to Newark, my flight was delayed and I didn’t get to my NYC hotel room until 3 am. Ouch. Then my laptop mouse died.

However I did get lots of great photos and the China costume exhibit is stunning! In the room shown above (in the Met’s basement) a contemporary garment is paired with a historic embroidered robe in the same color story. In this case the theme is the Imperial Golden Yellow with Blue embroidery and lots of Metallic Gold embroidered details. I have added some blue and white Asian eQuilter fabrics to this photo collage, and perhaps this will inspire you as well.

Our 18 year old Sam is graduating from high school Saturday which is hard to believe!
2 down, 1 to go.

I’m flying home Weds afternoon to prepare for the festivities.

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Quilt Market Previews – Part 1

Posted on May 19, 2015 by Luana

Twice a year when we go to Quilt Market, I am asked by so many people “Did you see anything new and exciting?”

Of course there is *always* lots of great fabric that we know you’ll love, but the ultimate litmus test is – does it make us SMILE?!?

We’re smiling dreamily at the wedding collection from Downton Abbey, and smiling wistfully at the Little House on the Prairie collection.

We giggle with silly pleasure at the GIANT Caterpillar panel, Horton Hears a Who, and Laurel Burch’s delightful Doggies.

We squeal with delight at Lonni Rossi’s gold metallic on shot cotton, but then we ooh and aah at Dan Morris’ latest classical music collection.

The best part is we know how much you will love these upcoming fabrics, and we cherry-picked them just for YOU!

SUMMER/FALL 2015: Part 1

In Bloom, It’s a Ruff Life and Thimble Pleasures collections by Dan Morris
Sweetie by Loralie Designs
Yoriko (new Kimmidoll fabrics)- new version of Nobuko
Horton Hears a Who – Dr. Seuss
Tuscan Wildflowers 3 by Peggy Toole
Naptime 2 by Darlene Zimmerman
Little House on the Prairie
Handcrafted II Batiks by Alison Glass
Geishas & Ginkgos by Lonni Rossi
Downton Abbey Celebrations (pearlescent)
Mandalay and Bombay collections by Kathy Hall
The Very Hungry Caterpillar – The Big Wiggle (Giant Scale!) by Eric Carle
Perfect Pitch by Dan Morris (musical collection)
Picnic by Melody Miller
Dogs & Doggies by Laurel Burch
Painters Palette by Judy & Judel Niemeyer
Kaleidoscope by Chong-A Hwang
Happi Horses by Dena Designs
More Eclectic Elements by Tim Holtz
Eden by Tula Pink
Bright Heart by Amy Butler

 

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Free Pattern – Springtime in Paris

Posted on May 19, 2015 by Luana

Springtime_in_Paris

Travel back in time in with these glamorous retro girls, to the City of Light …and the romance of a blossoming Springtime in France.

Stroll along the River Seine, to the Eiffel Tower, and linger at a charming sidewalk café in Paris in this week’s exclusive eQuilter Free Pattern.

Polka dots, postcard script and flowers are mixed with fashion details like high heels and lipstick, for a stylish flair.

Featuring the ‘April in Paris’ collection by Timeless Treasures.

And you receive free shipping when you order the fabrics for this gorgeous pattern!

You may order the pattern as configured, (click through here to see the specifics!) 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 – Peacocks and Love

Posted on May 13, 2015 by Luana

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What is it about Peacocks that excites our imagination? Big beautiful panels featuring these regal birds, have been a huge ongoing trend in the last year. We’ve seen collectors seeking everything from the simple woodcut block printed peacocks from India, to the luxurious Art Deco stylized peacocks opulently embedded with heavy gold metallic.

In Islamic stories the Peacock was guardian of the Gates of Paradise. To the Chinese the Peacock was the symbol of the Ming Dynasty, and represented divinity, rank, power and beauty. Early Christians believe that the “eyes” of the shimmering feathers represent the all-seeing Divine Consciousness. Native Americans used their feathers for healing rituals and magical ceremonies.

For Hindus the feathers represent compassion, kindness and patience. Buddhists associate the feathers with openness, because of the how the bird opens to display its tailfeathers.

The sacred Peacock symbolizes honor, love, long-lasting marriages, self-confidence, clairvoyance, protection, respect, dignity and beauty.

Today Paul and I are celebrating our 20th Wedding Anniversary. When we got married I told him we were going to do great things together, but neither one of us imagined what we’d accomplish in our first 20 years together. 2 weeks after we met, we knew we were going to get married and have a family. We’ve created that… and more. Our business and our charity work is an expression of our partnership, and we are honored to share our vision with all of you…including a LOT of Peacock fabric!

Here’s to the next twenty years!

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Monsoon May

Posted on May 11, 2015 by Luana

We seem to have entered the monsoon season here in Boulder – and we wish we could send some of this rain to you all in California! After our big floods a year and a half ago, we watch those creeks carefully, which are now full of the Spring runoff from the mountains.

Hard to believe but it is just about time for Spring Quilt Market! If you Like our Facebook account, you can follow our posts LIVE from the show floor, as we share quilts and designer collections from the wholesale trade show. If we show you a collection preview on Facebook, that group will be arriving at eQuilter in the next few months.

If you really love something that you see on our eQuilter Facebook preview of Quilt Market, contact Customer Service and we’ll send you a Sneak Peak link via email as soon as it arrives in the warehouse. (before it comes out in the newsletter)

I’ve just agreed to speak at the Gramado quilt festival in Brazil this fall, and I will be attending as a sponsor as well, so I will look forward to meeting more of our Brazilian and South American customers later this year.

If you are going to the Festival of Quilts in Birmingham UK this August, please be sure to order a ticket to my Saturday presentation “International Quilt Trends.” I think I am also participating in a panel discussion – will keep you informed about that as well. I am going to the Shakespeare outing to Stratford Saturday night – hope to see many of you there too!

Paul has had a family emergency and so he and Sophie flew to Hawaii this week… in case any of you are wondering why he is out of touch. We are sending prayers to his family there.

Wishing you a wonderful Mother’s Day with your mothers and grandmothers.
(Many of whom taught us to quilt!)

Travel Calendar:
May 15-17 – Quilt Market
Aug 8 – “International Quilt Trends” Lecture at Birmingham UK Festival of Quilts
September 16-19 – Festival Brasileiro de Quilt e Patchwork, Gramado

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Free Pattern – Fruits of the Vine

Posted on May 8, 2015 by Luana

Fruits_of_the_Vine

This week’s exclusive eQuilter Free Pattern takes you to a country landscape with a bottle or two of wine, crystal goblets, and a view of the distant vineyards…all in the cool shade of a grape arbor.

This lovely vignette beckons to you, cleverly bordered by an engineered stripe with lots of sommelier details. Clusters of juicy grapes are set on point on all 4 corners, set off with a rich wine-colored Hoffman hand-dye.

Featuring the ‘Wine Country’ collection by Adriana Cirstea for Spectrix.

You may order the pattern as configured, (click through here to see the specifics!) 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.

Many thanks to Larene Smith for this Wine Country quilt 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 – Secret Garden Quilts

Posted on May 6, 2015 by Luana

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Quilters are mixing and matching fabrics like never before! Florals, geometrics, yarn-dyed plaids and batiks are combined in ways that would make the Quilt Police shudder 20 years ago.

These days, we just have fun and combine the colors and designs that just feel right. We audition all the crazy stuff in our Epic Stashes, and make combination choices that surprise even ourselves!

Here is a collage with photos from the Flower Market in Mexico City, and the ‘Ex Libris’ collection by Alison Glass for Andover. It would look great with some multicolor yarn-dyed plaids for the sashing and binding. The rich saturated floral and jeweltone batiks would mix in nicely as well.

Go ahead – give yourself permission to Walk on the Wild Side – design your own secret garden quilt and you can plant anything you like!

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Sunshine in Portland

Posted on May 4, 2015 by Luana

By the time you read this, I’ll be at the Portland Airport, waiting to fly home from the SAQA Fiberlandia conference. Usually it rains in Portland, but they are having a drought too, so it was mild and sunny this weekend.

My parents grew up in a little town called Molalla here, and my brothers went to school in Eugene. (Go Ducks!) I have lots of relatives who still live in the Portland area, so it is good to spend some time here.

One of the SAQA panel presentations was comprised of International Quilt Artists, from South Africa, Australia, Canada, France and Taiwan. Wherever I go, I meet artists who are part of SAQA, and they are always busy preparing for fiber art exhibitions around the world. I really have to admire how this extraordinary organization has expanded around the globe, and how they continue to educate and inspire quilt artists who aspire to something beyond a patchwork bedspread.

Also, the attendees of these annual conferences are a Who’s Who of the industry’s creative glitterati, so it is fun to hobnob with so many wonderful quilt/textile artists.

One of them is Terrie Mangat. The first time I met her we were on a shuttle going to Art Quilt Tahoe in the mountains, and the vehicle slid off the pass into a snow bank. I shared my emergency chocolate bar with Terrie and the other quilters in the shuttle, and by the time we were rescued, we were all fast friends.

I’ll be in Minneapolis in two weeks for Quilt Market, then our middle child Sam graduates from high school the following weekend. What a busy month!

Next weekend Mom, Sophie and I are going to an annual tradition – we wear fancy hats and go for a fancy tea party at a Victorian-era home in Longmont. (Hover Home) This Mothers Day Tea always has some kind of vintage fashion presentation, which we enjoy while munching on cucumber sandwiches and sipping from antique floral china teacups.

Do you have a multi-generation tradition for Mothers Day too?

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Free Pattern – Running Free

Posted on May 1, 2015 by Luana

Running_Free2

Feel the wind in your hair as you gallop across the prairie with this herd of wild horses…by internationally acclaimed wildlife artist Jody Bergsma.

We’ve paired Jody’s fluid style with the gorgeous textures of Sandscapes – tonal stone textures with touches of gold metallic for a subtle glimmer to set off these beautiful Mustang portraits.

This week’s exclusive eQuilter Free Pattern features the ‘North American Wildlife‘ collection by Jody Bergsma for Robert Kaufman Fabrics.

You may order the pattern as configured, (click through here to see the specifics!) 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.

Many thanks to Sue Harvey for this Horse themed quilt 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 – Creative Mash-Up

Posted on April 29, 2015 by Luana

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Creativity is often interdisciplinary. While some try to keep different art forms separate and distinct, others are inspired by the possibilities of melding 2 or more art forms.

Humans naturally try to divide their world into polarized segments… light and dark… good and bad…art or craft…etc. It is how we try to simplify and understand complex situations.

Imagine the excitement when classical music and athletic but graceful dance were first combined. (Ballet) The multiple layers of artforms in Opera (vocal and instrumental music, acting, costumes & sets) allowed us to be submersed in an alternative reality, long before virtual reality was possible.

Our Boulder university is considering creating a new School of the Arts, combining theatre and dance, art and art history and film studies departments, plus staff from the CU Art Museum and Colorado Shakespeare Festival.

In yesterday’s local paper, it was reported that “….students are already thwarting departmental boundaries by blending all sorts of artistic disciplines into projects, degrees and performances.”

I like to mix up the creative inspiration and creative expression (Images In = Images Out) so they swirl together like a chocolate/vanilla ice cream cone.

When I look at things through a camera lens, or try to paint something with a brush and pigment, I experience the source in a new and different way. This week I was able to photograph our Boulder Philharmonic in concert, which was a fantastic experience. I have long been inspired by Max Oppenheimer’s giant painting at the Belvedere Museum in Vienna – of Gustav Mahler conducting the Vienna Philharmonic. No online photo can do this piece justice, because it is HUGE, and the details get lost when it is shrunk down.

However the visual stimulation of my photo session, combined with the live music, and the memory of Oppenheimer’s painting, got my creative juices roaring this week.

How do you layer different creative inputs, and different artistic disciplines, to make something new?

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