A Fertile Time for the Creative Soul

Posted on December 28, 2024 by Luana

You may or may not be aware that our quilting community is very active on Facebook. Instagram is catching up but I find that more of the people (quilters, textile artists) I want to follow are posting frequently on Facebook. So this week I noticed my quilter friends in the the U.K. are referring to this as the ‘in-between days’ – i.e. between Christmas and New Year. But of course many of you are now celebrating Hanukkah and Kwanzaa. One thing is clear – this is a fertile time for the creative mind.

I am taking this quiet time to learn some new creative software for my 2025 projects. I am still processing all the information and experiences absorbed on my textile & costume tour. I rearranged some furniture in my home office. I am cleaning and organizing in my studio. There is also a new spiral artsy notebook and I am determined to write in it every day in 2025. I have edited and reprinted my Deadline & Travel Schedule (with lots of question marks!) for the coming year, and pinned it up on the wall.

Have you set creative goals for 2025?
I suggest that you write them down and pin them up on the wall.

Things to include for the coming year:
Choose 3 new colors to include in your palette, that you’ve never used before.
Find or start a group of local quilters for creative support and inspiration.
Plan to take a class or workshop to learn a new technique or skill – online or in person.

What else would you add to this list?
Confidence and an adventurous spirit are assumed, but if those are still issues, put them at the top of the list to be tackled in 2025!

Thank you for sharing this passion for quilting with us.
We are sending ‘in-between’ holiday smiles and hugs to all of you.

sharing your love for fabric,
Luana and Paul

Travel/Lecture Dates: www.luanarubin.com
Jan 9 – Fraser Valley Modern Guild – Art & Activism Zoom Lecture
Jan 21 – Visions Museum Zoom Lecture
Feb 25 – Mar 5 – Kyoto Quilt Festival
Apr 3-6 – SAQA Conference – St Pete, Florida
April 27- May 3 – Alegre Retreat

Visit eQuilter’s Instagram, Pinterest or TikTok pages for Color and Design ideas.

See Luana’s Flickr Photo Pages for travel images, comment on our blog, or follow us on Facebook.

Check out our Video pages for interviews and show reviews.

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Free Quilt Pattern – Kitten Moon

Posted on December 27, 2024 by Luana

Everything is better with Kittens!

This adorable kitty rests in the nook of a crescent moon, floating in the clouds, and illuminated by the soft, night sky. Tonight’s Free eQuilter Pattern features this exclusive design which will be cherished by your little ones (and grown-ups too!)

To make this 65″ x 52″ quilt design, you will start with the central 31″ x 44″ panel. Then piece the borders with four coordinating blue Solids and Snow White Pearlescent Fairy Frost.

Children will love napping beneath this delightful quilt, which also makes a welcome addition to any bedroom.

…from the ‘Favorite Pets’ collection the Rubin Design Studio, designed exclusively for eQuilter.

PLUS – you’ll receive Free USA / 50% off INTL shipping
when you order the fabrics for this exquisite quilt pattern
(orders $100 and over, no coupon needed).

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.

Sharing your passion for fabric and color,
Luana and Paul Rubin

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Dreaming of a White Christmas

Posted on December 25, 2024 by Luana

Merry Christmas from our family to yours.

In this season of Hope and Light, we send you our warmest wishes for a holiday full of comfort and joy. It is a time for cherished traditions and precious moments with loved ones…making memories to fill our hearts in the years to come.

Please take a moment for this special holiday message from Luana.

Thank you for supporting our family-owned business for another year!

Sharing our passion for fabric…..
Luana and Paul
and the eQuilter Staff

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Free Quilt Pattern – Aurora Wolves

Posted on December 22, 2024 by Luana

One of our most popular design motifs is Wolves – representing the wild free spirit of the Northwoods. This week’s exclusive eQuilter Free Quilt Pattern features our new majestic Wolves panel, with a pack running through fresh powder snow under the Moon and Northern Lights.

To make this 59″ x 67″ quilt design, you will start with our Arctic Wolf Pack panel, then piece the borders with an Aurora Borealis print and Lavender Hoffman hand dye; then border with solid black.

This beautiful arctic quilt is a great gift for wildlife enthusiasts who dreams of running wild and free!

…from the ‘Wildlife’ collection the Rubin Design Studio, designed exclusively for eQuilter.

PLUS – you’ll receive Free USA / 50% off INTL shipping
when you order the fabrics for this exquisite quilt pattern
(orders $100 and over, no coupon needed).

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.

Sharing your passion for fabric and color,
Luana and Paul Rubin

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Peace on Winter Solstice

Posted on December 21, 2024 by Luana

Today (Saturday) is the Winter Solstice here in the Northern Hemisphere, and the Summer Solstice for our friends in the Southern Hemisphere. The Winter Solstice is a time of quiet contemplation for me, as I take stock of the year that has passed, prepare for the holidays, and plan for the coming year.

This year, more than ever, I spend this solstice praying for Peace on Earth. My quilting keeps me centered and sane when the world is in chaos. Today, every stitch is made with love and hope. I am completing prayer flags for the Toward 2050 labyrinth.

Now more than ever, the Quilting Community is so precious to me. To ALL of you with whom I have spent time with this year, from QuiltCon to Houston, from Allegre to my recent Textile tour in Italy, I thank you for being such a blessing in my life. We have gathered on Zoom across the miles, and when we are lucky we share a meal at a quilt event. When I left the garment industry and found my way to the world of quilting, I instantly knew I had arrived where I was supposed to be. If you are new to quilting, I urge you to find your local tribe and partake of the warmth and camaraderie we find together.

We seek common ground, upon which to build the New Year together. When we gather based on our shared passion for making things with our hands….when we creatively collaborate in a joyful community….it strengthens us for the challenges of our day to day lives.

Thank you for sharing this passion for quilting with us.
We are sending holiday smiles and hugs to all of you.

sharing your love for fabric,
Luana and Paul

Travel/Lecture Dates:
Jan 9 – Fraser Valley Modern Guild – Art & Activism Zoom Lecture
Jan 21 – Visions Museum Zoom Lecture
Feb 25 – Mar 5 – Kyoto Quilt Festival

Visit eQuilter’s Instagram, Pinterest or TikTok pages for Color and Design ideas.

See Luana’s Flickr Photo Pages for travel images, comment on our blog, or follow us on Facebook.

Check out our Video pages for interviews and show reviews.

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Free Quilt Pattern – Santa on the Mountain

Posted on December 19, 2024 by Luana

There’s still time to celebrate Santa’s arrival with our fabulous new exclusive Christmas panel, depicting a jolly St. Nick sledding with his friendly animals of the forest.

To make this 55″ x 62″ Free Quilt Pattern, you will start with the 36″ x 44″ digital printed central panel. Then piece the borders with three coordinating wintry-blue snowflake prints adjacent to some magical white tonal stars.

Make this quilt for friends and family, and rejoice in the magic of Santa and the Christmas spirit.

…from the ‘Christmas’ collection the Rubin Design Studio, designed exclusively for eQuilter.

PLUS – you’ll receive Free USA / 50% off INTL shipping
when you order the fabrics for this exquisite quilt pattern
(orders $100 and over, no coupon needed).

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.

Sharing your passion for fabric and color,
Luana and Paul Rubin

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Master Fortuny’s Workshop

Posted on December 18, 2024 by Luana

Monday night I returned home from our Textile & Costume tour in Italy. There so many special things in this trip. One of my favorites was our visit to the Fortuny Museum, which was the home and workshop of designer and polymath Mariano Fortuny y Madrazo.

In the 1980s when I was at my first fashion design job, I had the opportunity to design my first silk print collection. The dresses were being made from my prints, in the same factory making Oscar de la Renta’s silk dress collection.

My first silk print collection was inspired by one of my heroes – Fortuny! You may recall that in the late 70s there was a revival of his style – with the micro-pleated silk dresses that were figure-hugging columns. He had a vast library and also studied historic brocades and velvets, then producing his own line of Venetian-inspired textiles.

While in his home Palazzo Pesaro, which is now the museum, I was swooning over his reference library. (A small snippet in the image above.) His home was in this Venetian Palace, built around 1470. The museum opened in 1975. It was in a state of decay when he saw it for the first time in 1898. Over the following years he began the restoration, making it his home, and installing a textile workshop in 1907. Here they mixed dyes, printed silk and velvet fabrics, and created theatrical scenes…inspired by the splendor of the Italian Renaissance.

You can imagine how thrilled I was to find the original reference fabric in the display, that inspired my own collection in 1982. Up until that moment, I had only seen it in a reference book. It was 45 years from when I had first found a book about Fortuny’s work, and was inspired by his Venetian Renaissance patterns. Those moments when we come ‘full circle’ in our life, are momentous….and rare. My passion for Fortuny is part of my passion for textiles, and I finally completed my pilgrimage.

Sharing your love of fabric…
Luana and Paul

Travel/Lecture Dates:
Jan 9 – Fraser Valley Modern Guild – Art & Activism Zoom Lecture
Jan 21 – Visions Museum Zoom Lecture
Feb 25 – Mar 5 – Kyoto Quilt Festival

Visit eQuilter’s Instagram, Pinterest or TikTok pages for Color and Design ideas.

See Luana’s Flickr Photo Pages for travel images, comment on our blog, or follow us on Facebook.

Check out our Video pages for interviews and show reviews.

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Free Quilt Pattern – Father Christmas

Posted on December 15, 2024 by Luana

Just in time for Christmas, we’ve re-stocked our best-selling, beloved Father Christmas & wild animal friends panel!

To make this week’s 49″ x 61″ Free Quilt Pattern, you will start with the 29″ x 44″ digital printed central panel. Then piece the borders with three coordinating wintry-blue snowflake prints.

This exclusive eQuilter design is one of our all time favorites, with the Arctic Blue and White color story. Make something unique for your upcoming holiday celebrations!

…from the ‘Christmas’ collection the Rubin Design Studio, designed exclusively for eQuilter.

PLUS – you’ll receive Free USA / 50% off INTL shipping
when you order the fabrics for this exquisite quilt pattern
(orders $100 and over, no coupon needed).

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.

Sharing your passion for fabric and color,
Luana and Paul Rubin

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Greetings from the Dolomites in Northern Italy

Posted on December 14, 2024 by Luana

Today our tour group traveled to Innsbruck Austria for the Tyrolean Folk Museum and Christmas Market. There was a frosting of snow on the forested mountains as we left in the morning, with low clouds hanging in the valleys. This gorgeous city sits at the base of a range of dramatic snowy peaks, reminding me of Anchorage Alaska…without the coastline. For lunch I had some dumplings that my grandma used to make. The fragrance of mulled wine and pine boughs is in the air, with couples strolling arm-in-arm under the twinkling holiday lights. I am definitely in the holiday mood now!

I’ll be flying home Monday, and sharing photos after the dust settles.

This year is a great time to start a tradition of holiday gift wrapping with fabrics. In Japan it is a traditional and very special way to wrap a gift for someone you really appreciate. There are YouTube videos about Furoshiki techniques, but the bottom line is…you can do a simple wrap or you can quickly sew a bag (like a basic pillowcase) to present your gifts to loved ones. For those of us with ample stashes, this is a way to sustainably wrap for this holiday season.

sharing your love for fabric,
Luana and Paul

Travel/Lecture Dates:
December 3-16 – Italy Textile & Costume Tour – Alpine Xmas Markets.
Jan 9 – Fraser Valley Modern Guild – Art & Activism Zoom Lecture
Jan 21 – Visions Museum Zoom Lecture
Feb 25 – Mar 5 – Kyoto Quilt Festival

Visit eQuilter’s Instagram, Pinterest or TikTok pages for Color and Design ideas.

See Luana’s Flickr Photo Pages for travel images, comment on our blog, or follow us on Facebook.

Check out our Video pages for interviews and show reviews.

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Free Quilt Pattern – Dragonfly Dance

Posted on December 12, 2024 by Luana

You will love working with these gorgeous fabrics in this week’s Free Quilt Pattern – with the wildly popular ‘Dragonfly Dance’ collection in soothing tones of Teal, Aquamarine, Fuchsia, and Amethyst.

What makes this 49″ x 63″ quilt so special is the subtle watercolor-wash style, giving this an elegant but magical quality. The rich, saturated hues and wildflower theme will bring splash of summer splendor to the room or bed where it is used.

…from the ‘Dragonfly Dance’ collection by Deborah Edwards and Melanie Samra for Northcott Fabrics.

PLUS – you’ll receive Free USA / 50% off INTL shipping
when you order the fabrics for this exquisite quilt pattern
(orders $100 and over, no coupon needed).

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.

Sharing your passion for fabric and color,
Luana and Paul Rubin

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