eQuilter Blog

Cultural Field Trip

Posted on March 29, 2014 by Luana

Sophie and I have had a marvelous Spring Break week, filming at Quilting Arts TV in Ohio, and then visiting our fabric friends and favorite museums in New York City.

It was great to spend time with Susan Brubaker Knapp on her first day as the new host. We always learn new things watching the other guests in their taping sessions.

If you are in NYC, be sure to stop by the New York Transit Museum in Grand Central Station, to see the quilt exhibit celebrating GC's Centennial. Just in case you can't make it, I stopped by and took photos, which you can see in my New York folder on my photo page.

We also visited the small William Morris exhibit downstairs next to the Textile Department at the Metropolitan Museum. I am posting photos of the WM designs also on my New York photo page.

We also saw After Midnight which is an absolutely fabulous Duke Ellington musical review, currently with Toni Braxton. The reason I went to see it was because Isabel Toledo did the costumes, and Wynton Marsalis is the musical director of the Lincoln Center Jazz ensemble. It was like stepping back in time to the 1920's at the Cotton Club. The costumes, dancing, and music had me grinning the whole time!

Lastly, I have to tell you about our wonderful experience meeting Joshua Bell after his performance with St Martin in the Fields, at Avery Fisher Music Hall. After asking the ushers, we found the Green Room door, and Sophie asked if she could have his autograph. After about 10 minutes, Sophie was invited into the Inner Sanctum of the Avery Fisher backstage area, where Josh and the musicians were having a champagne after-party. Mr Bell put down his glass long enough to speak to Sophie and sign her program. He shook her hand just a little while after performing the Brahms on his 1713 Stradivarius. What a thrill. That girl is so brave!

POLAR BEAR TOUR:
The window of opportunity is closing on the last few spaces with my group. We are trying to hold it open until April 1st for our last few quilters to sign up, but once they open it to the public it will fill up fast. If you've been waiting to register, NOW is the time to call Aly and put down a deposit! Payment plans are welcome. I don't want you to be disappointed and end up with a group of strangers if you call late. We have a nice group already signed up – very exciting!

********
2014 Quilty/Design Travel:
May 1-4 SAQA Conference Wash DC
May 16-18 Quilt Market
June 11-14 Quilt Canada, Ontario
July 15 Quilt Colorado
Oct 1 Quilt Exhibit, Rome
Oct 13-19 Polar Bear Tour, Churchill
Nov 14-16 Color Marketing Group, Orlando

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Creative Nudge – New York New York

Posted on March 26, 2014 by Luana

It has been a very exciting week so far!

Monday I taped 2 segments on Quilting Arts TV with Susan Brubaker Knapp – on her very first day as the new host! The first segment was about the process of developing the SAQA fundraiser fabric collection with Andover Fabrics, and everybody there went crazy over the artwork.

If this early enthusiasm is a good indicator, I'd say we have a smash hit! The collection will be unveiled as a sneak preview at the SAQA Conference in DC on May 1st, and will premier to the industry at Quilt Market in mid-May.

This QA TV segment will air in August, and we'll be sure to put a clip on our video page. (where you can see previous QA TV clips now!)

The rest of this week I am in New York with Sophie for Spring Break, doing a combination of business and vacation. Having lived here for 6 years while I worked in the fashion industry (after living in Hong Kong), it is kind of like coming home. I'll be visiting a couple of our suppliers while here – always fun to see what's new in the design studios.

Here's a collage of a Broadway photo, with several of our New York themed fabrics. Can't you just hear Frank Sinatra singing when you look at these fabrics?

It looks like I'll be back in New York in September on the way to Rome, for the Quilters Take Manhattan event with the Quilt Alliance. We are sponsors for the SAQA Conference, Quilt Canada, and Quilters Take Manhattan… hope to see you at one of these events!

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Face to Face Friendships

Posted on March 22, 2014 by Luana

("Make It Sew")

When you get to a certain age, it is far too easy to just hang with your old gang, have a chatfest with your usual BFF girlfriends, and look at life… and quilts… in the same old way.

However one of the pleasures of being part of the great International Quilting Club is that wherever you go, you may find a new best friend. Or a few. Or a bunch! You just have to keep your eyes open for those little telltale signs that you've found a fellow quilter.

I have a new friend who is a professional musician, and a screenplay writer. When she comes into town for work, she stays with a quilter. So today when I dropped her off after lunch, I got to come inside and see the quilts and the studio.

The studio has high ceilings, big picture windows, and a 2nd floor wrap-around porch with a view of the mountains. There was a king-size paper-pieced cat quilt made with a beautiful collection of batiks, laid out on a king-size design wall. There was a landscape quilt with her view of the mountains. There was a Kaffe Fassett quilt that had been made from a kit. I felt she was so gracious to invite me into her space and show me her quilts.

But that's what we do when we meet another quilter, right?

If you have a local or regional guild, don't underestimate the power of a guild meeting with show-and-tell, a guest speaker, coffee and chocolate chip cookies. (Where there are quilters, there is caffeine and chocolate, right?)

If you don't have a local group, make one! Having a monthly meeting with 3 or 6 or 12 like-minded creative friends, will keep you juiced up and on track with your deadlines and design goals.

National conferences (such as the SAQA conference in Wash DC in May) can be the most rewarding, where you can learn new techniques, be inspired by your peers, participate in quiltmaking challenges, and discover your own creative style in the context of all the other quilts and quilters. There is just nothing like hangin' with your quilter friends to get the ultimate buzz of inspiration. I love the internet and social media, but nothing compares to the up-close-and-personal experience of a quilt exhibit with your fellow fabriholics.

This weekend I am flying to Ohio, and will film a couple more segments for Quilting Arts TV with the new host, Susan Brubaker Knapp. (You can see previous QA TV segments on our video page.)

Then Sophie and I will go to NYC to spend the rest of our spring break at museums and art exhibits. We're going to check out the quilt exhibit at Grand Central Station, so watch for those photos.

It is snowing again here in Colorado today, but Spring's first few buds are slowly emerging. The crocuses bloomed this week, just in time for the Spring Equinox.

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Creative Nudge – Passion for Taupe

Posted on March 18, 2014 by Luana

I am a color person. I like bright colors, and lots of 'em.

However through my career as a fabric purveyor, I've been reminded over and over that there are many of you who love neutrals.

When we first started our business in the basement of our home, my shelves were filled with lots of boisterous juicy bold color.

A quilter friend came over to see our new business. She quietly walked through and looked at every single bolt. Then she said good-bye, and said there was nothing that she wanted. I was shocked! How was that possible?

"You don't have any neutrals."
"You want…. beige and gray?"
"Yes. Those colors are soothing to me."
"Okay, come back in two weeks and I'll have what you need."

Two weeks later she came back, and I had a whole selection of beautiful earthtones and neutrals. She bought an armful.

The first time I went to the Tokyo Quilt Festival, I had another Neutral Epiphany. I had seen Yoko Saito's taupe quilt while visiting a quilt shop in Florence Italy, and although that was a revelation, it was only one quilt.

In Tokyo, there was a huge quilt exhibit with LOTS of taupe quilts. The excitement was not in the color, but in the exquisitely detailed handwork of these quilts.

The Taupe Movement is slowly but surely seeping into our color context here in the US. Life is so crazy and complicated, that we are drawn to the soothing qualities of these lovely understated fabrics.

Handwork is also growing in popularity, as many quilters seek out the meditative and mind-emptying therapeutic qualities of making something beautiful with one's own hands.

Here is a tessellated quilt from the Tokyo Quilt Festival (background), with a collage of our Taupe cotton prints (Gentle Flowers) mixed with Natural-colored linens.

POLAR BEAR TOUR:
If you'd like to travel with me to see the greatest gathering of these iconic bears, a once-in-a-lifetime experience…please call and register today to reserve your space!

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A Year of Changes

Posted on March 16, 2014 by Luana

Things are changing in the quilting industry, including many icons of the industry who are retiring this year.

One of my dearest friends is stepping down in the next few months – Beth Hayes who has been the editor-in-chief at McCalls Quilting Magazine for 20 years.

Her office is just 40 minutes away in Golden, but our friendship has taken me around the world. I traveled with her tours of China and Italy, we both led groups to Ireland, and we took a Girlfriend Tour (just the 2 of us) to Vienna, Budapest and Prague during the holiday season.

Many years ago, Beth gave me a generous introduction in McCalls when she published my quilt designs and the first several fabric collections that I designed. Our mutual love of fabric and quilting blossomed into a treasured friendship.

She has an eye for talent and success, and is one of the most gracious women I've ever known. Her shoes will be hard to fill, but the search is on for her replacement.

Our middle child Sam was only 2 when we started the business, and now he is a 17-year-old junior in high school. His Boulder High jazz band has been invited to do an exchange at a music school in Trondheim Norway, where they'll be performing in a week. He leaves Monday with his band for a 2-week Spring Break tour…and we are so excited for all the kids!

We are booking registrations for our fantastic Polar Bear Tour to Churchill in Manitoba, Canada!
We still have openings for this Once-In-A-Lifetime Adventure, but they will open up our spaces to the general public April 1st so please don't delay if you want to guarantee your spot!

This trip sells out every year due to limited space in Churchill, so if you'd like to travel with me, read through this information page and itinerary carefully, then contact our adventure specialist Aly at NatHab right away.

After going on this trip alone last fall, I was totally blown away by the experience, so this time I am going back with a group of quilters, and we'll be meeting up with my quilter friends in Winnipeg on the first and last day, before and after our time in Churchill with the Polar Bears. Please join us!

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Paula Nadelstern and Cosmic Jewels

Posted on March 14, 2014 by Luana

This eye-popping quilt is an eQuilter Exclusive Design, made from Paula Nadelstern's latest kaleidoscope-inspired collection "Palindromes".

Gazing into the symmetry of this 60" x 60" quilt design, you'll see exploding stars and cosmic galaxies…to boldly go where no quilter has gone before!

The contemporary color story boldly mixes fiery jeweltones with a detailed black and white contrast border. Precise kaleidoscope piecing means you will have 5 unique star patterns in this show-stopper, that will be a conversation piece wherever it is displayed.

Many thanks to Toby Lischko for this dramatic quilt design, which shows off Paula Nadelstern's Palindromes fabrics like bejeweled ornaments.

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.

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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Happy Birthday to US!

Posted on March 9, 2014 by Luana

Monday is our 15 year anniversary, and I have to
admit I have made a lot of jokes over the years about having a Fabric-Eating
Dragon tied up in the back yard.

We started out in the basement of our home, which is next to the Celestial
Seasonings Tea Factory. In the beginning we had about 300 bolts of Japanese
fabrics, big bold contemporary prints, and colorful Batiks, but we grew very
quickly because we had identified a niche that was not being served at the
time.

9 months later we moved to a 4000 sq ft warehouse (much to our neighbors'
relief) which had been previously used by Celestial to store Mint and Chai tea.
Our first few months of shipments all smelled like mint when the packages were
opened!

After 18 months we expanded to 11,000 sq ft at our current location, and in
another 18 months we expanded to our current 15,000 sq ft, still in the same
part of town. (which means Paul can drive home for lunch)

We are so lucky to have such a great group of employees, several who have been
with us for so many years. As your orders are pulled and cut one at a time, we
still get a kick out of seeing the combinations of fabrics that you put
together from our huge selection. Your packing slip is signed by the person who
prepares your order (just as I did in the basement of our home) because we want
you to know that this is a family-owned business full of talented individuals,
just like you!

The cherry on top is the amount
of money we have raised for charity over the years, thanks to all of our
friends and customers. This year I will be bringing you more information about
the individuals on the ground with these organizations. They are so grateful
for the support they receive from eQuilter (and YOU!), but we are also in awe
of how far they can stretch the dollars we give to them. We are up to $1.16 million…and
counting.

We are booking registrations for our fantastic Polar Bear Tour to Churchill
in Manitoba, Canada!

We still have openings for this Once-In-A-Lifetime
Adventure, but they will open up our spaces to the general public after
March 15 so please don't delay if you want to hold your spot!

This trip sells out every year due to limited space in Churchill, so if you'd like to travel with me,
read through this information page and itinerary carefully, then contact our adventure
specialist Aly at NatHab asap.

Check out our 120 videos from international quilt festivals, Quilting Arts TV
and Quilters Newsletter TV on our eQuilter
Video Page.

********

2014 Quilty/Design Travel:

Mar 24 Quilting Arts TV

May 1-4 SAQA Conference Wash DC

May 16-18 Quilt Market

June 11-14 Quilt
Canada, Ontario

July 15 Quilt
Colorado

Oct 1 Quilt Exhibit, Rome

Oct 13-19 Polar Bear
Tour, Churchill

Nov 14-16 Color Marketing Group, Orlando

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Creative Nudge – Dreaming of Spring

Posted on March 4, 2014 by Luana

It is the time of year when lots of exciting things are percolating in the background, as we impatiently wait for signs of Spring. This year especially, with all the crazy weather and endless snowstorms, I can only imagine what all you quilters have created to deal with your cabin fever!

Here's what I am working on now, so you can enjoy the fruits of our labor in the coming months:

March 24th: I will be at the Quilting Arts TV studios, taping 2 segments to air on PBS later this year, with the new host Susan Brubaker Knapp.

May 1-4: For those of you SAQA members attending the national conference in Wash DC, I will give a sneak preview of the fundraiser fabric collection being developed with Andover Fabrics. This collection will preview to the industry at Quilt Market May 16-18.

June 11-14: eQuilter is sponsoring the very first Modern Quilt category at the Quilt Canada festival in Ontario. (Niagara area)

* I hope to see you and your quilts at one of these events! *

In development: This fall I will travel again to the US Embassy in Rome, as a sponsor for a quilt exhibit in conjunction with the UN on the topic of World Hunger.

And of course there is my Polar Bear Tour in Churchill, Manitoba in Canada. If you'd like to travel with me to see the greatest gathering of these iconic bears, a once-in-a-lifetime experience…please call and register today to reserve your space!

We are preparing for a very special celebration on Monday – our 15 year anniversary! It is hard to believe that 15 years have whizzed by, since we started our little business in the basement of our home here in Boulder Colorado.

We are developing some very big and wonderful things for eQuilter in the next year, so come along for the ride and we can celebrate together!

sharing your Passion for Fabric…
Luana

p.s. You can find the floral fabrics in the photo collage above, in our Pop Mod & Folk Art Flowers category.

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Happy March!

Posted on March 1, 2014 by Luana

March is when we allow ourselves to believe that Spring is really just around the corner.

March is when we start looking for the green leaves of the crocus, tulips and daffodils, poking up through the cold dry winter dirt.

March is when we make plans for Spring Break with kids or grandkids, and start thinking about a summer garden.

March is also traditionally our snowiest month in Colorado. It is a heavy wet spring snow that waters our trees, but it is back-breaking work to shovel after a spring snow. Snow Days are QUILTING Days!

Registration is OPEN for our fantastic Polar Bear Tour to Churchill in Manitoba, Canada!
We still have openings for this Once-In-A-Lifetime Adventure, but they will open up our spaces to the general public after March 15 so please don't delay if you want to hold your spot!

These trips sell out every year because of the very limited season and accommodations in Churchill. Call early to secure your reservation! Payment plans are available.

Space is very limited for this exclusive adventure, so if you are interested, read through this information page and itinerary carefully, then contact our adventure specialist Aly at NatHab.

(Tulip Fabric shown above is eQuilter.com product #ANRES4HP)

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Creative Nudge – Party Time!

Posted on February 25, 2014 by Luana

It's Carnivale in Venice, Mardi Gras in New Orleans, and Brazilian Carnival in Rio de Janiero!

You don't need a feathered headdress or sequin-covered costume to join the party!

Take a little trip to Venezia this week, with our Carnivale and Mardi Gras themed fabrics, in this collage of photos and fabrics from my trip to Italy a couple years ago.

Or check out my photos from New Orleans and the Mardi Gras Museum, for some Mardi Gras fun.

You can also see my photos from Venice for more color and design ideas!

Our eQuilter Design Board has some cool new features, and it now supports mobile devices! Just put some items into your shopping cart, and click on 'Design Board' to begin.

You may arrange images by clicking (tapping) and dragging. Double-click (or double-tap) on images to duplicate them. To remove duplicates, click (or tap), release, then click the red 'X'.

And your customized design board is now saved in your browser, so you can return to it later (for the most recent browsers: IE9+, FF, Chrome, Safari).

My Churchill Polar Bear tour group is set for Oct 14-19, and the very limited 14 slots are now open for registration. I know that a few spots have already been reserved, so visit our POLAR BEAR info and itinerary page for more details!

We are having a Downton Abbey FQ Fabric GIVEAWAY Contest on our eQuilter Facebook page:
Click "Like" on our Fan Page and you'll be automatically entered! Woo hoo!

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Cultural Field Trip

Creative Nudge – New York New York

Face to Face Friendships

Creative Nudge – Passion for Taupe

A Year of Changes

Paula Nadelstern and Cosmic Jewels

Happy Birthday to US!

Creative Nudge – Dreaming of Spring

Happy March!

Creative Nudge – Party Time!

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