EQ6 Applique' Drawing

Electric Quilt Company has four excellent companion books for EQ6.  I've been playing with EQ6 and enjoying the lessons found within the companion book:  EQ6 Appliqué Drawing, Beginner's Guide to Drawing Like a Pro, by Angie Padilla.  Angie is a well known designer, who is also the creator of  the My Dream House add-on for EQ5 and EQ6. This book provides a large collection of short exercises that are perfect for a beginner to advanced EQ6 user, who wants to develop their skills on creating applique designs in EQ6. 

This powerful book has eight chapters, each full of short lessons, provide simple to follow instructions and great visuals.  You start off with simple drawing steps that are so easy to follow that even a non-artist (me) can easily create cute drawings in EQ6.

And, even while learning the basics you'll be amazed how quickly you'll be creating delightful applique designs.  I also love how easy it is to export these cute designs to be able to take images (e.g. jpg, bmp) to create greeting cards, etc.

Before you know it, by Chapter 3 you are creating more complex designs and feeling very creative and inspired to create more.

By Chapter 5 you are learning how to put all the the insights together to create amazzing designs.  I love how you can pull in an image, easily trace it, and ultimately create an applique design based on your image (e.g. rabbit). 

This book is amazing.  I strongly recommend this companion book for EQ6 users.  EQ also provides a sample lesson, from this book, that you may want to check out:  http://tinyurl.com/yeq5bqk

For more info on this book:  http://tinyurl.com/y8uw8ss

While I'm a newbie to EQ6 and have just started the exercises in this delightful EQ6 Applique Drawing book, I spent a few minutes today playing (and learning).  My personal exercise, using some basic insights from this book, was to create a little quilt for EQ the Mouse.  Tomorrow, April lst, EQ the Mouse's 19th birthday. So, I decided I'd make a quilt with a picture of EQ the Mouse and a big block of swiss cheese.

If you are not familiar with EQ the Mouse, you can get to know him on Facebook:  http://tinyurl.com/create.php  But EQ the Mouse is a fun little mouse, that is quite talented and very friendly.  But he does like to travel with Penny Morris and clearly doesn't like being left behind.  If you are on Facebook I hope you'll become a Fan of EQ The Mouse and go wish him a very Happy Birthday!

And I do hope you'll pick up the companion books for EQ6.  I highly recommend EQ6 Applique' Drawing, by Angie Padilla.  Great book and great way to build your EQ6 skills!


http://www.electricquilt.com/Shop/EQ6Books/EQ6AppDraw.asp

The Quilt Show

Do you subscribe to The Quilt Show? If not, why not?  I really wonder why it took me so long to subscribe to The Quilt Show.  But I'm now hooked and really enjoy being able to watch this delightful show at my liesure. And, I'm very impressed with the inspirational designers that Alex and Ricky have on their show!

On average, it seems that The Quilt Show releases ~12-13 new shows each year, each ~45 minutes long.  I love how you can stop/start these shows and watch them again and again.  I also love that there are no commercials and that while they have a primary guest, they also have multiple guests on each episode. 

With your subscription, like a magazine, you get to view all episodes of The Quilt Show released during your subscription.  Sadly, past episodes are not viewable to new subscribers, but can be purchased for a nominal fee. There are many wonderful episodes, but some that caught my eye are:














{above} David Taylor (#406)

{above} Melinda Bula (#501)

{above} Jan Krentz (#506)

In addition to being able to view current and past episodes, members have access to various Projects:  There are many delightful projects, many are free like this beautiful stenciled table runner by EstherAliu.

Members are also inspired via Contests, and  Challenges.  A fun current contest is "Feeling Groovie: The Big Love Quilt Contest", which subscribers still have time to enter.  But I also love that subscribers can view all the entries of current and past contests & challenges.  For example, the Table Runner Contest has recently closed but all of the inspirational entries are viewable: 























There is also a delightful Quilt Gallery where various quilts can be viewed by members.

And, there are Classrooms that subscribers can participate in, with a variety of teachers: 
Jan Krentz, Jenny Beyer, Patsy Thompson, Ricky Tims, Alex Anderson, etc.

Clearly, there are many benefits of subscribing to The Quilt Show than I can list.  And, The Quilt Show also has many freebies for non-subscribers.  So, if you have not yet subscribed, I recommend you check out The Quilt Show soon and consider subscribing.  I do think you will enjoy The Quilt Show, as I have.

And, if you are on Facebook, you may also want to become a Fan of The Quilt Show. 

Quilted Devotions 24 biblical blocks, by Lisa Cogar

A new book released this spring, "Quilted Devotions, 24 Biblical Blocks", has a collection of 24 beautiful quilt blocks, each representing parts of the Bible.  This treasure of a book, written by Lisa Cogar,  is published by Martingale & Company, home of That Patchwork Place. 

This delightful book provides insights on how to make the 24 blocks for a sampler quilt that measures 74½" x 106½", or you could choose your favorite four blocks to make a wall hanging.  Insights are shared on how to make paper pieced blocks, how to make traditional piecing using templates, and applique, as well as insights on fabric selection, pressing tips, and more.

{above} I enjoyed seeing "6-Block On Point Quilt, by Lisa Cogar" in the Quilt Gallery in this book.

{above} Brian's 24 block Sampler Quilt, by Lisa Cogar, is shared in the Quilt Gallery section of this book, providing inspiration on how all of these beautiful blocks could be combined to create an amazing sampler quilt. 

{above}  I've always loved the Bethlehem Star.  Lisa does a great job showing how to make this beautiful block using paper piecing techniques, and sharing insights on how this block was named.

{above} The Table Runner by Angie Harris, Gray Tennessee is also an inspirational quilt that is shown in the Quilt Gallery in this book.

{above} I enjoyed seeing "Tongues of Fire Wall Quilt, by Angie Harris, Gray Tennessee in the Quilt Gallery in this book.

{above} The 4-block Wall Quilt instructions in this book are well written and easy to follow. I love how they allow you to choose any of the 24 blocks in this book to make a beautiful wall hanging!

The instructions in this book are targeted towards intermediate to experienced quilters, but the inspiration in this book is clearly for quilters of all levels. 


http://www.martingale-pub.com/store/product_info.php?cPath=1_12&products_id=1030

Can you guess the Designer ? Part 1 & Part 2

How good are you at recognizing designer patterns, styles, fabrics, works by famous people, etc? If you have been a follower of my blog, in 2010, you should know I've been trying to build my skills in being able to recognize designers by their work (and ultimately the work of their students).

Are you interested in building your skills in this area too?  Or, do you think you recognize who created this quilt?  Or is this going to be a challenge that stumps you?  {hint:  They've been recognized recently for their contributions in the world of quilting}.

This is part one of this post.  It is a challenge to see if you can guess the creator of this quilt.  The first person to correctly guess the designer of this quilt will be recognized in part two of this post, as well as be recognized on  http://sewcalgal.blogspot.com/p/designer-challenge.html


I will also update this post to reflect who was the first to accurately guess the designer, and share a bit more insight on this designer, as well. If no one can accurately guess the designer in 24 hours, I will update this post to reflect same, along with sharing insights on the designer. So, I hope you'll check back.



note: If there is a discrepancy on designers, that may have similar styles, SewCalGal will be the ultimate judge to determine the winner. And, in most cases, the photo of the quilt shown in this post will also be posted on the designers site.

PART II

Who Guessed it: Pam-n-Philly (Maya Angelou)
 
Who is this designer: Bonnie K. Hunter  (Quiltville)

Bonnie has recently released a new book "Adventures with Leaders & Enders".

Bonnie is also well known for her book "Scraps & Shirttails".

I have not yet seen either of these books, but as I too love scrap quilts, I'm hoping to check them out soon. 


Bonnie enjoys visiting quilt guilds to give trunk shows, lectures & workshops.

Clearly, Bonnie is a very talented woman.  While I wasn't familiar with her, before the Golden Quilter Awards, I can understand why so many people nominated her and voted for her, for various awards, and why she won the cateogory of the Best Teacher/Instructor of the Golden Quilter Awards.  I hope to someday be able to take a class or workshop with Bonnie!

http://www.quiltville.com/

Golden Quilter Award Winners

The First Annual Golden Quilter Awards accepted nominations in February, where 160 nominations were received for the nine categories of these Awards.  Both nominations and votes were submitted from people throughout the world.  Ultimately, 509 votes were received in March,  for favorite nominees, that determined who the winners of the nine categories of the Golden Quilter Awards. 

Before I announce the winners, I would like to say thank you to all of those that were nominated as each of you, or each of the products nominated, have made a significant difference in the world of quilting.  You are recognized and appreciated by many quilters for what you have shared, and for inspiring others.  For this I give my heartfelt thanks and appreciation.  I also want to say thank you to those that took time to submit nominees and for those that took time to vote for your favorite nominee.  Your vote matters!

And now, I'd like to present to you the winners of the First Annual Golden Quilter Awards:

1) For the category of Best Designer, the winner is:
Anne Sutton of Bunny Hill Designs

2) For the Category of Best Teacher/Instructor:

Bonnie K. Hunter

3) For the Category of  Best Author:

Eleanor Burns, of Quilt In A Day

4) For the Category of Best Quilt Store (Physical):

There was a tie for the winner of this category, with one coming from sunny Southern California, and the other one coming from an area of British Columbia, which I believe is also known as a sunbelt of B.C.
Rosie's Calico Cupboard, San Diego, CA

Satin Moon, Victoria, BC

5) For the category of Best Quilt Store (online):
Fat Quarter Shop

6) For the category of  Best Long Arm Quilter:

Judy Madsen, Green Fairy Quilts, Saint George, Utah

7) For the category of  Most Innovative new product (physical item):

AccuQuilt

8) For the category of  Most Innovated new product (software item):

Electric Quilt - EQ6

9) For the category of  Most influential person in the world of quilting to-date, aka "Lifetime Achievement":

While there were many talented people that were nominated to this category, the majority of the comments submitted with many nominations clearly reflected heartfelt feelings for someone who has brought so many people into the world of quilting, taught, lectured, runs a successful business, and continually inspires and assistance to others.  Without question of my ability to tally votes, the winner of this category is:

Eleanor Burns, of Quilt In A Day


Again, I want to congratulate all the winners of the Golden Quilter Awards, as well as recognize the contributions of all those that were nominated.  You have all influenced our wonderful world of quilting.  Thank you!


Lastly, I could use some help to congratulate the winners.  If you have time to contact them, to congratulate them, to blog about them, post insights on Facebook or Twitter, I'd appreciate it.  Our world of quilting certainly deserves some visibility, like the Golden Globes, so please help congratulate the winners and spread the word about the Golden Quilter Awards 2010 winners.



For a complete list of all the nominees for the Golden Quilter Awards:  http://tinyurl.com/yg3wz34


Winners of the Golden Quilters Awards Voting March Giveaway will be announced tomorrow on my blog where I share insights on contests & giveaways.    If you would like more info on this giveaway:  http://tinyurl.com/yzxnepq

The Electric Quilt Company - STASH Fall 2009 software

I've always thought of shopping for fabric to be more delightful than shopping for sweets.  And, I've now learned that The Electric Quilt Company has some software that is really a fantastic tool to help you shop for fabric, manage your stash, and help you design quilts using your Electric Quilt software (for me it is EQ6).  For me this experience, was truly more delightful than opening a box of chocolates (and I do love my chocolate). Yes, I've fallen in love with EQ's software called "STASH", which is a seasonal collection of the newest fabric lines from the top manufacturers.  
After playing with EQ's STASH Fall 2009 software, I'm wondering why it has taken me so long to discover this software.  It is really an amazing software that has been easy to fall in love with. Thus, I want to share some insights with you.

















Previously, I didn't realize that this software is actually the 21st edition of the STASH CD series.  This edition of STASH provides a collection of over 4420 new fabrics from 26 different fabric manufacturers.  You can search fabrics by color or by category. 

















STASH software can even help you plan out the value in your next quilt.  You can also use this software as a virtual design wall to select fabrics for future projects.

















STASH software even prints out shopping lists, which I find very helpful {more helpful than I would have originally thought}.

I also love the "notecards" that are available for each fabric.  These notecards contain very helpful to know the name of the fabric you may want to search for (e.g. SKU number, designer, etc.), but I find this tool to also help me develop skills to recognize designers and manufacturers of various fabrics that I love.  A skill many quilters have, while some do not care about, yet one that I'm currently trying to build on my personal abilities to recognize designers and manufacturers when I see a particular piece of fabric (best card/fabric game for quilters).

While a standalone program, STASH Fall 2009 software, as well as the entire STASH software collection, all has electronic fabric swatches that can easily be imported into Electric Quilt's quilt design program (EQ 5 or 6) via their Fabric Library.

For more information on this software, or to order:  http://www.electricquilt.com/Shop/Stash/Current.asp

I also want to share that prior editions of STASH are still available.  And, I've added these to my wish list.  While you may think some older fabrics are no longer available to buy in stores, there are frequently ways to find wonderful fabrics that are no longer considered current releases (e.g. http://www.missingfabrics.com/) .  Plus, STASH software can help you utilize these fabrics to plan future quilts.  And, all the STASH editions provide electric images of over 4400 - 6100 fabrics, from 26 - 34 different fabric manufacturers, in each edition of STASH, which can easily be imported into EQ6.  Plus, the STASH Spring 2009 and back to Fall 2001 is still available for purchase at the EQ website for only $14.95. I love the idea of being able to have a larger color palette in EQ6 for designing quilts, even if I don't make the quilt with a specific fabric that I've used in my EQ6 "modeling".

Personally, I'm so in love with STAH Fall 2009 software, I'm now eager to get a copy of STASH Spring 2009 and also hopeful I can find older copies of the STASH collection.  I know I'm going to be eager to get copies of all future releases of EQ's STASH collection.  Great software and really fun to use to help manage your stash and use in EQ6, when designing quilts.  Ultimately, I've concluded that the STASH software is a great value and a great tool to help any quilter. 

http://www.electricquilt.com/

Quiltsalott: Little purse tutorial

Isn't this little purse so cute?  I think it would make a perfect gift, but only after you make some for yourself! 

Quiltsalott has provided an excellent tutorial on how to make this cute little bag and I wanted to share her tutorial in my list of favorite tutorials. 

http://quiltsalott.blogspot.com/2010/03/little-purse-tutorial.html

Quilts: 1700-2010 Victoria and Albert Museum

{above} Bishops Court quilt, Unknown, 1690-1700.

Love history and historic quilts?  The Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) has their first ever exhibition of British Quilts, with examples dating from 1700 to the present day.  This amazing exhibit will be on display at V&A thru July 4th, 2010.  Plenty of time to plan a trip to see this great exhibit.

This exhibition show cases 65 beautiful quilts., the majority of which are quilts from the V&A's own collection, but rarely exhibited. And, many beautiful quilts are also displayed that are on loan for this exhibit.  A rare opportunity you will not want to miss.

{above} Set of Chintz bed hangings (detail), 1730-50.

There are early silk bedcovers, with insights that link this item to King Charles II's visit to an Exeter manor house in the late 17th century. Yet, more recent examples will include works by leading artists such as Grayson Perry and Tracey Emin and commissions for the exhibition by a number of contemporary artists including Sue Stockwell and Caren Garfen.

On loan for the very first time from the National Gallery of Australia will be the Rajah quilt, made in 1841 by women convicts aboard the HMS Rajah as they were being transported to Van Diemen's Land (present day Tasmania). The women used sewing provisions donated by Elizabeth Fry's social reform initiative to create what is now the only transportation quilt in a national collection, never before shown outside Australia. The exhibition will celebrate the astonishing vision involved in the design and making of each quilt.

{above} George III reviewing the troops (detail), Unknown maker, 1803–1805.

To celebrate this exhibit, the V&A collaborated on a  limited edition collection of 18 quilting fabrics, vividly bringing to life designs from quilts in the V&A. This collection of fabrics is amazing, and all high quality fabrics. They would certainly help a modern day quilter make a spectacular quilt, with ties to these spectacular historical quilts.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 {above} Shells fabric design taken from a patchwork coverlet composed of block-printed cottons of the 1780s and 1790s, Britain, 1797

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
   
 
{above} Rose (pink) fabric design taken from a patchwork coverlet composed of block-printed cottons of the 1780s and 1790s, Britain, 1797

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
   
 
{above} Seed Head (blue) fabric design from a patchwork coverlet of printed cotton and linen with appliqué and embroidery,  England, 1802-1830

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
    
 
{above} Seaweed fabric design from a quilt that commemorates the Duke of Wellington's victory at the Battle of Vittoria, England, 1829

 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
   
{above} Ikat (pink) fabric design taken from a patchwork coverlet composed of block-printed cottons of the 1780s and 1790s

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
   
{above} Hearts (green) fabric design taken from a patchwork coverlet composed of block-printed cottons of the 1780s and 1790s.
 
I do hope you can visit the Victoria and Albert Museum and enjoy this amazing exhibit.  But even if you are unable to attend, please check out the V&A website and online store. They have some delightful books and fabrics, as part of this amazing exhibit!  And I do think their limited fabric collection will make some beautiful heirloom quilts!

For more information on this exhibit:  http://tinyurl.com/yz8hqfx

Stash Magic, by Jaynette Huff

I'm really enjoying the arrival of spring.  It is especially delightful with all the new book releases.  I've particularly enjoyed the new book "Stash Magic, 13 Quilts That Make The Most of Your Fabric Collection", by Jaynette Huff.   "Stash Magic" is published by Martingale & Company, home of That Patchwork Place.

"Stash Magic" contains thirteen (13) new ways to use up your stash. But, I was so inspired by this book that I could see quilters that go out and buy fabric to create quilts, using the beautiful designs and insights shared in this delightful book.  To clarify, this book is perfect for quilters of all levels, and for those that may want to use fabric in their stash or plan a quilt with new fabrics.  It contains easy to follow instructions with great visuals and photographs.  Jaynette has incorporated insights on many quilting techniques in this book, including paper foundation piecing, english paper piecing and many other tips.  But the specialty that Jaynette shares is various ways that you can use odd scraps of fabrics to create beautiful quilts.

 



















Many quilters become fabric collectors and over time, look for ways to consume fabric in their stash.  This is where Jaynette focused her ideas for "Stash Magic".  She loves to create scrappy quilts, yet make them look very special.   Clearly, insights in this book go beyond the typical scrap quilt and make a spectacular quilt!

"Scrap Magic" contains full size paper piecing patterns to help you create quilt designs in this book. And the techniques, which Jaynette shares, could easily be adapted to allow you to create unique versions of these designs, as you become a master stash manager!

"Stash Magic" would be a delightful book for any quilter to buy for their library, or to give as a gift. 

I've always loved scrap quilts, but seriously "Stash Magic" helps you go way beyond the traditional scrap quilt.   This is an inspirational book!  You should be able to find it at your local quilt shop, or at Amazon.com.