Our next EQ Academy workshop is right around the corner and there are just a few seats left! We hope you’ll be able to join us for this fun three day event full of learning and friendship. Today, I’d like to introduce you to instructor Kari Schell and give you a little sneak peek into her EQ7 Block Drawing class.

Kari is an Electric Quilt expert and a certified Art and Stitch instructor. Not only does she teach at EQ Academy, but she also teaches at our online class platform, EQ University. You’ll find Kari teaching online EQ classes through her own site too–www.onpointquilter.com. She really knows her quilting software! If you haven’t visited Kari’s site before, be sure to check it out. She offers lots of free videos and patterns for EQ7 too.

Kari’s Academy class is all about drafting your own blocks. The Block Worktable offers so many options, and Kari covers it all! You’ll start with EasyDraw and draw pieced blocks in a “grid” format – basically like drawing with a pencil and graph paper. Along the way, you’ll learn the secrets behind the various snap options and how to set up your Drawing Board to ensure consistent success in drafting these blocks. A sampler layout will be created to highlight your new blocks.

Next, you’ll use PatchDraw to draft pieced blocks not based on a rectangular grid, like LeMoyne Star (plus variations), Hexagon blocks, Rising Sun, Dresden Plate, Kaleidoscopes, Octagons, and Arcs. Many of these blocks will allow you to move outside of square and rectangular quilts, so you’ll also experiment with a number of quilts to highlight these unique blocks.

Then it’s on to PatchDraw Appliqué blocks where you’ll start with the basics of cloning, rotating, and resizing appliqué patches. Then use some pre-defined shapes to explore additional blocks using WreathMaker. You’ll also modify existing appliqué blocks from the library and create blocks by tracing various motifs from scratch.

Finally, back to EasyDraw for lessons in pictorial foundation blocks. Start with foundation piecing basics, graduating to more complex design possibilities.

Just imagine what you can design with all these new drawing skills!

EQ Academy is April 20-22, 2017 in Perrysburg, Ohio and we’d love to see you there! To enroll in Kari’s class, please visit our website.