The Electric Quilt Company is 30!

The Electric Quilt Company’s Story – How It All Began

We’re celebrating 30 years! Since the pearl is the traditional symbol for 30 years, we’re sharing EQ Pearls of Wisdom from our friends! See all Pearls of Wisdom posts. We hope you enjoy the tips and tricks you learn along the way and discover some new quilters or catch up with your favorites! Also, we’d love to hear about YOUR journey with EQ so feel free to tell us your story in the comments on any post! A big THANK YOU to all our customers for your support over the years. We’re looking forward to many more!  :-D

This week’s featured friend: Kerry Goulder!

Tell us a bit about yourself Kerry!

Hi everyone – My name is Kerry, but some people call me “Kid” (short for “Kid Giddy”). I’ve been sewing since I was little, but I really love all forms of art and creative endeavors, thanks to my retired art teacher mom. When my twin sister and I were little, we would sew clothes for our dolls, roam craft fairs, and make little clay pots that our mom would bake in an underground makeshift kiln. Drawing on skills from past art classes and learning new techniques, has helped me to fall in love with new crafts like metalsmithing and making enormous life size trees for my daughter’s theatre productions. I have two daughters at home (one is now 18 and going off to college this fall) and both are artistically driven and love creating as well. Sometimes they can be found in the studio with me, most recently making shorts for the summer.

When did you start using Electric Quilt and how has it changed your quilting life?

As soon as the MAC version of EQ was available in 2014, I downloaded the program and dove head first. At the time, I was focused heavily on creating 3 dimensional soft toys and dolls, but once I discovered the fun of paper piecing, I couldn’t stop. The ideas kept coming faster than I could design and sew. To this day I have a very long list of ideas I have yet to design. I also collaborate with others to create custom blocks and designs for their businesses, which is always fun because it’s a new challenge.

 

What is your EQ “Pearl of Wisdom” for EQ users?

I’ve been using the EQ program for years and I’m sure there are many undiscovered tricks and tools I have yet to find. My advice to new users is to just start. Use their books and learn from the beginning by following the tutorials. As a designer, I was happy to provide a tutorial for one of their EQ8 books and loved sharing what I know. What’s true for learning a new instrument is true for learning a new program. You can’t learn only by watching, you learn by watching, doing and practicing. If it feels difficult, keep trying. Start simple and build on the complexity over time. I have made some very complex blocks and quilts, and have yet to find something it can’t do. Having a program like EQ makes it truly exciting to be a designer. The sky’s the limit!

Carousel Horse Quilt designed by Kerry in EQ

What are you up to now and what do you have coming up?

I just finished a super fun Carousel Horse Quilt that was inspired by some of my childhood memories. As an artist through and through, I have so much appreciation for the time, talent and love for Carousel artists. I also *really* love horses, so this quilt was an opportunity to cover both the memories of my childhood and the love of a unique genre of artists. Now that the Carousel Horse Quilt is finished, I’m focusing on teaching online classes, and a super fun, online sewing event, an Ugly Sweater Block Party that will be held July 24. You can register here! I am also gearing up to celebrate the release of my Puppy Portraits Aurifloss collection with a special monthly stitch along…and of course have many new EQ patterns in the works too.

Giveaway

This contest is now closed. Winners: Barbara B, Jennifer Padden, Kat Clancy, Karen Goloff, and Joanne!

To celebrate the release of my newest Carousel Horse Quilt pattern (that comes with the bonus Alicorn pieces to make it a Carousel Unicorn Quilt), I’d love to give away 5 copies of the pattern to 5 different winners (because this is in PDF form, it is open to all international persons too).

Question to enter:  Where do you find inspiration for your quilts? 

Comment below to enter. Contest closes Sunday, July 4 at 11:59pm ET. Winners will be chosen at random and contacted via email.

Hope you enjoyed this “pearl” of wisdom. Feel free to share your EQ story or a “pearl” of your own in the comments! Stay tuned for our next post!

View all Pearls of Wisdom posts >>