In November we announced that we’ve teamed up with the Quilts of Valor Foundation® (QOVF) for a special 8-month collaboration! We’re requesting both an image of your EQ-software-QOV design and a picture of the accompanying finished Quilt of Valor®Scroll down below to read more details about this fabulous event!

Robin Harris

Robin Harris

On this QOV National Sew Day, how special to be highlighting another designer (who I’m sure is working on a QOV as you read this)! While Robin Harris is the featured quilter, she gives equal credit to her Stars & Stripes QOV group in Florida (group #75703)! The group gets together to work on and award over 50 QOV every year! As Robin says, the group’s principle is “many hands make light work!”

Robin has been quilting since the late 1980s, and after moving from New York to Florida with her husband in 2015, has been a member of the Stars & Stripes group for 5 years, and group leader for 2 1/2 years. When she started using EQ8 in 2020, that not only opened a whole new world for her, but also for her QOV group! No more wasted fabric, no more sore joints from having to rearrange blocks on the floor or a design wall, and no more questions about what the finished quilt will look like! Instead, Robin designs all of the group’s QOV in EQ8 with many variations that they can choose from, and the options are almost endless!

Let’s see some of her and the group’s gorgeous quilts!

The group likes to use the QOV National Block Drive Block as the focus of their designs, so for this first quilt they used the 2021 Strippy Star block. Robin says, “designing in solid colors lends itself to multiple interpretations in fabric later on.” (Here’s information on QOVF’s 2023 National Block Drive block.)

EQ design and finished quilt

Robin and the group discovered that “with a few keystrokes, blocks can be exchanged in EQ8 for a new look.” Here are the 2 subtly different EQ designs, followed by Robin with the finished products. Both are lovely!

EQ designs with exchanged blocks

Robin with the finished quilt

Here are a couple On-Point variations designed in EQ8, followed by the finished quilt that combines the 2 designs.

On-Point EQ designs

Finished On-Point design

QOV had a Spring 2022 mystery using a simple block. Using EQ8′s Symmetry tool, Robin and the group were able to create several different-looking quilts, even though they’re all using the same block!

QOV Spring 2022 Mystery Block and Symmetry printouts

Finished Symmetry quilts

Here is a quilt featuring the Strippy Star block awarded to Roy A.  by group member, Carolyn S. The group started adding designs to the back of the quilts, so they are more visually appealing. Here’s an example with Roy looking at the well-deserved quilt!

Strippy Star EQ design

Strippy Star quilt back, awarded to Roy A.

Another example of them making the back a bit more interesting is seen with this heart-flag block being presented to Richard P. (Robin is the one holding the quilt – you can spy her feet!)

EQ Heart N Flag block

Heart N Flag quilt, awarded to Richard P.

Recap

We included some brilliant examples in the first post and continue to receive incredible submissions with each subsequent post! If you’ve already posted some of your quilts, thank you, and be sure to check back to see comments about your amazing quilts. In each additional post, we’ll include more heartwarming pictures and stories, hoping they will encourage you to submit your own pictures and reasons for making the quilt.

If you’re sewing today (or were, by the time you read this), please share your finished QOV, along with a picture of the EQ-design inspiration, and why or who you made it for so everyone can see what great work you’re doing!

2023

Last month we told you that this is the Quilts of Valor Foundation’s® 20th anniversary! We also let you know they will be heading to Paducah in September to celebrate! As it turns out, we’ll be there, too, so if you’re in Paducah, you can stop by and say “hi” to both teams!

Special offer

There’s still 5 months to join in this fulfilling project. If you don’t have EQ8, you can save 25% by applying code VALOR25 to your order (expires July 4, 2023).

Or, if you’re more comfortable simply viewing, enjoying, and commenting on any of the beautiful quilts in the posts, please do so!

Submissions and Prizes

You can submit as many different quilts as you want, as long as they meet the requirements. Remember, at the end of this event, all submissions are eligible to win 1 of 3 amazing prize packs, including:

  • a bundle of Northcott’s Stars and Stripes fabric
  • an American Express gift card
  • a copy of the recently released QOV book, All-Star Quilts of Valor!!

(See the Rules and Prizes sections in the first post.)

Now, please show us your designs and quilts!

How to submit an image of your quilt design from EQ and the photo of your sewn QOV:

  1. On the EQ Quilt Worktable, click the PRINT & EXPORT tab.
  2. Click Export in the ribbon.
  3. In the palette on the left, click Image.
  4. Type a name for your image, choose PNG or JPG as the file type, and click the Save button. (Make sure you know where you’re saving the image on your computer. We recommend saving to your My EQ8 > Images folder.)
  5. We recommend setting the Resolution setting to 150. Quilt and patch lines are optional.
  6. Click Browse by the “Upload an Image of your EQ Design” box to upload the image.
  7. Take a picture of your sewn QOV and save it to your computer. (Again, make sure you know where you’re saving the picture on your computer.)
  8. Click Browse by the “Upload a Photo of the Finished Quilt” box to upload the photo.
  9. Enter why you made the quilt in the Comments field.
  10. Click Submit.