Behind the Mouse: The Electric Quilt Blog

We are having a sitewide sale! Everything is 25% off! This includes EQ8 and EQ8 Upgrades! The sale also includes the newest book! If you want to draw your own blocks in EQ8, this is the book for you! Experienced EQ educator, Kari Schell, takes you step-by-step through each of the drawing styles available in EQ8. You’ll learn skills for both pieced and applique drawing while filling your Sketchbook with beautiful blocks! From drawing a simple nine patch to creating a beautiful floral applique wreath, this book will take your drawing skills to the next level!       The sale also includes the newest Stash! This download of EQ Stash Online features an array of new fabrics from top manufacturers. The 1,200+ digital fabrics will download right into your EQ Fabric Library for immediate use for designing your EQ projects. See all the manufacturers, designers, and collections that make

EQ Ambassador, Alyce Blyth is such a talented designer. View some of her beautiful quilts below and read about how EQ gave her confidence to submit designs to magazines! A little about Alyce: Alyce Blyth began her quilting journey when her two children were just babies. It took a few years until they each had a quilt and in the process, she became hooked on her passion and purpose. When her family moved from Australia to Chiba, Japan, it was there that she became truly passionate about turning her hobby into her career. With a primary school teaching background, Alyce discovered that the quilting industry was the perfect blend of the things she loved most – creativity, puzzles and teaching. Now living back in Melbourne, Australia, she has had patterns published in magazines around the world, writes columns and articles, self-published her first book, DIY Block Design, and continues to remain passionate

I absolutely love doing paper piecing because of the accuracy.  My points always match and my material is always stable with the paper pattern.  But, just because you can draw a pieced design does not necessarily mean it can be easily paper pieced. Two of the biggest issues I see when teaching paper piecing drafting is that the images people want to paper piece can’t really be sewn with a paper piecing method, or they are so complex the beginner designer may just give up.    The other concern is when you design a paper pieced block that has multiple seams coming together at one place and it creates an impossible bulk in the seams that are difficult to make it lie flat with pressing.  These issues can be prevented when thinking ahead during the pattern drafting process. Take a look at the image below.  It is very intricate and

Welcome to the EQ8 Block Spotlight series! Each month we highlight a block from the EQ8 Block Library with a few design ideas. Then we want YOU to show us what you can do with the block. Let’s get creative! This month’s block: Graves Fun Fact! All the blocks in the Prairie Style listing are named after architects and designers. This block is named after Michael Graves. Where to find it: 02 Contemporary Pieced > Prairie Style A few design ideas to get you started For this first quilt, I set the block in an on-point layout and alternated it with a simpler version of the block by editing the original on the Block Worktable. This quilt is colored with fabrics from the Hedge Rose collection by Kelly Panacci for Penny Rose Fabrics. You can find these fabrics in the newest EQ Stash Online download. Below you’ll see the original

Hello!  Have you been following along with the EQ8 Update Insider?  Here is the last insider post of the new EQ8 Updates for the Block Worktable.   As of March, 2019, there is a new free update to EQ8 that is loaded with New Features, Enhancements and Fixes.  If you own EQ8, you can download this update for free! If you missed my previous two posts, check out the General Updates including how to download the update HERE and get the scoop on the Quilt Worktable updates  HERE. Lets explore the Block Worktable Updates. Thicker lines when drawing on the Block Worktable You now have the option to make the drawing segments thicker on the DRAW tab only.  This may help you to see your drawn blocks with more clarity since the lines will be easier to see. To turn thick lines ON, click the gear button on the main toolbar of the Block

We are blown away by the incredible entries submitted to this contest! (See all entries in the original post here.) Thanks to everyone for participating! If you want to jump in on another challenge, one just started here! Winners Two winners were chosen, one that was selected randomly and one that was Kimberly’s favorite! Kimberly says: This was a super tough decision because there were SO MANY clever and beautiful quilt designs from which to choose! I’m honored and thrilled that so many people would take the time to design quilts using the Solid-ish swatches! Kimberly’s Favorite: Mary Spriet Random Winner: Rich Danner Both winners will receive fat quarters of the entire 60-piece collection! Again, you can see all the fabulous entries in the original blog post. Thanks again to all participants! If you’re looking for something else to keep you designing, check out our new design challenge and giveaway featuring Aura, an Art Gallery Fabrics

Contest closes May 31 at 11:59pm ET. Winner announced here. One of our new friends, Mathew Boudreaux (you may know him as Mister Domestic!) has a gorgeous fabric collection with Art Gallery Fabrics called Aura! We just had to offer it to EQ users as a free download AND host another design challenge! Thanks to our long-time friends at Art Gallery Fabrics for providing and shipping the prize.  How pretty are these?? EQ Design Challenge & Giveaway To Enter Design a quilt in EQ using Aura fabrics and submit an image of it by May 31, 2019. (Instructions for how to submit an image are at the bottom of this post.) Download the free Aura fabrics for EQ here Rules Your EQ quilt must use fabrics from the Aura collection. Up to 2 solid colors may also be used if desired. One entry per person. (If a second entry is submitted within 24