Why Quilts Matter –
Question & Answer with Amanda Leins

One of the more colorful people we met while attending QuiltCon in Austin this past February was Amanda Leins. Amanda, a former archaeologist who has turned to quilts to tell stories, began quilting in 2002. Her quilt, “Eggs and Darts” from her new book Wanderlust Quilts, won First Place in the Modern Quilts category at […]

Why Quilts Matter –
Question & Answer with Jack Edson

What do you get when you combine a self-taught sewer (in kindergarten), the meticulous precision of a professional librarian, and hundreds of tiny bits of fabric?  You get Jack Edson, collector of all things folk art, Americana, and remarkable portrait quilt artist. Jack studied art history and completed his Master of Library Science at the […]

Why Quilts Matter –
Question & Answer with Marsha MacDowell

As most quilters know, the go-to website for information about quilts is the Quilt Index Website. But did you ever wonder how the Quilt Index got started? You need look no further than the Quilt Alliance (formerly the Alliance for American Quilts) for the scoop: “In 1993, recognizing the need to centralize information about quilts […]

Why Quilts Matter
Question & Answer with Penny Gold, Part 2

Editor’s Note: The following is Part 2 of guest blogger Bill Volckening’s recent interview with Penny Gold. Click here to read part one. After your first original quilt, “Loss”, what came next? I have made a sequence of quilts dealing with my feelings of grief, loss, and guilt, about ten altogether. The quilts that function […]

Why Quilts Matter –
Question and Answer with Penny Gold, Part 1

We here at Why Quilts Matter – History, Art & Politics have been looking a variety of charity quilts, awareness quilts, and quilts made for specific causes. We were deeply moved by this story and wanted to share it with our readers in a two-part series. Our heartfelt thanks go to Penny Gold for sharing her story.

Why Quilts Matter –
Question and Answer with Mary Fons >>

During our recent visit to Austin, Texas, for QuiltCon 2015, we met up with high-energy, whirling dervish Mary Fons! While influenced by her quilting luminary mother, Marianne Fons, it is important to know Mary is an accomplished professional in her own right. Before she had her self titled “quilt epiphany” in 2008 and began to […]

We are going to QUILTCON!

​Heading to Austin, Texas, this week for the Modern Quilt Guild’s QUILTCON? We are, and we’ll be in booth #906 – conveniently located next to Demo Area A and the concession stand!

Come by and say hello – we’ve got all kinds of things for you to watch and see and do. Need help with guild programing? We have you covered. Brochures for a meeting or cruise? Postcards? Pins? (Hurry, they go FAST!)

Why Quilts Matter –
Question and Answer with Marianne Fons

At the top of our wish list to ask about Why Quilts Matter was quilting luminary Marianne Fons. Marianne was a mere twenty-something and at the center of quilting’s resurgence in the late 70’s. After meeting Liz Porter at a beginning quilter’s class in 1976, the two went on to co-author a succession of important books and programs around quilting. In the following years, Marianne became (and still is) a sought-after quilt and fabric designer, teacher, lecturer and author. Her enthusiasm, energy and intense vitality continue to inspire and instruct the next generation of quilters. Rarely has Why Quilts Matter been able to sit down and speak to someone with so substantial a repository of quilting history and wisdom!

“Let it snow… let it snow… let it snow!”

Winter has come early to many places, and along with it record snowfalls and biting cold. We were pleased to find a different kind of snow – in flake form – that is much easier to handle and could actually be a welcome addition to your holiday preparations! Back in October we visited with Tim […]

Why Quilts Matter: History, Art & Politics is Featured on KET’s “A History of Kentucky in 25 Objects”

“A History of Kentucky in 25 Objects” is an hour-long television documentary which reveals the history of Commonwealth of Kentucky through such historical objects as a stone axe, a Civil War surgeon’s saw, a coal miner’s cap, Abraham Lincoln’s pocket watch, Muhammad Ali’s robe, Col. Harland Sanders’ first pressure cooker, and 19 more.  Why Quilts Matter: History, […]

One Day Only – Buy One, Get One Why Quilts Matter: History, Art & Politics DVD set!

CYBER MONDAY ONLY, all orders placed online for the Why Quilts Matter: History, Art and Politics DVD will be doubled – buy one, get one free – buy two, get two free!

Why Quilts Matter: Three Years in Review and a Look Ahead

Three years ago we released the nine-part documentary Why Quilts Matter: History, Art & Politics (WQM). Since then thousands of DVD sets went to over 20 countries around the world, had airtime on more than 200 select PBS stations across the country, and have been a sought after resource for educators and librarians.

Why Quilts Matter –
Question & Answer with Tim Latimer

In this series we have explored Why Quilts Matter with machine and free motion quilters, so it’s only natural we turn to look the art of hand quilting. Gaining in popularity and made even more popular by the brilliant color pallet of pearle cotton embroidery floss, Tim Latimer is a standout in both his use and technique of hand quilting. Tim has been hand quilting since 2006 and his quilts have appeared in many AQS shows. In 2013 his “Tree of Life” quilt took the Best Hand Workmanship Award at Grand Rapids AQS.

Why Quilts Matter –
Question & Answer with Roderick Kiracofe

  You may have noticed many of the new fabric collections being released these days demonstrate more than a hint of nostalgia for the 60’s and 70’s. The designs, the colors, the graphic motifs all point back to the era where “mod” and “modern” were the catchphrases of the day. Quilts made during that time […]

Dr. Carolyn Mazloomi Receives One of the National Endowment for the Arts’ National Heritage Fellowships

Award winning artist, author and featured friend of Why Quilts Matter, History, Art and Politics, Dr. Carolyn Mazloomi has been named as one of nine recipients of the National Endowment for the Arts’ National Heritage Fellowships. Mazloomi is being honored for her efforts to conserve American culture by preserving and imparting African-American history through quilts. Her body of work and her belief that, “Quilts are for much more than keeping people warm, they are historical documents” has led to her reception of the 2014 Bess Lomax Hawes NEA National Heritage Fellowship Award, named after the former NEA director of folk and traditional arts.