You can really get into the quilting vibe during the Iowa Quilt Festival. Choose from a variety of classes taking place June 3-5, 2026. All class venues are located within Winterset, IA. A complete supply list will be emailed to you once you sign up for your classes.
Wednesday, June 3, 2026
Mystery Quilt 2026
Tickets will be available Jan. 17th
- Wednesday, June 3, 2026
- 9 AM to 3 PM
- Location: More Pieces
- Tony Jacobson
- Cost: $187.25
Come join Tony Jacobson for his always-popular Mystery Quilt Class — a festival favorite that keeps quilters coming back year after year. This will be Tony’s 4th year teaching this class, and it continues to be one of the most anticipated workshops of the Iowa Quilt Festival.
Your class fee includes all the fabrics needed to make a 64-inch square quilt from three fabrics. The big bonus? Every piece will be pre-cut and ready to sew, so you can jump straight into stitching. Tony will guide you step-by-step through the construction process, gradually revealing the full quilt design as the class unfolds. Along the way, you’ll gain new skills and techniques to add to your quilting toolbox.
While your quilt top may not be completed by the end of class, you’ll leave with the knowledge and confidence to finish it at home.
Fabric selections for this year’s kits will be revealed closer to the festival. There will be a traditional William Morris version, a version with Kaffe Fassett fabrics, and a version made from Tim Holtz fabrics. Only 20 spots are available, and Tony’s Mystery Quilt Class has a history of filling quickly — early registration is highly recommended.
Items you will need to bring to class with you:
- Sewing machine
- Rotary cutter
- Cutting mat
- Thread (neutral color for piecing)
- Marking pencil
- Quarter inch seam marker (optional)
- Acrylic ruler (at least 14 inches)
The class will run from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and we will take an hour lunch break.
Oh My Ovals!
- Wednesday, June 3, 2026
- 9 AM to 3 PM
- Location: The Jackson Building/Madison County Fairgrounds
- Joyce Franklin
- Cost: $85
No pattern. No pressure. Just play.
As Joyce Franklin guides you through the process, you’ll learn to let go of perfection and trust your instincts. Working without a pattern allows your creativity to shine, and once you’ve sewn a curve, you’ll be forever free of the fear that often holds quilters back. This is an easy, encouraging class designed to help you enjoy the journey as much as the finished piece.
A more detailed supply list will be sent to you once you sign up for the class.
Perfect Peels
- Wednesday, June 3, 2026
- 9 AM to 5 PM
- Location: The Jackson Building/Madison County Fairgrounds
- Sandi Griepennstroh
- Cost: $85
Workshop: Learn several possible sizes and applications for the simple
orange peel shape! Just two charm packs and a half-day are enough fabric and time to make a simple orange peel table topper or runner. Simple piecing skills required. You will learn fusible appliqué, as well as other ways to use this versatile shape in the class.
A more detailed supply list will be sent to you once you sign up for the class.
Thursday, June 4, 2026
21 Star Salute
Tony is still working out details for this class. Tickets will be available Jan. 17th
- Thursday, June 4, 2026
- 9 AM to 3 PM
- Location: More Pieces
- Tony Jacobson
- Cost: $115
Join Tony Jacobson for a meaningful and inspiring quilting experience in his class, 21 Star Salute. This workshop features one of Tony’s designs published in the newly revised All Star Quilts of Valor – 2nd Edition book.
As part of the class, each participant will receive a copy of this updated book, which celebrates quilt designs created to honor and recognize those who have served. Tony will guide students through the construction of his 21 Star Salute pattern, sharing his techniques, tips, and insights along the way. Whether you’re drawn to the patriotic symbolism, the thoughtful design, or the opportunity to learn directly from the designer, this class offers both skill-building and inspiration.
You’ll leave class with a strong foundation to complete your quilt and a beautiful new resource book to continue exploring Quilts of Valor® designs long after the festival ends.
Even though this pattern will be taught as a Quilt of Valor, executed in red, white, and blue fabrics, this and many other quilts in the All Star Quilts of Valor—2nd Edition can be done in any fabric combinations you would like.
A more detailed supply list will be sent to you once you sign up for the class.
Cornucopia of Good Things
- Thursday, June 4, 2026
- 9 AM to 3 PM
- Location: The Jackson Building/Madison County Fairgrounds
- Pati Fried
- Cost: $85
Tumbling, tipping, and toppling shapes. Spend the day exploring movement, scale and composition in a playful fabric collage. A stack of bowls on the table, an old stone wall, and even a pile of books at the library might be your vibe. It just needs to be a subject that you are interested in “playing” with. Pati Fried will show you an easy technique to make the shapes in repetition, yet allow for a bit of individuality to each one. We will discuss simple design principles to use as a guide and explore how to stack the elements to feel balanced and stable – or not! So choose your Cornucopia of Good Things, and we will create the shapes, and stack them to the sky – or tumble them to the floor for a really fun day of fabric collage!
Difficulty Level: Intermediate
A more detailed supply list will be sent to you once you sign up for the class.
Jelly Roll Tumble
- Thursday, June 4, 2026
- 9 AM to 3 PM
- Location: The Jackson Building/Madison County Fairgrounds
- Sandi Griepenstroh
- Cost: $85
This is such a fun way to use a jelly roll with a matching charm pack or even strips and squares cut from your stash! With a basic pattern of her design, Sandi Griepenstroh will show you how to personalize and create a simple jelly roll quilt that you can be proud to show off or give as a gift!
The materials you will need to bring to class are:
- 1 jelly roll, or assortment of 40 – 2 ½ inch strips cut width of fabric
- 1 charm pack, or 40 assorted 5 inch squares
- 2 ½ yards of any solid or low volume that matches your strips, making sure that it will stand out against them all—I prefer to use solid black, charcoal gray, or a similar deep color
A more detailed supply list will be sent to you once you sign up for the class.
Aztec Diamonds
- Thursday, June 4, 2026
- 9 AM to 3 PM
- Location: Community Building/Madison County Fairgrounds
- Sharon Wasteney
- Cost: $85
When does Flying Geese quilt block not look like Flying Geese? Join Sharon Wasteney to learn a new variation on the classic Flying Geese block and apply it to a quilt project design she calls Aztec Diamonds. Choose your own color way to make the diamonds sparkle for you. When you sign up for class you will receive a gray scale drawing of the complete quilt to help you choose your color placement.
A more detailed supply list will be sent to you once you sign up for the class.
A Challenge Study In Color
- Thursday, June 4, 2026
- 9 AM
- Location: The Iowa Theater
- Cherrywood
- Cost: $35
A visual walk through the annual art quilt contest: The Cherrywood Challenge. Karla will talk about how it started, how it has grown, and how the exhibit is put together behind-the-scenes. Images of the current challenge shown and explained. Depending on timing, Karla may have some actual samples to show.
From Art To Fabric
- Thursday, June 4, 2026
- 11 AM
- Location: The Iowa Theater
- Sue Penn
- Cost: $35
Join us for an inspiring lecture with Sue Penn, renowned artist and fabric designer known for her bold color, painterly textures, and nature-inspired imagery. Sue’s work seamlessly moves from canvas to cloth, blending hand-painted art with digital printing to create vibrant fabrics beloved by modern quilters, makers, and designers.
In From Art to Fabric, Sue shares her creative journey—from fine art to fabric design—and offers a behind-the-scenes look at how her original paintings are transformed into fabric collections for FreeSpirit Fabrics. Her designs, rich with flora, fauna, stencils, collage, and nostalgic retro vibes, have become staples for quilting, apparel, and home décor projects.
Whether you’re a quilter, artist, or creative thinker, this lecture will spark new ideas and deepen your appreciation for the intersection of art and fabric..
Friday, June 5, 2026
Improv Log Cabin
- Friday, June 5, 2026
- 9 AM to 3 PM
- Location: More Pieces
- Instructor: Pati Fried
- Cost: $85
Log Cabin Blocks allow for endless possibilities. This is an opportunity to explore, and experiment in improvisational piercing with a tried and true traditional block. You will be amazed at how easy it is to manipulate. There will be a lot of discussion on design principles, the power of color, contrast and creating movement and interest. Pati Fried will also share all her tips on her favorite parts of working improvisationally – putting away the ruler when needed, adding inserts to create interest, and using a storyline to guide your design choices.
In the sample quilt, the storyline was to create a wedding quilt to display at the wedding, using the color palette of the event, and that represented the home and family that they would create together. Each color and design choice refers back to this story.
Difficulty level: Intermediate
A more detailed supply list will be sent to you once you sign up for the class.
Machine Appliqué and Embellishing a Garden Posey
- Friday, June 5, 2026
- 9 AM to 3 PM
- Location: The Jackson Building/Madison County Fairgrounds
- Instructor: Janet Pittman
- Cost: $85
Learn raw edge machine appliqué using fusible web, utility stitches and embellishing techniques. Explore the stitches your machine can do including techniques for decorative stitches, free-motion zig-zag stitching, couching and reverse appliqué.
Kit Fee $20
A more detailed supply list will be sent to you once you sign up for the class.
Singer Featherweight Maintance
- Friday, June 5, 2026
- 9 AM to 3 PM
- Location: The Jackson Building/Madison County Fairgrounds
- Instructor: Steve Rounds
- Cost: $85
Keep your Featherweight sewing machine running smoothly in this hands-on maintenance class with Steve Rounds. Learn essential care techniques, routine cleaning, and basic adjustments that will help extend the life of your machine and improve performance. Whether you’re new to Featherweights or a longtime owner, this class will give you the confidence to care for your machine properly.
A more detailed supply list will be sent to you once you sign up for the class.
Color By Design
- Friday, June 5, 2026
- 9 AM to 3 PM
- Location: Community Building/Madison County Fairgrounds
- Instructor: Sharon Wasteney
- Cost: $85
The unique artisanal look of hand-dyed fabrics will be achieved by participants using colorfast fiber reactive dyes in Sharon Wasteney’s class. The creation of intentional and unintentional variegations of vibrant colors and textural appearance of hand-dyed fabric will be distinctly from mass-produced fabrics. Participants will leave class with 8 fat quarters of coordinated buy distinctly different fabrics ready for the next quilt or artful project.
A more detailed supply list will be sent to you once you sign up for the class.
Quilting for Kids
- Friday, June 5, 2026
- 9 AM to 3 PM
- Location: Iowa State Extension Office
- Instructor: Joyce Franklin
- Cost:
We’re excited to partner with a local 4-H club to offer a special youth-focused quilting class taught by Joyce Franklin. In this hands-on workshop, participants will create a 9-patch lap-back pillow cover, a perfect introduction to basic piecing and sewing skills.
Piece Works will provide fabric kits to choose from, along with thread for the sewing machines. All fabric pieces will be pre-cut, making this class approachable and fun for beginners. Each participant will be guided step-by-step through the project, ensuring they go home with a completed pillow cover by the end of class. Instruction sheets will also be included so students can continue making 9-patch blocks at home — maybe even the start of a future quilt!
This class is designed for youth ages 8–15. Bring a child, grandchild, or young friend and enjoy watching their creativity shine.
Tickets for this class will go on sale at a later date.
A more detailed supply list will be sent to you once you sign up for the class.