Celebrating 10 Years of the Iowa Quilt Museum!
It is hard to believe that we are already heading into fall! What a busy and exciting year it has been at the Iowa Quilt Museum as we celebrate our 10th Anniversary. We’ve had monthly giveaways, the release of our Swatch Book Fabric collection with Windham, a Capital Campaign to pay off our mortgage, a special exhibit showcasing the fabulous quilt artists and collectors who have been part of the museum over the past 10 years, and now a special online auction. Busy, busy, fun, fun!
And we’re not slowing down yet! We have lots happening over the next few months. From our special anniversary exhibit and online auction to community events, our annual Share Your Stash Sale and continuing our monthly giveaways. We hope you’ll find a reason to come visit us in Winterset this fall!
10 Year Anniversary Exhibit!
Retrospective: IQM 10 Year Anniversary
Celebrating a Decade of Exhibits, Artist & Stories
Retrospective is our way of looking back at the past 10 years of the Iowa Quilt Museum. We invited artists and collectors who have been part of our story over the years to help us celebrate by sharing their quilts with us once again.
We are thrilled to have the work of 32 quilt artists and two quilt collectors represented in this special exhibit. From traditional to contemporary, these quilts represent just a small piece of the incredible talent and creativity that has filled our gallery over the past decade.
There is also a special tribute in our mezzanine honoring Winterset quilter Velma VanScoy, featuring one of her beautifully hand-quilted quilts.
Retrospective will be on display through October 18, 2026.
If you haven’t seen it yet, make plans to come take a walk down memory lane with us!
10 Year Anniversary Silent Auction!
Select artists who contributed quilts to our Retrospective exhibit also generously donated items for our 10th Anniversary Online Silent Auction.
We have some wonderful quilting treasures available, including signed books, fabric, thread, quilt kits, classes, and more. There are items donated by some familiar names in the quilting world, making this a fun way to own a little piece of the Iowa Quilt Museum’s 10-year history while supporting the museum.
Bidding ends October 11, 2026.
So take a look, find your favorites, and place a bid…or two! All proceeds help support the Iowa Quilt Museum and our mission for the next 10 years.
10 Year Anniversary Monthly Giveaway!
September Giveaway
If you didn’t know, we have been doing monthly giveaways to celebrate our 10th Anniversary! We started the year by giving away free posters in January. February was a drawing for a wonderful bundle from Moda and Linzee McCray, March was a surprise grab bag, and April was a weekly drawing for quilt kits. In May, we gave away a seat on our bus trip to the International Quilt Museum, June was another surprise grab bag, July was a drawing for a 4th of July patriotic bag bundle, and August was a drawing for another fun bag bundle.
For the month of September, we will do another weekly drawing! Each Thursday morning during my Facebook Live, I’ll draw a name for one lucky winner to choose from our four fat quarter bundles.
Here’s how it will work:
September 3: The winner gets first choice of all four bundles.
September 10: The winner chooses from the three bundles remaining.
September 17: The winner chooses from the two bundles remaining.
September 24: The final winner gets the last bundle.
Below are photos of the four bundles so you can see what’s up for grabs. If you would like to be entered into the drawing, email giftshop@iowaquiltmuseum.org.
Be sure to join me for our Thursday morning Facebook Lives throughout September to see if your name is drawn!
We only have three more months of giveaways, so be sure to keep a lookout for the rest of this year’s surprises!
October Giveaway
Moda – BOH Haven
Moda – Brookside
Windham – Circa: Turkey Red
Windham – Bloomfield
10 Year Anniversary Capital Campaign!
Campaign Update
We have some BIG news to celebrate! As part of our 10th Anniversary Capital Campaign, we are thrilled to announce that the Iowa Quilt Museum’s mortgage has been officially paid off!
When we started this campaign, our goal was to raise $100,000 to help pay off our mortgage, eliminate the small loans we incurred during COVID, and make some updates to our building. Thanks to all of you who have donated, we have now raised just over 50% of our goal. Paying off our mortgage is a huge milestone!
Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who has helped make this possible. Every donation, no matter the size, has made a difference.
With just a few months left in our anniversary year, we would love to make one final push toward our $100,000 goal. We still have those small loans to pay off and building updates to make, and every dollar gets us close. Help us finish our 10th Anniversary year strong!
Upcoming Community Events
We love being part of the Winterset and Madison County community, and this fall you’ll find the Iowa Quilt Museum out and about at several local events.
We’ll be participating in the Apple Hop on September 12, as well as a Fall Fashion Show. We’ll also be setting up our quilted barn once again for the Madison County Covered Bridge Festival.
2026 Share Your Stash Sale!
Our 4th Annual Share Your Stash Sale is coming up on Saturday, November 7, and we are still accepting donations!
This is a great opportunity to clean out those quilting spaces and pass along fabrics, sewing tools, rulers, orphan blocks, scraps, and other craft supplies that you no longer need. We have received so many wonderful donations already that we are no longer accepting books and magazines. We have plenty! If you have questions about items you would like to donate, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us. You can call the museum at (515) 462-5988 or email me directly at director@iowaquiltmuseum.org.
Donations can be dropped off or mailed to the Iowa Quilt Museum at 68 E. Court Avenue in Winterset. We can also assist with estate donations and provide tax-deductible donation receipts.
And then don’t forget to come back in November to shop the treasures we collected.
Share Your Stash Sale
Saturday, November 7, 2026
9:30 AM – 4:00 PM (hour early entry to members or for a $10 donation)
1305 W. Jefferson St., Winterset
2025 Stash Sale
2025 Stash Sale
2025 Stash Sale
2025 Stash Sale
2025 Stash Sale
2025 Stash Sale
2026 Exhibits
July 7, 2026 – October 18, 2026 – Iowa Quilt Museum Retrospective
Iowa Quilt Museum is celebrating its 10th anniversary! Since opening in 2016, the museum has presented 41 exhibitions showcasing the artistry, history, and innovation of quilting.
To mark this milestone, our 10-Year Retrospective Exhibit will feature quilts from 34 artists and collectors who have exhibited with us over the past decade. From traditional and antique quilts to modern and contemporary works, this special exhibition celebrates the creativity and community that have shaped the museum’s first ten years.
Visitors can also support the museum through a special online auction featuring quilts, artwork, books, patterns, and other items generously donated by participating artists and exhibitors.
October 20, 2026 – January 17, 2027 – Erick Wolfmeyer: 25 Years in Iowa
The Iowa Quilt Museum is excited to present a solo exhibition celebrating quilt artist Erick Wolfmeyer and his remarkable 25-year journey in Iowa.
In 2001, Erick moved to Iowa specifically to learn more on the art of quilting. What began as a new adventure has grown into a celebrated body of work. This special exhibition brings together a curated selection of his quilts that tell the story of those 25 transformative years. Mark your calendars! We are excited to share Erick’s beautiful work with you!
2026 Iowa Quilt Museum Events
Look for continued updates on our website and social media about what we have to offer in the coming year:
- Stitch In at the Museum – every 2nd Thursday of the month.
- 4th Annual Share Your Stash Sale on November 7, 2026 – we are taking donations now.
- 2027 Iowa Quilt Festival – Wednesday, June 9 through Friday, June 11: Quilt retreat, classes, & lectures. Grand finale on Saturday, June 12: Airing of the Quilts. If you would like to sign up for a bus trip on Tuesday, June 8, to the International Quilt Museum in Lincoln, Nebraska please email giftshop@iowaquiltmuseum.org. Once we have 30 people signed up we will open it up for tickets.
Marianne’s Musings
Founding IQM Board Member Marianne Fons is a member of the Iowa Writers Collaborative, a collection of over 70 professional writers and journalists. She writes a (mostly) weekly Substack column titled “Reporting from Quiltropolis.” (Quiltropolis = Winterset.) Check out Quiltropolis by clicking on the button below, and subscribe if you like.
