Quilting in the Inland Northwest: The Complete Guide.

The Quilting Culture of Our Region.

The Inland Northwest has always been quilting country. The demographic is strong — a significant population of women over 55, a thriving faith community with deep roots in handiwork and service, and steady retiree migration into Kootenai County bringing experienced quilters from across the West. Add strong quilting guilds, a network of independent shops, and a tradition of charitable quilting that runs through virtually every church in the corridor, and you have one of the most active quilting regions in the Pacific Northwest.

The closure of JoAnn Fabrics in 2025 and Auntie Linda's Quilt Shop in Athol in August 2025 reshaped the landscape, but the independent shops that remain are thriving — and new ones are opening. The quilting community here isn't shrinking; it's concentrating into shops and groups that take the craft seriously.

Quilt Shops: Spokane to Sandpoint.

Spokane & Spokane Valley

The Quilting Bee — Spokane Valley's anchor shop for over 40 years. Roughly 9,000 bolts in stock, 100+ classes monthly, sewing machine sales and service. The most comprehensive single destination in the region. Located on East Broadway Avenue.

Additional Spokane shops include Quilt Patch Lane, Quilted Posies, The Cozy Quilt, and Regal Fabrics — each with distinct personalities and specialties worth exploring.

North Idaho Corridor

Shabby Fabrics (Post Falls) — The largest quilting-specific retailer in the region with a massive brick-and-mortar showroom that opened in November 2023, complementing their established online business. Strong in themed kits and collections.

Pink Thread (Coeur d'Alene) — A family-friendly fabric shop and sewing school with a Christian founding story grounded in Exodus 35. Good beginner class selection and a well-curated fabric wall.

Baskets of Blessings (Rathdrum) — A faith-based fabric shop and quilting ministry where 100% of profits are donated to families in need. Hand-selected quilting cottons, faith-themed and heirloom prints, beginner classes, pattern workshops, and Scripture & Stitches devotional quilting on the first Friday of every month.

Creative Quilting Studio (Hayden) — Longarm quilting services and quilting supplies.

Sandpoint & North

Moose Country Quilts (Sandpoint), A Little Comfort Quilting (Bonners Ferry), and Selkirk Quilts (Ponderay) serve the northern corridor. For quilters north of the Coeur d'Alene lake, these shops are closer than the Post Falls/CDA cluster.

Quilting Guilds & Groups.

Washington State Quilters — Spokane Chapter is the largest guild in the region. Membership is $25/year and includes access to the annual quilt show, monthly programs with nationally known speakers, and community service quilting projects. They run the WSQ Patchwork & Pit Stops shop hop each May.

North Idaho Quilters was founded in 1995 and meets on the 4th Tuesday of odd months at the Calam Shrine Event Center in Hayden. They run a biennial quilt show at the North Idaho State Fair — the next show is May 1-2, 2026. Membership includes quilters from Coeur d'Alene, Post Falls, Rathdrum, Hayden, and the surrounding area.

Spokane Valley Quilters Guild meets on even months at Valley Assembly of God. A smaller, community-focused guild with a strong social emphasis.

Palouse Patchers in Moscow, Idaho have been active since 1981 with approximately 175 members. Their annual quilt show at the Latah County Fairgrounds each April is one of the region's most established events.

Inland Northwest Modern Quilt Guild — founded January 2016, focused on modern and contemporary quilting aesthetics.

Annual Shows & Events.

Regional Designers You Should Know.

Janet Nesbitt of One Sister — Based in the Spokane region, Janet is the designer behind the beloved Buggy Barn quilting patterns and has created fabric collections for Henry Glass & Co. since 2002. Her "crazy piecing" technique — deliberately imprecise, folk-art-inspired quilting — has influenced thousands of quilters and defined a regional aesthetic. One Sister patterns remain some of the most recognizable designs in the Pacific Northwest quilting world.

Getting Involved in Our Community.

The easiest way to enter the Inland Northwest quilting community is to walk into a shop and ask about classes, or attend a guild meeting as a guest. Every guild listed above welcomes visitors, and most offer one or two free guest meetings before requiring membership. If charitable quilting appeals to you, Pilgrim Lutheran Quilters in Spokane welcomes all skill levels — including people who've never sewn — and the Lewis-Clark Quilts of Valor chapter is always looking for new members.

At Baskets of Blessings, our Scripture & Stitches evening on the first Friday of every month is open to everyone. You don't need to know how to quilt. You don't need to bring anything. Just walk through the door and join us.

Frequently Asked Questions.

Last Updated: May 2026

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