Updated May 2025. Originally posted November 2017.
Over 30 Arizona museums and attractions offer free passes to local library card holders through the Culture Pass program!
“G’s Horn” sculpture of bronze and living plants by Robert Wick at Tucson Botanical Gardens.
What is a Culture Pass?
Culture Passes are a limited number of free admissions to cultural, historic, and other educational sites in Arizona that libraries make available to patrons. It was created by Act One, a 501(c)3 charitable organization.
Culture Passes from 2017 (old design)
Libraries that offer Culture Passes have a certain number available for each museum, etc. Different libraries have a different selection and number of Culture Passes that they offer.
Great Reading Room at Burton Barr Central Library in Phoenix
About 175 libraries statewide and the library districts for 11 out of Arizona’s 15 counties participate in this program.
Desert Botanical Garden pathway
Who Can Check Out a Culture Pass?
To check out a culture pass you must…
Be a current cardholder for a participating library.
Live in the district (or be a member of the community) that library serves.
Be 18 or over.
“Measures of Separation” sculptures by Nazafarin Lotfi at Museum of Contemporary Art Tucson
How to Use a Culture Pass
Each pass is good for free general admission for two people on one visit.
In these tricky times, here’s a virtual goodie bag full of classes, films, performances, and tours you can enjoy from home, as well as artisan wares you can shop from anywhere!
For good stuff and in between these seasonal roundups, watch our Instagram stories!
Stay well and be safe, friends! Keep supporting artists, makers, local businesses, and causes when you can. Nourish your soul.
In Denver:Glow at the Gardens, Oct. 20-25. Reimagined for 2020, an evening of luminous displays and live performers. Advance purchase of timed tickets required. $17-21
Museum of Craft and Design: MCD@Home has partnered with artists and community collaborators to create at-home projects based on museum’s signature programs and exhibitions.
Where to Go + When: Free ebook by longtime travel blogger Sherry Ott of Ottsworld. Email address required to receive the download link.
Buy a mask and they’ll donate one to a local organization!
Classes
Debbie Allen Dance Academy: Founded by Debbie Allen of Fame fame, DADA is a non-profit organization with programs to expand young people’s access to dance + theater.
Orenda Tribe SPREAD LOVE + SHINE LIGHT Shop: Sale of art and artisan goods with 100% of proceeds going to critical aid on the Diné / Navajo reservation during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Quilt-Craft-Sew Mall: Shop vendors from Quilt, Craft + Sewing Festivals online, since so many of 2020’s events had to be canceled.
SXSW Short Films: A collection of shorts that were selected for SXSW 2020, but couldn’t be screened when the festival had to be canceled last-minute, due to the pandemic. You can now watch them from home! Free.
While COVID-19 has thrown us all off balance, people are helping each other get back on their feet in some lovely ways – sharing their art, connecting people with resources, checking in on family and friends, donating where they can, helping the “helpers” on the front lines, and buying from their local mom-and-pop shops and restaurants. (All from a safe distance, of course!)
I’ve rounded up a list of various goodies to help you stay well, support independent artists and businesses, and give back.
Courtesy of Saywells Design + Why I Love Where I Live.
Backgrounds for your phone or Zoom meetings by Tucson-based Saywells Design, including mask-wearing cacti.
Lisa Congdon sketchbook via CreativeBug
Workshops
Debbie Allen Dance Academy: Founded by Debbie Allen of Fame fame, DADA is a non-profit organization with programs to expand young people’s access to dance + theater.
$3 dance classes on weekdays (signup via Zoom required).
Knitting Tree – Sale on discontinued and overstocked items.
Wildflower Studio – Shibui Knits Maai $14/skein (regular $17.50) + free digital pattern for M.1 scarf by Shelli Anderson with purchase of 4 skeins.
Zoe’s Knit Studio – Free shipping (or curbside pickup) on select kits. Email info@zoesknitstudio.com for details.
MAST (at Mercado San Agustin): Free shipping on U.S. orders with promo code MARCHON. Or 25% off any one item made by Mellow, Sofie, or Tasha with code LEANON.
Make a donation to help them provide hot coffee to overnight hospital workers.
Republica Empanada, Mesa: $2 beer or $10 mix-and-match six pack with any order.
Tucson To Go: Reforma
Tucson
Several Tucson restaurants are offering $30 takeout meals for two, as part of Tucson To-Go! Even though it’s presented by Sonoran Restaurant Week, this deal is ongoing.
Agustin Kitchen (at Mercado San Agustin): Burgers and sandwiches (a.k.a. “handhelds”) are buy one, get one free from 2-4pm daily. Walk-up or call-in orders.
Beaut Burger (at MSA Annex): Buy one, get one free vegan burgers weekdays from 4-5pm. Walk-up orders only.
While the Quilt, Craft, and Sewing Festival has great fabric and pattern vendors (some of which we featured in Part 1 of this post), that’s not all that’s there.
Quilt shop cuckoo clock from Cheryl Ann’s Design Walls booth
You can find booths for guilds and organizations devoted to keeping handmade traditions alive. There also are lots of vendors selling tools, embellishments, and materials that go along with quilting and other types of crafting. It’s impressive how many of them have invented, made, or designed the products they’re selling!
Pauline’s Quilters World – Pauline Rogers invented the Sasher, a small plastic tool, shaped to make it quicker to fold and press strips of fabric. She also created the Quilt As You Go technique and wrote The Quilt As You Go Handbook (QAYG).
Tailor Made Tables, LLC – Sewing machine repair and sewing extension tables custom-made to fit your machine by Dean the Table Guy.
Made in San Tan Valley, AZ.
Thread Cutterz – Invention featured on Shark Tank to easily cut thread or fishing line. You can wear it on a ring, or it can mount flat to the side of your sewing machine.
Lakeside Scissors Sales – Specializing in hard to find small tools, they have bins and bins of scissors, pliers, magnifying glasses, and other gadgets.
Cheryl Ann’s Design Walls – These are portable, freestanding fabric surfaces for laying out quilt squares. Instructors can use them for demonstrations. They’re also helpful at quilter get-togethers where design wall space is limited – like quilting classes, retreats, and guild meetings.
Uniquely Crafts, LLC – Family-owned business specializing in 5D Diamond Art Kits, a craft project where you create a picture using a special tool and a type of beads (“diamonds”) with a flat, sticky back. It’s kind of like paint-by-number with rhinestones.
We met both Stan and Amy Regal at their booth.
Amy designs their kits.
They offer a selection of 5D diamond kits for kids.
Custom Keepsakes – Heirloom sewing and machine embroidery in the style of vintage handiwork. They had lots of adorable little dresses on display to showcase their Heirloom Collection.
African Everything / Maendeleo Imports – I met Rashawnda Ogwel, who was standing in for her mother-in-law, the entrepreneur and importer known as “Basket Mary.” They continue to offer gorgeous handcrafted products from across Africa, like Ghanaian baskets and batik wall hangings from Tanzania.
Wooly Felted Wonders – A reusable alternative to dryer sheets or fabric softener, Wooly Felted Wonders are dryer balls made from 100% New Zealand wool and ethically handcrafted in Nepal. The company also sells other felted wool accessories, like bags, hot pads, and cat caves.
Chenille-It – This bias tape comes in a rainbow of colors and provides a shortcut for getting the frayed-edge look of of chenille in quilting and sewing projects.
Sew Many Creations specializes in natural cork fabric, which is a renewable material that’s sturdy enough to use as a leather alternative for bags and wallets, yet thin enough to stitch with a regular sewing machine. They sell different colors and sizes of cork fabric, as well as patterns and hardware kits for bags. Owner Jessica VanDenburgh has also designed fabric lines for Windham fabrics and leads workshops and weekend bag-making retreats.
These organizations are devoted to a particular type of craft. They are usually open to anyone interested in it, regardless of skill level. While they may have annual dues or membership fees, you can almost always attend a meeting or two for free to see if you’d like to get more involved.
Phoenix Area Quilters Association (PAQA) – Organization with quilt programs, speakers, quilt challenges, blocks of the month, quilts for charity, prizes, and these adorable little cactus pincushions!
Lacey Ladies of Arizona – Gathering of women who craft with or make lace. They host an annual Lace Day celebration in the Phoenix area in November.
Chapter of the International Organization of Lace, Inc. (IOLI).
Hosting the 2020 IOLI National Convention in Mesa in July.
Arizona Desert Weavers and Spinners Guild (ADWSG) – Friendly fiber arts group that sponsors informational activities and demonstrates weaving and spinning skills at schools, craft fairs, and other community events.
Phoenix meetings on the first Saturday of month (October through May).
Last year, I went to two days of the Festival – one with my Mom and one with sister-in-law Dinah and friend Kelli.
The first day, we ended up parking in a lot that was actually meant to be for a dog show, which we needed to walk through to get to our Festival.
The second day, I parked there on purpose. We walked past booths of dog stuff and people with impeccably groomed and well-mannered dogs. I really wanted to ask one of them if their dog was available to tutor our little rascal Quijote. But that’s not why we were there.
Walking into the Festival building meant being surrounded by a dazzling array of colors and patterns, handcrafted items, crafty inventions, and big ticket items like long arm sewing machines. It was fun to check in with favorite vendors from the past, meet new ones, and see things I hadn’t before.
Pocket Change Fabric
Here are some of the fabric and pattern exhibitors we saw in 2019, plus their booth numbers at the Phoenix 2020 show. (Info about vendors for tools, accessories, and food is in Part 2!)
Orange Dot Quilts
Patterns
Orange Dot Quiltshas original quilt and bag patterns by owner/designer Dora Cary. I love her bold, modern designs!
The Cottage Rose Quilt Pattern Originals – Deb Eggers of The Cottage Rose created a pattern for a fabric Parcheesi board! You can just roll it up and take it with your for camping or traveling. The kit comes with the game pieces and pattern includes a little pouch to keep them in. She also made some adorable little fabric owls.
Bobbie G. Designs – Embroidery, cross-stitch, and quilting patterns in a shared booth space with More the Merrier. I was drawn in by their cute vintage camper cross-stitch!
Calico Patch Designs – Vicki McCarty is a pattern and MARCUS Fabric designer, who likes to incorporate wool and cotton appliqué into her quilts. Her “Homespun Appeal” pattern (above) was featured on the cover of Quilt Sampler Magazine (Fall 2018). Currently, “Rabbit Patches Runner,” made from a pattern she designed and fabrics from her line, is on the cover of Primitive Quilts (Spring 2020).
Calico Patch Quilt Shop located in Morehead, Kentucky.
England Design – Cynthia England was back with examples of her signature picture piecing method of quilting. True to its name, you can use this technique to make a quilt that looks like picture instead of the abstract shapes you traditionally see in quilts.
#641-642
Fabric
Bear Paw Quilts – Their (multiple) Seattle Seahawks fabrics caught my eye, and, yes, owners John and Shyla King are based in Washington. They had a large cutting board right there in their booth, so you could get exactly the amount of fabric you wanted – whether it’s a ‘Hawks design or not.
Booth #900-902
Elkhorn Quilt Company – It’s always great to stop by and check out what new fabrics and quilts Debbie Dominy has!
Spirit of the Artisan – A gorgeous collection of textiles imported from Southeast Asia by shop owner Gale Carson, who maintains a personal connection with many of the suppliers and artisans. Her wares include scarves, bags, tops, patterns, hand-woven Burma batiks, and ornate Hmong collars.
#628-630
Desert Stitchin – Quilts, kits, southwest-themed fabrics, and “desert delights,” which are sets of 2.5-inch color-coordinated fabric strips.
“Brolga Dreaming” by Nambooka + other aboriginal-designed fabricsFabric designs by (l-r) Nambooka, Narelle Kitson, Colleen Wallace + Vanessa InkamalaFabric design “Bush Banana” by Donna Abbots
NotJustQuiltZ – Largest U.S. collection of aboriginal-designed fabrics from M+S Textiles in Australia. The designs are are created — usually hand-painted — by artists of indigenous Australian descent, drawing on their cultural traditions. Artists receive commissions on their work as long as it’s in print (longer than usual in this industry), and many make their living this way.
Shop located in the Historical District of Niles in Fremont, California (Bay Area).
They also have long arm services, embroidery, custom, quilts, notions, and gift items.
Second Chance Fabrics – New and pre-owned fabric, as well as patterns and gift items. You can trade in fabrics from your stash in exchange for store credit. Anyone who sews probably has excess material around, so it’s great that there’s a place to give it a new home, while picking up something you’ll actually use!
Julie’s Sewing Corner & Quilt Shop is located in Miami, Arizona, which is a historic mining town near Globe. Julie and Don Reiman’s shop specializes in unusual, drive-out-of-your-way fabric.
Sun Valley Quilts – Sewing machines, wooden sewing tables, fabric, notions, and a book section. The store is large enough for groups to visit together during events like quilt shop hops and then go to one of the nearby restaurants.
Shop in Sun Valley, Arizona and online.
A rep from The Grace Company was also there, demonstrating their quilting frames and Q’nique line of quilting machines with handles designed for more control.
Traditional Primitives – Missie Carpenter developed a starch basting technique for English paper piecing and has her own lines of rustic quilting fabrics and other quilting products.
The Copper Needle – Shop focused on providing a welcoming, creative environment. Offering fabrics, threads, patterns, notions, Bernina sewing and embroidery machines, and classes in quilting, embroidery, and painting.
The closest parking is the South Lot at the Fair Grounds. Enter through the McDowell Gate at 17th Ave and McDowell Rd.)
Parking $8.
We were guests of the Quilt, Craft & Sewing Festival.
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