Laura Shaw creates modern quilts with a story. Her quilt Your Mother. Your Daughter. Your Sister. Your Grandmother. You. was banned from a venue because in her artist statement she tells the story about how she was inspired to make the quilt by the overturning of Roe vs. Wade.
How did you get started designing quilts? Always an artist, or was there a “moment”?
I came late to quilting. It all began in 2018 when I took a baby-quilt class at my local shop. I loved the process but detoured into making my clothes for a year or two until, overwhelmed with fabric scraps, I felt compelled to make another quilt to use them up.
After that I was hooked, and I haven’t made a piece of clothing since. I started designing my own quilts pretty much from the start; being a graphic designer, it was a natural fit.
Although my chosen way to work relies heavily on improv piecing, I do love a grid, and most of my quilts use one even if it’s not obvious.
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As of now, I don’t write patterns, but I might someday. Even though most of my quilts are one of a kind, a few could be turned into a pattern. I’d need to build up the necessary skills first.
Where do you find inspiration for your designs?
Inspiration comes from my life. Lucca, Recycled is a great example.
Many years ago, we traveled to Florence, Italy, and found ourselves unhappily surrounded by mobs of tourists and Vespas. We decided to take a day trip to the small medieval walled city of Lucca, which was so much more peaceful. I bought a tablecloth from a shop in the center piazza, and we used it for years and years until it finally tore down the middle.
Unwilling to throw out something that held so many memories, I combined it with other discarded linen scraps—a worn-out bedsheet, leftovers from making shirts, a pair of unflattering pants—and created a sweet reminder of our time in Lucca that now keeps us warm at night. Read more on my website: https://www.laurashaw.net/quilts#/lucca-recycled
Do your quilts have stories to tell?
All my quilts have a story—sometimes a long-winded story that I keep to myself, so I don’t bore people. Other times, the story is integral to the quilt, like my most well-known piece, Your Mother. Your Daughter. Your Sister. Your Grandmother. You, which was banned by the American Quilter’s Society from its venues in 2025.
The quilt is part of a traveling SAQA exhibit called Color in Context: Red and was supposed to be shown at all five AQS venues. But at the last minute, AQS decided to not allow my quilt and one by Yvonne Iten-Scott to be part of the show due to their subject matter.
In my case, it was because of my artist statement, which talks about how I was inspired to make the quilt by the overturning of Roe v. Wade. My artist statement makes the case that when women are denied access to any available health-care option—with nothing off limits—women will die. And they have died, as we all know.
In Yvonne’s case, it was because her piece was perceived to be representative of a woman’s private parts, even though neither its title, Origin, nor her artist statement have to do with women specifically.
After I posted on Instagram about our being censored, an uproar ensued, and SAQA pulled the entire show from AQS Quilt Week. SAQA has since found alternate venues for 2025 where the full show, as the curator intended it, can be seen.
Although the experience was upsetting, I was amazed at the outpouring of support and mutual outrage. I think a lot of people realized that what is happening in our country is affecting all of us, on every level.
The most moving part of the experience was the comments I got from women who were not pro-choice but felt strongly that our work should still be shown. Out of the 800+ comments on Instagram, there were only one or two that were negative.
It all ended happily for both of us; my quilt was acquired by the International Quilt Museum, and a private collector purchased Yvonne’s piece. You can read the full artist statement on my website: https://www.laurashaw.net/quilts#/your-mother
Do you plan your work out ahead of time, or do you just dive in with your materials and start playing?
Both. Early on, I was not a planner at all and just dove it. But now I have more control over the medium, so I sometimes plan parts of the quilt on the computer.
My work always has an improv component, but since I also like block-based designs, I can work some things out in advance, like color combinations and general layout.
Are you a “finisher”? How many UFOs do you think you have?
I’m a relentless finisher! I almost never have more than two quilts in process, and I am compelled to finish whichever one is furthest along before I can work on a new idea.
Quilts change so much after each step but especially after the quilting is done. I’m always astonished by the change the actual quilting brings.
Most quilt tops feel unfinished to me, and I think that’s a good sign—because they’re not finished! If they felt done at that stage, then it might feel like the quilting could ruin it.
Even the binding adds something that is key to the final piece. Does it act as a frame? Or do you create a facing so it’s not seen?
Describe your creative space.
We just finished a big renovation of our attached two-car garage and created a space for me to work in. It feels amazing to have so much room!
I’m still moving in, getting used to the different lighting, and finding the right spot for everything. I finally have a full 8 x 8–foot design wall with nothing blocking it.
It’s also great that the space is attached to the house so I can just pop out there whenever I have a moment.
Scraps. Saver? Or be done with them?
I’m a little nutty about saving every single scrap of fabric. I can’t throw out anything bigger than an inch. But I do periodically go through them and recycle anything I’m sick of.
I don’t buy a ton of new fabric; I like to upcycle where I can. When I first began sewing clothes, I often overbought, thinking that I would need the extra fabric, and so I have some fabrics that have appeared in multiple quilts.
Nowadays, I mainly buy 108-inch-wide fabric for my quilt backs. Once I’m done with a quilt top, I am done. No fancy pieced backs for me (although I love it when other people make them!).
With the wide-back fabric, I often have enough left over for the binding and—you guessed it—more scraps for more quilts!
What plays in the background while you work? Silence? Music, audiobooks, podcasts, movies? If so, what kind?
Silence most of the time, but if I’m production piecing or making repetitive blocks, then I listen to podcasts. I favor podcasts that are informative and funny but don’t require my whole brain.
One of my favorites is You Must Remember This, a podcast about movies and Hollywood. I’m a fan of old movies and love the stories of old Hollywood stars. I’m highly susceptible to earworms, so I tend not to listen to music, and I can’t follow audiobooks while sewing.
How often do you start a new project? Do you work actively on more than one project at a time?
I always have a quilt going, but if my book design job gets really busy, it could be weeks without any sewing. I try not to let that happen.
I’m my happiest when I have a balance between the two. I do my book-design work in the same space as my sewing because I like to bounce between them. I might be stuck on some graphic design issue for a book cover and can spend time rearranging quilt blocks on my design wall while the solution works itself out.
The opposite is also true: if I’m stuck on a quilt layout, I can spend time just looking at it while I work and that way discover the spot that needs adjusting.
Which part of the design process is your favorite? Which part is a challenge for you?
The quilting is the hardest part. I make big quilts, often 90 inches or so and quilt them on my home machine (a Bernina 570), so it’s a physical challenge. I’ve used a long arm before but have no plans to buy one. They’re crazy expensive!
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve received?
“You do you.” If you stay true to your own voice, your work will always be interesting.
Do you enter juried shows? Do you approach your work differently for these venues?
I enter a lot of shows. It’s a primary motivator for me. I’m hoping to someday sell my work, so being in shows is an important step.
And not just quilt shows. I’m also trying to break into more multimedia spaces that feature fiber art. I’m particularly focused on shows that are curated by someone more advanced in the field, like Quilts=Art=Quilts.
I don’t always get accepted, but I keep trying. I enter QuiltCon every year, and let me tell you, if you get rejected, enter that quilt again. I’ve had a quilt get in after being rejected previously.
Do you keep track of your work? Shows that you’ve entered? Tell us what works for you.
I use a spreadsheet in Excel. It’s the only way I can keep track, and I’m glad I have it, because I’ve almost entered quilts in shows with conflicting timeframes more than once.
On it, I list the title, materials used, size, which shows they’ve been entered into, if they were selected or rejected, and if they’ve sold. I also use my website as a record of my work.
All my full-length artist statements are there (shows often require much shorter ones), as well as a list of shows, exhibits, and media-mentions. It’s all very much a work-in-progress.
Where can people see your work?
Website: laurashaw.net
Instagram: laurashaw.quilts
Bluesky: laurashawquilts.bsky.social
Book design work: laurashawdesign.com
The SAQA traveling exhibit Color in Context: Red — go see it if you get a chance! It’s an amazing show and will be traveling through 2026. https://www.saqa.com/art/exhibitions/color-context-red-saqa-global-exhibition
Interview posted March 2025
Browse through more inspiring modern quilts on Create Whimsy.