Always wanted to learn how to knit? Now’s your chance! You’ll learn everything you need to make your own cozy cowl: casting on, knit and purl stitches, and how to read a pattern, as well as how to choose yarn for a project, how to pick up a dropped stitch, and where to find your next project.

Sunday, October 4th, from 11am to 4pm

You’ll learn the basics of weaving, and then go way beyond, to create an incredible piece filled with color, texture, shape and excitement. You’ll learn many stitches to bring out various effects, designs and layers. You’ll also make added elements such as fringe, tassels and other decorative parts to enhance your weaving on a simple frame loom. No prior art or weaving experience is necessary. Perfect for beginning through experienced artists.

Please feel free to bring snacks, lunch and drinks, as well as an extra layer of clothing.

$130 per person, all materials will be supplied

Saturday, October 3rd, from 2pm to 5pm

In this 3 hour workshop, you will make your own colors and prints using watercolor paints and pencils. Using your watercolor creations we will be cutting and pasting them into traditional quilt blocks. Leave with one or more quilt blocks mounted on cardstock paper. A great visual way of learning the art of piecing together quilt blocks, no sewing required.

FREE with Museum admission

Friday, October 2nd at 6pm

Join us for a night celebrating our new exhibition, Soft Structures, curated by Anna Snyder with Renata Blanco Gorbea and Zachary Fernandez. Refreshments will be provided and free admission!

Saturday, September 26th, from 10am to 1pm

Learn to Sew 1 and Learn to Sew 2 with Dionne Clabaugh will teach you the essential techniques to sew properly, teach you skills to approach your own projects, and the confidence to dive into any future fiber arts endeavor. Benefit from individualized instruction from an experienced teacher and build your skills through the consecutive classes. Perfect for beginners looking to get a start in quilting or sewing garments!

Please bring your sewing machine. All other materials will be provided.

$100 per person, per session; enrollment to only one half of the sequence OK

REGISTRATION REQUIRED

Sunday, September 20th, starting at 3pm

To close A Mi Manera, exhibiting artists Pilar Aguero-Esparza and Alyssarhaye Graciano will be hosting a discussion about artwork, Latina identity, and their intergenerational relationship. Please join us for this send off with two of our talented artists!

FREE with Museum admission

Saturday, September 19th, from 10am to 1pm

Learn to Sew 1 and Learn to Sew 2 with Dionne Clabaugh will teach you the essential techniques to sew properly, teach you skills to approach your own projects, and the confidence to dive into any future fiber arts endeavor. Benefit from individualized instruction from an experienced teacher and build your skills through the consecutive classes. Perfect for beginners looking to get a start in quilting or sewing garments!

Please bring your sewing machine. All other materials will be provided.

$100 per person, per session; enrollment to only one half of the sequence OK

REGISTRATION REQUIRED

Saturday, September 12th, at 3pm

A conversation Between Marisela Gonzáles Ginestra (A Mi Manera Co-Curator) and Fatima Mendez-Reynoso (A Mi Manera Exhibiting Artist) on their journeys from fashion school to the San José Museum of Quilts and Textiles.

FREE with Museum admission

First Saturdays, from 2pm to 5pm

Activities change monthly!

In this three-hour workshop, you will learn all the basics of needle punch: stretching your monk's cloth, selecting your yarn, and creating your pieces. This is the perfect class for beginners or those who have tried needle punch and would like some creative company. You'll come away from this class with a small coaster in a design of your choice—and the knowledge to create future pieces of any size! This is a fantastic opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals and tap into your creativity. 

FREE with Museum admission

Saturday, August 29th, from 10am to 11am

Join us for a free of cost Estate Planning Workshop with Caplan Wilkinson at the San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles! Benefit from easy to understand, practical guidance from estate planning professionals, learn how to create and update a trust, and begin implementing key steps to protect your family and finances for peace of mind.

FREE ADMISSION

Saturday, August 29th, from 10am to 2pm

Together, we’ll explore the fascinating world of algae-based bioplastics, and discover how they can be used as expressive mediums for design, art, and storytelling. Through a live demonstration, participants will learn a specific recipe for creating their own bioplastic, gaining insight into the material’s unique properties, drying process, and creative potential through additives.

During the hands-on session, each participant will cast and shape their own bioplastic samples while experimenting with color, texture, layering, and embedded materials. We’ll discuss different applications and encourage participants to imagine how these materials might be incorporated into future objects, installations, or personal creative practices. No prior experience is needed-- just curiosity and a willingness to experiment.

$130 per person

REGISTRATION REQUIRED

Saturday, August 22nd, from 1pm to 3pm

What if, instead of replacing something worn, we slowed down and gave it a little care?

Join The Unplugged Collective for a beginner-friendly Slow Stitch Gathering at the San Jose Museum of Quilts & Textiles. Facilitated by Gosia Rybka, this relaxed, hands-on afternoon will introduce simple mending skills including hand stitching, patchwork, sewing on buttons, and basic repair techniques. Bring a favorite sweater, worn jeans, a jacket with a missing button, or another well-loved item that could use a little care. As we stitch, we’ll slow down, share stories, and explore what it means to repair rather than replace. No experience necessary. Just bring something worth mending.

FREE WITH $10 ADMISSION

If the admission fee is a barrier, please contact jenna@theunpluggedcollective.org.

Saturday, August 8th from 3pm—5pm

*This month has been changed to the second Saturday—see you there!

Activities change monthly!

This month: Woven friendship bracelets using a cardboard circle

FREE with admission

Saturday, August 8th from 12pm to 2:30pm

Learn techniques to create your own rug with exhibiting artist Cynthia Yadira Gonzalez! No artistic experience required to enjoy this workshop.

Cynthia Yadira Gonzalez (they/them) is a Mexican-American artist who has been painting since 2003 and sculpting since 2009. Their work is vibrant in color and incorporates found objects and non-traditional mediums, such as felt and caulking, to create eccentric and unusual objects.

$60 per person (all materials provided)

REGISTRATION REQUIRED

In this hands-on workshop, participants will explore the elegant art of Kanzashi; the traditional Japanese technique of folding fabric to create intricate, multi-layered floral designs.

Participants will learn precise folding and layering methods, transforming individual fabric squares into a stunning, multi-dimensional flower. Each participant will leave with a beautiful, finished textile piece that can be worn as a custom brooch or hair accessory, or used to embellish clothing and bags.

In addition to learning the physical craft, attendees will gain insight into the cultural history of Kanzashi and explore how historical textile traditions can be thoughtfully adapted into modern, sustainable craft practices.

$75 per person (all materials provided)

Join us for a rejuvenating and peaceful morning of yoga at the Museum! Whether you're a seasoned yogi or a beginner, Sarah Wilhelm will guide you through a series of gentle poses and mindfulness practices, all within the inspiring environment of our Museum. All ages and levels welcome, we can't wait to see you!

$18 per person

You'll start by building a stuffed shape, covering it with a foundation of beautiful fabrics, and then having a wonderful time decorating and developing it. You'll learn to make a variety of fun shapes and parts to attach to your vessel, adding texture and dimension. You can build a base and a top, shaped as you choose it to be. This workshop is packed with learning many techniques for going all out with decorating and embellishing your art, which can include all kinds of wrapping and making of various objects to hang on your piece, as well as tassels, fringe, pompoms, and so much more.

$130 (all materials included)

In this workshop, you will learn the basics of tapestry, using simple frame looms. Tapestry is an ancient, simple technique that inspires contemplation.

It can be functional, as in rugs, decorative, or both! Prewarped looms, tools, and tapestry yarns will be provided. You will leave the class with a small loom with your samples on it, plus a handout with resources.

$130 (all materials included)

REGISTRATION REQUIRED

Join us for a rejuvenating and peaceful morning of yoga at the Museum! Whether you're a seasoned yogi or a beginner, Sarah Wilhelm will guide you through a series of gentle poses and mindfulness practices, all within the inspiring environment of our Museum. All ages and levels welcome, we can't wait to see you!

$18 per person

Join us June 12th, 2026 for the reception of A Mi Manera at the Museum

You'll begin by wrapping a frame with gorgeous fabrics and fibers, creating a foundation for adding elements within, around and beyond the frame. You'll then learn an exciting variety of techniques for creating all sorts of parts and pieces to add on to your artwork, turning it into a gorgeous and unique wall piece.

$130 (all materials included)

Carrington utilizes classic symbols of Americana to explore the ever-shifting definition of the American Dream.  His textile work specifically investigates the rich conceptual history that pre-worn garments and iconic patterns, such as gingham, have to share.  Through using the uniforms of blue and white-collar workers to create American flags, he provides a conduit for empathy between our stratified society by inspiring dialogue across communities of people that represent the far-reaching corners of our culture, history, and socioeconomic status.  

“I am an interdisciplinary artist who uses the idea that the material that something is made out can inform the ideas behind the work.  By using construction materials directly off the shelf from Home Depot, pieces of uniforms that represent America’s workforce, or performing acts of labor while dressed as a CEO, I invite a discussion about the ever-changing class struggle in the United States.”

Join us to hear more about Carrington’s exceptional work!

There is no need to toss textile stuff into the landfill. Using a variety of fabrics, yarns, threads, papers, embellishments (beads, feathers, etc.), and whatever else is at hand, we will create abstract compositions to fit inside Strathmore photo frame cards (5”x7”). They can be used as unique cards for special occasions or inserted into inexpensive frames to become personal gifts of original art.

$95 (all materials included)

Join us for a rejuvenating and peaceful morning of yoga at the Museum! Whether you're a seasoned yogi or a beginner, Sarah Wilhelm will guide you through a series of gentle poses and mindfulness practices, all within the inspiring environment of our Museum. All ages and levels welcome, we can't wait to see you!

MAY will feature Chair Yoga—accessible to all!!

$18 per person

​Join us for a hands-on workshop exploring creative approaches to sustainable textile design led by artist and designer Mira Musank. Participants will learn how simple paper materials can become the starting point for garment and textile construction while engaging with ideas of waste reduction, craft, and sustainable making. No prior experience is required.

​This workshop is part of the San José Climate Art Program, an initiative connecting artists, cultural organizations, and communities through creative responses to climate action. Paper to Pattern is organized in collaboration with Mira Musank, FabMo, and the San Jose Museum of Quilts & Textiles.

FREE, limited spots

You'll learn many techniques for creating a truly unique and stunning art piece, with multiple layers and textures of fabric. The piece begins with creating a base, then covering it with beautiful overlays of fabric, surrounded by shapes that extend outward, giving the piece added shape, dimension and excitement. The final piece will hang on the wall. No sewing involved, no art experience necessary, and perfect for all levels, from beginning through advanced artists.

$130 (all materials included)

Join us every first Saturday of the month for a phone-free activity!

This month the museum will host "ON REPEAT" where you will learn how to make a repeat pattern to reference for other creative projects using paints, markers, pens, pencils, cardstock, tape and scissors. Let your imagination fly and create a pattern that is completely unique!

FREE with admission

Join us for a two-part program starting at the San Jose Museum of Quilts & Textiles for a curator-led tour of the exhibition The Woven Pixel, which explores the rise of digital weaving. Then join us at the San Jose Museum of Art for a curator-led tour of Motherboards, which explores the legacies of women’s work in technology.

FREE

Tour starts at the San Jose Museum of Quilts & Textiles