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Lifting and Stitching

WELCOME TO THE 2026 UNIVERSE

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WELCOME TO THE 2026 UNIVERSE ✦

Hello, you

My name is Joshua, and I am a vegan, weightlifting quilter

Guided by color, shape, and story, I create quilts inspired by the cosmos—stitched constellations that explore memory, feeling, and connection. Each piece I make is a reflection of where art, wonder, and the heart meet.

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What’s new

✦ 2/8/2026 ✦ A TRIP AROUND THE UNIVERSE ✦

A quilt, designed by Joshua Dunn of Lifting and Stitching, features an array of brown and blue colored four point stars against a dark background color lays across a park bench. In the background is an observatory.

A Trip Around the Universe, my first quilt pattern, is nearly ready!

For nearly two years, I’ve been fine tuning the quilt pattern that I designed initially for myself. After its first initial production, I had dozens of quilters asking me for a pattern. There wasn’t one, but there is now. The quilt is inspired by the famous image of the “Cosmic Cliffs” that the James Webb Space Telescope published in 2022 and grounded in tradition of the Trip Around the World pattern. I’ve created a dedicated page for you to learn all about the quilt above. You will also get to see some exciting tools and partners who have boarded our voyage into the universe as well some awesome inspiration from quilters and friends. A Trip Around the Universe launches on February 27, 2026 in my Etsy shop.

A Trip Around the Universe

✦ 2/3/2026 ✦ NEWSLETTER PLATFORM UPDATE ✦

I’m moving the Lifting and Stitching newsletter off Substack and onto Patreon.

While Substack has been easy to use, I’ve been getting familiar with Patreon behind the scenes and feel it’s a better long-term home for what I’m building. You might associate Patreon with paywalls and membership tiers—and that’s true—but it also offers free options. I’ll be using Patreon strictly as a free newsletter platform. One small catch: I can’t seem to automatically move subscribers over. So if you’d like to continue receiving updates, pattern launches and info from me, I’d love for you to continue to follow me on Patreon to stay connected.

✦ 1/29/2026 ✦ NEW ETSY SHOP ✦

We’re one step closer to the launch of my very first quilt pattern, A Trip Around the Universe. This very first step included launching an Etsy shop! It’s finally set. And to kick things off, I’ve listed a familiar design: Dance of the Candy Canes! In case you missed it, click here to read my blog post about the block. This block was designed as a pattern offered in the Quiltmas Spectacular 2025. Now that the workshop is closed, I’m offering the block pattern for sale as a digital PDF pattern download.

Click here to visit my Etsy shop: https://liftingandstitching.etsy.com.

In the meantime, if you’re planning on being at QuiltCon 2026 in Raleigh, North Carolina, I’ll see you there!

Latest posts from my Instagram

Part 2: #QuiltCon2026 selections from the show that caught my eye. *Not My Work*. I attempted to capture the artist statements for each following the quilt photo. Some include up close or backing photos. Enjoy!
Part 1: #QuiltCon2026 selections from the show that caught my eye. *Not My Work*. I attempted to capture the artist statements for each following the quilt photo. Some include up close or backing photos. Enjoy!
Maureen was my swap partner! We have never met each other and neither of us have participated in a mini-swap at QuiltCon until now. We each challenged each other: I gave her my likes of geometric shapes, darker shade and my favorite color of burgundy
Next week, I’ll release my first quilt pattern, A Trip Around the Universe. Since I’m at #quiltcon2026 I brought the cover quilt I made to @andoverfabrics to show them how their Century Solids brought the Carina Nebula to life in my inspi
#HelloQuiltCon2026! We’re back back back again 😊! I’m Joshua. I’ve been quilting since 2020 and only three years ago began venturing into the universe that is #QuiltCon. My first QuiltCon in 2024 was in Raleigh. I remember the imme