Featured Quilter Selected for 2026 "Quilts by the Sea" Quilt Show

Linda MacKown of Newport has been selected as the featured quilter for the 2026 quilt show, “Quilts by the Sea,” sponsored by the Oregon Coastal Quilters Guild (OCQG).

The show will be held on July 31 and August 1 at the Newport Recreation Center, 225 SE Avery St., on Friday from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm and on Saturday from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm. The entry fee is $8, and children under 12 may attend free when accompanied by an adult.

MacKown is an accomplished quilter, whose quilts have won ribbons and been exhibited in numerous shows, including the OCQG annual show, winning Best of Show, and earning two Awards of Merit from the National Association of Certified Quilt Judges. She has been juried into shows at the Coos Art Museum in Coos Bay, the Northwest Quilting Expo in Portland, and the Pacific International Quilt Festival in Santa Clara, California.  MacKown was also chosen to exhibit at the Fiber Art Festival in the Performing Arts Center in Newport.    

Like many quilters, MacKown has been sewing since she was a young girl, learning from her mother. She started with doll clothes, participated in 4-H sewing for several years, and continued sewing in Home Economics, making many of her own clothes. In the 1980s, in Colorado, she entered both knitted and sewn garments in The Wool Affair, Make It with Wool, Sew Colorado Fashion Show and Art to Wear shows.

Even though her mother quilted, MacKown didn’t discover her love of quilting until around 2000, after moving to Oregon. “I then joined Oregon Coastal Quilters Guild in 2002.  I have learned and developed my quilting techniques with the help of several talented friends, guild members, through many classes, lots of trial and error, and, of course, practice, practice, practice.”

An active member of the OCQG, she has given back in many ways over the years. She has performed many of the jobs needed to keep the guild a vibrant and welcoming place, including workshops & programs, big sisters, newsletter mailing, raffle quilts, and greeter at the meetings. Her jobs for the quilt show have included: door prizes, hostesses, vendors, indoor and outdoor signs, judging support, and hanging exhibited quilts.

The Oregon Coastal Quilters Guild, founded in 1991, has more than 170 members throughout Lincoln County and beyond. Members meet, in person or on Zoom, on the 2^nd Thursday of the month at the Atonement Lutheran Church, 2250 SW Coast Hwy. in Newport. We welcome newcomers and visitors.