FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Contact: Jenny Jones, Marketing Director

612-436-0464 or jjones@textilecentermn.org

TextileCenterMN.org

Textile Center Surpasses Attendance & Revenue Records with

15th Annual World's Largest Textile Garage Sale

April 9 - 11, 2015

at the University of Minnesota's ReUse Program Warehouse

MINNEAPOLIS, MN, May 1, 2015?The largest textile garage sale was bigger than ever this year, with 2,220 shoppers, volunteers, and donators participating in the 3-day event.

For the Garage Sale, individuals and businesses donate mountains of fabric, yarn, threads, notions, kits, patterns, magazines, tools, beads, buttons, sewing machines, looms, and other specialty textile equipment.

A model of recycling, all items for sale have been contributed by the community for reuse by the community, with proceeds benefiting Textile Center and surplus materials donated to schools and other nonprofit organizations.

This yearly event provides an affordable way for artists, students, craft enthusiasts and those who create and give away fiber items for charity to purchase raw materials.

Hi res photos upon request

GARAGE SALE BY THE NUMBERS

$58,000+ worth of textile materials redistributed for reuse & kept out of landfills;

12,028 Garage Sale web page views;

1,663 total shoppers;

1,359 miles one shopper traveled (from North Carolina);

747 Facebook likes, 592 shares

344 individuals & businesses donated;

281 "rounded up" to donate to Textile Center. This $1,105 from new donors will be matched thanks to a $10,000 challenge grant from the Pohlad Family Foundation;

202 unique volunteers (1105 hours);

92 silent auction items such as looms, sewing machines, spinning wheels;

89.3 The Current on the radio throughout;

10 gallons of coffee donated by Dunn Bros + pounds of trail mix donated by Seward Co-op for the volunteers;

2 vast ReUse Program Warehouse aisles filled with fabric, yarn, tools, notions, books, patterns, magazines and more;

0 waste effort: countless bins of cardboard, plastic bags, paper were recycled, & natural materials composted.

About Textile Center

Textile Center is unique as America's only national center for fiber art - which encompasses weaving, quilting, knitting, sewing, dyeing, felting, needlework, lace making, basketry, beading, soft sculpture and multi-media pieces.

With a mission to honor textile traditions and promote excellence and innovation in fiber arts, Textile Center provide resources such as classes for all ages and levels, exceptional fiber art exhibitions in four galleries, an artisan shop, a professional-grade dye lab, and the nation's largest circulating textile library. It is a dynamic hub where people come together to create, learn, share, explore, and be inspired by fiber art. Proceeds from the Garage Sale support Textile Center education and exhibition programs. textilecentermn.org

About the University of Minnesota ReUse Program Warehouse

The University of Minnesota ReUse Program collects surplus office furniture, supplies, equipment and parts from throughout the Twin Cities Campus and makes them available to University departments or individuals for purchase. umn.edu/reuse

This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a Minnesota State Arts Board Operating Support grant, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.

TextileCenterMN.org | 612.436.0464

3000 University Ave SE ? Minneapolis, MN 55414