Golden Scissors Awards - Craft Industry Alliance

The craft industry is made up of both world-class corporations and thousands of visionary small business owners, whose never-ending creativity continually lifts the entire sector to new heights. The Golden Scissors Awards are an opportunity for the industry to recognize those who have offered outstanding leadership and innovation in the past year.

Recognizing outstanding leadership and innovation within the crafts industry.

Golden Scissors Awards are given annually to nominees who show exceptional:

creativity
service towards the craft community
innovation

Each nominee is considered individually and confidentially and is judged by a panel of five judges nominated by the Craft Industry Alliance Board of Advisors.

Winners will be announced on May 7 live on stage at h+h americas 2025. See you at the show!

Who can submit a nomination?

Nominate yourself, or someone else. There’s no fee to apply. Submissions are open to both US and global entries and all nominees must be 18 years of age as of the date of entry

There’s no limit on the number of people you nominate or the number of awards you nominate them for. A separate entry form must be submitted for each entry. Please note that applications must be filled out in full by the deadline, January 23, 2025, to be considered for an award.

Eligibility is open to anyone working in the crafts industry.

elizabeth okeyele teaching a child knitting

Meet our judges

The 2025 Golden Scissors Awards will be judged by this independent panel of judges selected by the Craft Industry Alliance Board of Advisors.

Anne Merrow, Long Thread Media

Anne Merrow was a young book editor when she learned to knit, and her career has blended content with craft ever since. In 2019, she co-founded the independent, majority-women-owned Long Thread Media to publish fiber art classics Handwoven, Spin Off, PieceWork, and Little Looms. She serves as editorial director for its publications, online education, and events. Long Thread Media’s newest property is Farm & Fiber Knits, which provides inspiration, techniques, and patterns tracing the journey of natural fiber from its source to your needles. A former editor of Spin Off and other craft titles, Anne hosts the popular Long Thread Podcast.

Lisa Woolfork, Black Women Stitch and the Stitch Please Podcast

Lisa Woolfork is a sewist, podcaster, community organizer and scholar. She is the founder of Black Women Stitch, the sewing group where Black Lives Matter. She is also the host/creator of Stitch Please, an award-winning weekly audio podcast that centers Black women, girls, and femmes in sewing. A sixth-generation sewing enthusiast, she has spoken about the connections between Black liberation and craft for the Smithsonian’s African American Craft Summit, the Modern Quilt Guild, the Center for Craft, Architectural Digest and more. Her work interrogates boundaries between art and craft, social justice and liberation.

Vivika Hansen DeNegre

Vivika Hansen DeNegre is a former Content Director for Golden Peak Media, where she led the multi-media Quilting division and served as Editor for Quilting Arts, Modern Patchwork, and QuiltCon Magazines. Throughout her career in craft publishing, she focused on creating unique products that engaged the audience in meaningful ways, encouraged a deeper knowledge of the craft, and provided unlimited opportunities for quilters to learn and grow. As an art quilter with a penchant for modern techniques, Vivika has served on the boards of Studio Art Quilt Associates and The Modern Quilt Guild. She currently volunteers as the Board President for The Guilford Art Center in Guilford, CT.

Melanie Falick

Melanie Falick is an independent writer, editor, and creative consultant—and a lifelong maker. She is the author of Making a Life: Working by Hand and Discovering the Life You Are Meant to Live as well as several other titles, including Kids Knitting, Weekend Knitting, and Knitting in America, with over 525,000 books in print. She is the former publishing director of STC Craft/Melanie Falick Books, an imprint of Abrams, where she published books by many esteemed authors, including Kaffe Fassett, Norah Gaughan, Clara Parkes, and Tracey Ullman. She is also a former editor-in-chief of Interweave Knits magazine. Among her favorite more recent projects are creative director and editor of the entire collection of Modern Daily Knitting Field Guides; color consultant to KnitPro, developing a palette of more than 100 colors for the launch of Symfonie Yarns; editor of the self-published books Cocoknits Sweater Workshop and Yoga of Yarn, and curator of the Maker Film Festival in Beacon, NY.

Lianna Allday, Creativebug

Liana Allday is the General Manager of Creativebug, where she has led a team to produce thousands of sewing, art, craft and needle art classes since 2013. Before coming to Creativebug, she was a senior editor at STC Craft/Melanie Falick Books. Liana is an avid knitter, watercolor painter, and writer, and she doesn’t shy away from anything that involves numbered steps. She lives in Napa, CA with her husband, Robb, their son, Caleb and their dog, Bobie.

Nicole Stevenson, Dear Handmade Life

Nicole Stevenson is a lifelong creative misfit with a master’s degree in the arts and over 20 years of experience as a creative business owner. As the CEO and Creative Director of Dear Handmade Life, she’s the mastermind behind Craftcation Conference and Patchwork Show festivals—events that bring together artists and makers to learn, connect, and grow their creative businesses. Nicole’s journey includes running a six-figure clothing line, teaching hundreds of craft workshops, and figuring out how to juggle parenting, creativity, and the occasional existential crisis. She’s passionate about ditching hustle culture for a more mindful, human approach to productivity and loves helping neurodivergent creatives find systems that actually work for them. When she’s not mentoring or running events, you can find her at the beach (her happy place), crafting something new, listening to Dolly Parton and eating Korean BBQ or reminding herself—and everyone else—that progress beats perfection every time.

Michele Muska, Oliso

Michele is a designer, maker, quilter and author. She has been a craft industry professtional for over 20 years, and now is the Director of Content and Community Relations for Oliso, the creator of the iTouch Smart Iron and the M3Pro. Michele also curates features and has been a colunumists to international womens magaines, fiberarts publications as well as made appearances on Quilting Arts and several other craft related TV shows. She lives in North Central CT with her husband and her 94 yo mom (her biggest supporter) and loves being Mimi to her 3 granddaughters! Her many passions include pie making (her pie made othe front cover of Pieograpahy), punch needle, needlework, gardening, photography and most of all making and sharing a meal with family and friends. Michele strongly believes that the process of creating is as important as the end result, and she especially enjoys teaching and helping others discover their creative passion.

Award Categories

one woman showing another woman something on a piece of paper

Emerging Leader

Designed to uplift promising talent, this award celebrates budding entrepreneurs working in the industry for under five years who have shown exceptional growth potential and innovation.

It recognizes those who are making a significant impact in the early stage of their career and highlights their potential as future industry leaders.

Lifetime Achievement

Dedicated to visionaries who have made a lasting impact on the industry.

This prestigious recognition honors individuals who have been pioneers in their field, driving positive change, and leaving a lasting legacy through their hard work, determination, talent, and collaboration.

Sustainability

Recognizes companies, initiatives, or campaigns demonstrating a profound commitment to sustainability. This award honors those who prioritize environmentally conscious practices and ethically sourced materials that positively impact communities and society as a whole.

The purpose of this award is to celebrate the craft industry’s willingness to engage with today’s big issues including sustainability, environmental consciousness, and wellbeing.

Social Impact

Recognizes companies, initiatives, or campaigns demonstrating a profound commitment to social responsibility and social justice. This award honors those who prioritize social responsibility in ways that positively impact communities and society as a whole.

The purpose of this award is to celebrate the craft industry’s willingness to engage with today’s big issues including diversity, access, and wellbeing.

woman looking at color swatches at a desk

Innovation

This award celebrates a groundbreaking new product, idea, or business model launched within the last two years.

Honoring creativity and forward-thinking, this award acknowledges businesses that have brought new concepts to the forefront, commending unique and original ideas that push the boundaries of design and set new trends within the industry.