Liza Q. Wirtz, better known as Q (aka the Chief Feline), runs multifaceted fiber-arts business the Foldout Cat from her home studio in Alabama with the frequent and welcome assistance of partners Fiber J and Maker J and the help of a fluctuating number of cats. Having spent several past lives in other occupations–including bookseller, lawyer, and professional singer–Q now works fulltime towards earning her living as an artist and a creative. Q has been weaving in a freestyle/free-spirited tradition since 2015, carding for five years, spinning for more than four years, and dyeing for a year and a half. She teaches freestyle weaving, art-batt carding, and basic experiential spinning with the same philosophy that infuses her praxis: create from your heart, make what gives you joy, and put beauty into the world. Q wholeheartedly believes that everyone's an artist and that giving people access to fiber-arts tools and learning lets them prove it to themselves.
Q also makes and sells one-of-a-kind art batts built from the Foldout Cat's unique Batt Buffet, handspun yarn, hand-dyed microbatch yarn and fiber, finished fiber-arts items, and simple fiber-arts tools. She has taught, vended, or both at fiber events in multiple states, including Colorado, Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. In 2023, she’ll add Arkansas, New York, and Pennsylvania to the list.
Email Liza at queue@foldoutcat.com