Most quilts are prize possessions in families. They are handed down from generation to generation. If you are lucky enough to be the recipient of one of these treasures you know how unique and valuable they are. There are myths that surround this inherently American craft. Quilt museums and historians have done research to discover the truth behind some of the most popular myths.
Antique quilts, in many ways, are window into the country's beginnings. We have ideas about our ancestors in the colonies sewing together scraps of material to create bed covers for their families. We see this as a sign of their thriftiness. Some people believe quilters designed pieces with secret messages for runaway slaves to help them get to a safe haven using the Underground Railroad.
Scrap bags, where housewives keep bits of cloth leftover from sewing projects, may be a modern myth. This fits in with our view of colonists who had to use ingenuity and hard work to create everyday objects. The fact is that most of these early quilts were made from whole cloth. It was not your everyday fabric either. These quilts came from expensive imported fabric instead of scraps. Quilting from scraps didn't come into the picture until after the Industrial Revolution.
A common assumption is that women in colonial times made quilts. This fits in with our picture of resilient early Americans making the most of the resources they had. It turns out that quilting during this time period was fairly rare. Textiles were too expensive to be cut up for scraps. It was not until mass production that material became affordable, and it made economic sense to cut scraps and sew them together for quilting projects.
Many people associate quilting only with women. Feminists have embraced quilting as a good example of the strength and ingenuity of women. They point to the communal aspect of quilting bees that brought women together working toward a common goal. While this is true, there are any number of talented professional male quilters. There are also male quilt pattern artists. Some of their best works hang concurrently with female quilters.
Many believe quilting is an exclusively American craft. American quilting is distinctive and has characteristics that make it unique. There are designs early American quilters borrowed from England and France though. One of them is the mosaic patchwork pattern many quilters still use today. Mongolia is the site of some of the earliest quilted textiles. They have been traced back to the first century.
One of the most compelling myths regarding American quilts is the part they may have played in the Underground Railroad. Quilters were supposed to have sewn secret code into their projects that only those involved in the Underground Railroad understood. The codes gave instructions to runways heading north. Historians discount the story believing it to be started by an individual family.
Quilts become family treasures. They have a history all their own. The most famous myths are sometimes true and sometimes not. Either way families will continue to cherish quilts and pass them on to new generations.
Antique quilts, in many ways, are window into the country's beginnings. We have ideas about our ancestors in the colonies sewing together scraps of material to create bed covers for their families. We see this as a sign of their thriftiness. Some people believe quilters designed pieces with secret messages for runaway slaves to help them get to a safe haven using the Underground Railroad.
Scrap bags, where housewives keep bits of cloth leftover from sewing projects, may be a modern myth. This fits in with our view of colonists who had to use ingenuity and hard work to create everyday objects. The fact is that most of these early quilts were made from whole cloth. It was not your everyday fabric either. These quilts came from expensive imported fabric instead of scraps. Quilting from scraps didn't come into the picture until after the Industrial Revolution.
A common assumption is that women in colonial times made quilts. This fits in with our picture of resilient early Americans making the most of the resources they had. It turns out that quilting during this time period was fairly rare. Textiles were too expensive to be cut up for scraps. It was not until mass production that material became affordable, and it made economic sense to cut scraps and sew them together for quilting projects.
Many people associate quilting only with women. Feminists have embraced quilting as a good example of the strength and ingenuity of women. They point to the communal aspect of quilting bees that brought women together working toward a common goal. While this is true, there are any number of talented professional male quilters. There are also male quilt pattern artists. Some of their best works hang concurrently with female quilters.
Many believe quilting is an exclusively American craft. American quilting is distinctive and has characteristics that make it unique. There are designs early American quilters borrowed from England and France though. One of them is the mosaic patchwork pattern many quilters still use today. Mongolia is the site of some of the earliest quilted textiles. They have been traced back to the first century.
One of the most compelling myths regarding American quilts is the part they may have played in the Underground Railroad. Quilters were supposed to have sewn secret code into their projects that only those involved in the Underground Railroad understood. The codes gave instructions to runways heading north. Historians discount the story believing it to be started by an individual family.
Quilts become family treasures. They have a history all their own. The most famous myths are sometimes true and sometimes not. Either way families will continue to cherish quilts and pass them on to new generations.
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