This week, I want to do something different. I want to talk about my first quilt, including what inspired me to quilt, and have you share in the comments what inspired you. I’ll also have a few snippets about how quilts historically tell the stories of the quilt maker. So, let’s have some fun!
My First Quilt
Well, I started quilting in 1988 in a time my husband and I call “BC” – before children! I was looking for something to fill my leisure time while my husband played in a softball league. Paging through a community college catalog, I saw a ten week quilting class listed. I had a grandmother who was a quilter, but she was no longer with us and no one else in the family quilted, even so I said “why not?”.
We were instructed to choose a pattern and the fabric. Of course I made the new quilter’s mistake of choosing a queen size quilt made up of the Lemoyne Star block! And… the cutting and sewing was all by hand. No rotary cutters, just templates, tracing pencils and scissors!
So, here it is:
Notice those lovely 80’s poly-cotton fabrics in the dusty blues and pinks. Boy have I evolved! Here’s my latest large quilt, Constellations:
After that hand piecing experience, I went out a bought a sewing machine because I was actually hooked on quilting but never wanted to hand piece a block again!
As you can see by my latest designs, what inspires me today is the large variety of beautiful Civil War reproduction fabrics and paging through books of antique quilts. That fabric is my favorite to use and when I find a new line, it inspires me even more. The antique quilts I find in the books often have many traditional blocks like Log Cabin, Churn Dash or Evening Star. I love looking at these books and dreaming up ways I can put a new “spin” on those blocks.
Telling Stories
Throughout history, women have expressed themselves through quilting as an art form. From telling a family story to expressing a political view, quilts were the canvas. From my first quilt through my current creations tell my story by showing my evolution as a quilter. Other types of stories quilts tell are things of historical importance or a family’s personal history.
A current example of a family’s personal history in a quilt: T-shirt quilts! Many of us have collected T-shirts from a child’s activities through their school years or from an adult’s vacation trip and put them in a quilt. That is a recording of their history and a snapshot of the family history.
Here’s my version of a family history quilt. For both of my kids, I made picture quilts for their graduations from high school.
It’s a bit hard to see the photo blocks, but they are made up of pictures printed onto fabric documenting their high school years. Then I designed unique ways to lay them out and made pieced into quilts. A twist on the t-shirt quilt.
Here’s one of the most famous story quilts from history. I wrote a bit about it in my book, Blooming Patchwork:
This quilt was made by former slave, Harriet Powers and can be found at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History.
Another type of family history in quilts that can be found in books of antique quilts is a signature quilt. Often these quilts were presented to family members who were moving west and leaving friends and family behind. The quilt blocks would be signed by those staying behind and then sewn into a quilt for the traveler to take with them.
Patriotism in Quilts
From the beginning of the country woman have expressed their patriotism and their political views through quilting, mostly because that was their only outlet. On viewing quilts in quilt history books, you will find everything from appliquéd eagles and flags to fabrics actually printed with patriotic symbols. You’ll find block names like “Whig Rose” and “Yankee Puzzle” to name a few.
A lot of patriotic quilts can be found in the Civil War era. Quilts were often made and raffled to raise funds for soldiers. Quilts were even made to raise funds for gun boats. Read Barbara Brackman’s blog post from 2014 with some interesting history about these quilts.
Quilts were also part of causes like the women’s suffrage movement. This movement for the women’s rights grew out of the abolitionist movement, which was often headed by women. Did you know Susan B. Anthony, a leader in the suffrage movement, was a skilled quilter even as a young girl? She often used quilting bee quilters as her audience for speeches on the movement. Here’s a link to a suffrage quilt, although not one of Susan B. Anthony’s. If you want to look at a lot of historical quilts and find out more information about them, the Quilt Index is a fantastic website to keep bookmarked on your computer.
I like to make patriotic quilts myself. Here’s my first one I ever made, Long May She Wave:
And my latest, Old Glory Garden:
I’m even in the process of making a new one… here’s the pieces cut out and waiting at my sewing machine:
So, that’s my story. What is yours? Answer these three questions (below) in the comments if you’d like and you will be entered into the drawing for my newest patriotic pattern, Old Glory Garden (above)! **We have a winner! Congrats, Judy Smith!**
Questions:
- What inspired you to quilt
- What is your favorite quilt technique
- What is the tool or notion you can’t live without
The drawing will be on Monday, May 26th. Good luck!
Happy Quilting!
Deanne
