Debra Rogers-Gillig - Quilting Basics: Storeys Country Wisdom Bulletin A-109

DEBRA ROGERS-GILLIG

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Rogers-Gillig, Debra

Quilting basics / by Debra Rogers-Gillig
A Storey Publishing Bulletin, A-109
ISBN 978-0-88266-551-1

Quilting Basics
Debra Rogers-Gillig

Why would anyone want to go through the expense and time necessary to make a quilt in this day of ready-made comforters and bedspreads?

Why indeed!

A quilt is not now nor has it ever been exclusively a practical cover for keeping a body warm. Even when great-great-great-grandmother made a quilt, it was not just for physical warmth. It was a creative outlet in an otherwise bleak existence a way of expressing oneself, of giving love, of venting frustrations or despair. Quilts were made for kivvers, quilts were made for weddings and births, quilts were made for mourning.

Today, quilts are made for all these reasons and more. Quilt designs are utilized in garments, such as jackets and vests. Quilts are used as decoration, displayed draped over a couch or quilt rack, or hanging on a wall. They are warm pieces of art whether on a bed or in an exhibition hall.

A quilt consists of a top, a lining (batting or flannel), and a backing held together by tiny quilting stitches or by thread ties. It can be 2 or 102 inches square. Quilts can be rectangular, circular, octagonal; were bound only by our imagination.

A quilts place is not only on a bed. More and more people are creating wonderful wall-hangings. After all, there are only so many beds, and there are so many patterns to try! Time is such a valuable commodity these days that a wall-hanging offers a doable project without appearing overwhelming. And with the assortment of tools available today, such as portable quilting hoops, a quilt-in-progress can go anywhere you go.

Quilting has its origins in Europe where it was used for adornment purposes in clothing. The wealthy would have garments with quilted sleeves, sometimes sewn with gold thread and embellished with pearls and other beads.

Quilting as we know it came into its own as an American craft and art. The colonists were ill-prepared for cold New England winters, which dictated many layers on the beds. Worn out clothing was cut up into shapes and pieced together haphazardly. This formed a top sheet that was then layered and sewn to a backing. This, in turn, was stuffed with straw or leaves or whatever else was available.

English tariffs on fabric and tools, such as threads, looms, and spinning wheels, taxed them out of the reach of most colonists. Wishing to protect their textile industry, the English even made it illegal to emigrate to the colonies if you were trained in the textile trade. Eventually, tools were smuggled in or were secretly made for looms and spinning wheels.

This short supply of fabric brought about the scrap quilt like Bricks or Nine-Patch. These were simple designs, yet more organized than the crazy quilt. Another idea that developed at this time was making a quilt by blocks. The original motive for this may have been for convenience. Colonial women didnt have the storage space, the work space, or the time to sew myriad numbers of patches to make a huge bed quilt. It was more convenient to make a block at a time and then join them together.

After the 1750s, it is more difficult to trace the development of quilting. People were moving, always moving west. More elegant quilts were being made in civilized, cultured Boston and Philadelphia while at the same time, more primitive scrap quilts were being made in Ohio. It is interesting to note the regional differences in quilt block names. Names evolved from daily activities, ones location, historical events, religion, etc. Thus we have such colorful names as Broken Dishes, Log Cabin, 54/40 or Fight, Lincolns Platform, Jacobs Ladder, Corn and Beans, Road to Kansas and Bears Paw.

During the nineteenth century, lifestyles slowly changed and quilting became much more of a leisure activity. More ceremonial quilts were made as wedding presents and baby gifts. Whole cloth quilts and white on white quilts (no patchwork or applique; just designs quilted throughout the piece) became popular as did Victorian crazy quilts, with their use of silks, satins, velvets and extensive embroidery.

Eventually blankets and store-bought comforters became the signs of success. Hand made came to connote inferiority or, worse yet, poverty.

A short-lived revival occurred in the 1930s as people were asked to do their part to help themselves and their neighbors climb out of the Depression. In the 1960s another revival of crafts in general spurred a renewed interest in quilting, just in time for Americas bicentennial.

Today quilting is enjoying a resurgence in interest and popularity. Whether this is due to the economy or nostalgia or an appreciation of traditional handwork isnt as important as the pure pleasure and satisfaction of creating something of warmth for both the body and the mind.

I. Pattern Tools

A. Ruler (18" transparent)

B. Template plastic (11" 18" sheet available in craft shops)

C. Permanent fine line marker (not ballpoint)

D. Old scissors for cutting template pieces

E. Sharpened pencil

F. Small manila envelopes for template pieces

II. Cutting and Sewing Tools

A. Good fabric scissors (for fabric only!)

B. Straight pins

C. Needles

1. hand sewing needles (sharps)

2. long, thin needle for basting