I recently worked at an estate sale where there were multiple vintage quilts. Some were heavily worn, while others were hardly used. There was even one with matching pillowcases very clearly made in the 1970s based on the fabrics and the pattern. A few were quite old having been made with fabric scraps from old flour and feed sacks, while others had more contemporary fabrics. The lot hailed from the Depression era through to the 1960s and 70s. All but the most recent were stitched by hand. They drew quite a bit of attention and ultimately all were sold.
Quilting was once a communal exercise done by groups of women working together using scraps of fabrics collected from clothing and other textiles that had outlived their original purposes. Patterns were created and stitched together as a way to recycle the salvageable bits and pieces into something new and useful. The act of quilting was also a social gathering. A way for friends to gather and create something together while catching up on the latest news and conversing.
Pieced quilts are still popular as seen in any country or farmhouse magazine. But what is it that tugs at our hearts about tiny scraps of fabric sewn together into patterns and laid across a bed or sofa? Are we secretly longing for days when women got together regularly to create these pieces of usable art? Or do the multitudes of patterns and colors in the fabrics trigger memories of our childhood? Is there something about having a handmade item in our home amongst the flat pack and instant-shipped generic items? What exactly is the nostalgia that tugs at our hearts when we see handmade quilts?
Do you have any vintage quilts? Tell us about them in the comments below and please show us yours by tagging us in your social media posts @vintageunscripted.
