Many quilts, especially in the early days of “housekeeping,” were made purely for everyday use, and no pretense was made to make them pretty. They were among many on a bed, seldom seen, and used constantly until they were threadbare. After there were enough quilts to satisfy the needs of the family, the women could take the time for a more aesthetic and leisurely approach to quilt making. Instead of sewing the scraps of various sizes and colors together as they were randomly removed from the scrap bag, why not match the colors in some sort of a pleasing manner, perhaps even form them into some pattern? While sewing the three layers together a practical and necessary chore, why not sew, or quilt, these stitches in an artful design?
During the evolutionary process of quilt making, the artistic aspect, both in piecing and in quilting, became more and more important. Eventually two practices developed. There was more emphasis, and more work, devoted to making a quilt beautiful than in making it serviceable. Secondly, some quilts were made exclusively for special occasions, for show, and for gifts. They were never intended for the beds of rowdy children, unbathed old men, or untrained infants.
When our great-grandmothers made a beautiful quilt of this type and packed it away in their quilt chests, they had completed a work of art. They were not trained in color schemes, pattern creation, or needlework, and never even thought of the work as art, but they were true folk artists. Those hardworking housewives from the dirt-floored log houses of Kentucky, the windswept prairies of the eastern Dakotas, the sod houses of Kansas, the adobes of Arizona, and the lumber cabins of Oregon doubtless produced more true folk art than any other single group in this country’s history. Nor were quilters confined to housewives in isolated and rural areas. Indeed some of the most exquisite quilts were made by wives of the affluent in the villages and urban centers.
—A People And Their Quilts written by John Rice Irwin
Today’s Thankful November giveaway is a used copy of A People And Their Quilts written by John Rice Irwin. To be entered in the giveaway leave a comment on this post. Giveaway ends November 23, 2025.
I read this wonderful book on Celebrating Appalachia. You can hear it here.
Last night’s video: Fall Garden Tour.
Tipper
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Quilts were indeed a necessity when I grew up. Although in the 40’s , many were very colorful and not considered everyday quilts, many traditional quilts for use had a flair to them even tho they were made of a variety of materials in interesting patterns. Never lost my liking for sleeping under a quilt and all these years later, a quilt is on and used on every bed in the house. And handmade and signed baby quilts are still well received by expecting family and friends.
My great-grandmother (born NC mountains 1876) sewed many quilts all by hand in her lifetime for her family. She gave my grandparents a very, very heavy quilt as a wedding gift. I am not sure what the inside of this quilt contains, but it was made for a cold winter’s night. I have been told by some quilters that sometimes other qulits would actually be sewn inside? I have the best early childhood memories of getting to spend the night with my grandparent’s and sleeping under this massive quilt with them. She also made the absolutely most beautiful ribbon quilt I have ever seen to give to my mother for me when I was born. I am blessed that my great-grandmother lived to be 101, the longest living person in our family, so I had some years with her and loved her. She was as amazing as her quilts. I am also blessed to say I have both of those quilts preserved and wouldn’t take anything in this world for them.
My mother taught me to make simple quilts! I liked the ones we made out of old blue jeans the best!
As a former quilter, still with too much fabric on hand,
i would love to read this book.
I remember the quilts my mother made when I was growing up. She sewed together pieces of fabric that were cut from our outgrown clothes. We would use the tying method to hold the layers together. There were 10 children in our family and we needed lots of quilts to keep us warm in the winter. I would love a copy of this book.
I would love to have John Rice Irwin’s book on quilts! When I was small but adept with a needle and thread, I helped my Grandma Mattie stitch together a “rag quilt”. We used random pieces of fabric scraps and old clothing, sewn together however they fit, much like building a jigsaw puzzle. No piece was too small to use. Then we stretched it in the quilting frames hung from the ceiling and quilted it using a simple fan pattern. Not ornate, but very utilitarian.
Grandma also allowed me to make pretty pulled thread hems on handkerchiefs made from parachute silk my paratrooper Uncle Paul had brought home from WWII. How I would love to have one of those today!
I enjoyed hearing this book being read.
I am so lucky to come from a long line of quilting women in my family. It is so interesting to see how each member had a specific signature look to the way they quilted. My favorite is a quilt by my great grand-mother that now hangs in my sewing room.
I have a baby quilt my grandmother made for me. It is the around the world pattern, but has an amazing array of colors and patterns, none of which exactly go together, yet they ae a pleasing whole.
My mom taught me to make simple quilts! I love thr blue jean ones she made
Being a (mostly) self taught quilter and lover of the old quilts especially, I enjoyed today’s reading. At first, I thought that YOU Tipper were expounding on this topic, and that the topic had really struck a chord!! The author is so descriptive…’no doubt, I would enjoy — not only the topic of the old quilts, but — John Rice Irwin’s writing style! Once read, it would sit alongside others (stories about the Gee’s Bend quilts, and a couple ‘fave’s, Hidden in Plain View, about Underground Railroad quilts & symbolism, and inclusions from the Delaney Sisters’ collection and memory….Check them out too, if it’s of interest!),…right over my shoulder where I mostly sit! Like a broken-in QUILT, a used book is *”even better” to enjoy!
As always, my prayers go up for you and your family…..and especially for Grannie! So glad to hear of some recent days of her crocheting.❤️
I’ve always wanted to make a quilt but I just don’t think I’d have the patience for it. I’d definitely need a sewing machine because I wouldn’t make it hand stitching that much lol
As a quilter I find this very interesting. My Mom and grandma quilted. When macular degenerative disease took some of my grandma’s sight my grandfather helped her quilt. She would go to church sales and but wool coats to cut up for quilts. As a kid I helped her stitch. It was a treasure to get one of her quilts. Perfectly thick and warm for Canadian winters.
Quilts are a treasure, i remember my momma making quilts (among many other things depending on material found) from the scraps she’d get at the fabric dumps from the sewing factory (back when the factories would take their cuttings and dump out on abandoned strip jobs). We didn’t have electricity, and just wood heat but all year long there was a quilt hanging in the quilt frames in the living room…She’d work on quilting it and i’d play underneath in the “fort” or “tent”. and when she’d be done for the day or evening or whenever they’d roll the frames back up to the ceiling…Then as i got older (maybe 7 or 8) she taught me how to quilt making neat close stitches…i started out “tying” quilts when i wasn’t more than 5 or 6.. when a quilt we used was getting too worn, it became the “batting” for another quilt and often if it was “using quilts” not “show quilts” they were quilted in a fan pattern and were reversible (two quilt tops sewed together so you got different looks instead of it being solid color on the back side). she taught me to cut square patches long before i started school, and how to cut other material into strips to be crocheted into “rag rugs” for the floors…the crocheted rag rugs held up better than the braided rugs.. Granny had electricity in the holler and i remember her setting her machine up on the kitchen table and “machine quilting” the basic quilts…
thanks for the trip down memory lane
thanks for the trip down memory lane…
I still have one very old tattered quilt left that my grandmother made. You can see the tiny-ist of stitches all throughout.
I have several quits my Mom made. She quilted all of them by hand. All of them are full size. I said Mom I have a queen bed. I have her quilting frames which were over a 100 years old. They belong to my great grandmother. I never learned to quilt. I could not get the needle to go through all those layers plus I did not like using a thinble.
My mother made several quillts, but perhaps my most favorite was the one she made for my doll bed. She tacked with yarn instead of quilting each square. I wish I still had it.
I made one quilt. they sure are time-consuming and I made mine on a sewing machine. I love quilts.
I love quilts! I have some from my mother’s side of the family and also my husband’s side. Quilts handed down from generations are priceless! I remember sleeping in a cold bedroom under a cozy quilt or two.
This sounds like a wonderful book! I love to sew but I have never made a quilt. My great-grandmother was an avid quilter though. I love using the one she made me.
I enjoyed this book when you were reading it and seeing the pictures in it. I have a new appreciation for quilts and would be glad to have a copy of this book. Thank you for this fun November tradition : )
I have a quilt by the Great Aunt who inspired me to learn the art of quilting. They all have a story, whether it’s a masterpiece “for company” quilt or the scrap quilt that covers the bed every day, I love them all and really enjoyed your reading of this book.
My grandmother’s quilts were utilitarian, straight from the ubiquitous rag bag, and every last bit was hand stitched. I always wished for a pretty one. I have a beautiful one made by a friend of my mom’s, mostly deep blue in winter themes. It’s machine stitched and not the everlasting quality of my grandmother’s, but it is awfully pretty on my spare bed.
Has anyone mentioned the quilters of Gee’s Bend yet? Thank you for the title of this book! My grandmother quilted and made clothes and such and she kept her scraps. She would let me pick from them, and I’d make clothes for my dolls. With tape instead of a needle and thread, but made me feel special when Grandmama opened her chest of fabrics.
Quilts are so wonderful! As are the fond memories of them and those who made them ! I would love to read this book ! Love to you all !
I most enjoyed the reading of this book.
My mother-in-law, that I loved dearly, made a quilt for each one of her grand babies. She finished the last one months before she passed away. They were beautiful, but my favorite quilts were the utility quilts. I loved being able to see scraps from
the dresses my grandma wore in them.Wonderful memories.
I fell in love with quilts in my 20s when I discovered Amish Quilts. Then, in mid-life I designed several quilting story/project books for Star Publishing, authored by local historians, all women.
Like so many other folks, quilts have always been a part of my life.
Some of my earliest memories are of watching my Great-grandmother hand sew pieces to make a crazy quilt patch, then embroider those seams with colorful embroidery thread in an assortment of stitches. Only after the square or rectangular patches were finished did she assemble them into the coverlet to be quilted. Next I threaded needles for her. Each time I visited her I checked her pincushion for empty needles. Certain needles were for piecework. Others for embroidery. Still others for the final quilting. And one final set for tying off comforters.
When the ladies gathered at the church to quilt, we kids would play in the castles, forts, & caves our imaginations created under the quilt frames. It was magical!
So many fond memories . . . .
Making quilts has always been a necessary part of my family’s history. I don’t make quilts, but my daughter and necessity are quilters and carrying on tradition. I would love to have copy of this book!
neice
Tipper, I just love you and your family. It makes me think of me and my family growing up. I’ve never written to you before but I’ve been watching your blog for about a year. My neighbor told me about you and she said it made her think of me. I love quilts and quilting . My mom taught me how to quilt.
Quilts are a labor of love, whether utilitarian or artistic. Coming from a long line of quilters I n both sides of the family, I’m fortunate to have quilts from those labors. I would definitely enjoy Irwin’s A People and Their Quilts and would love to win it.
My mother made beautiful quilts and other quilted projects. She passed away a few years ago, and the quilts she made for me are absolutely precious to me. She even made a quilt for my cat 30 years ago!
Hi Tipper and Tipper fans! I just had a wonderful visit with my oldest sister two weeks ago. My daughter drove me because I wasn’t sure I could handle the 9 hour drive on unfamiliar roads. I am blessed with a daughter who loves to go adventuring. While there, my sister gifted me with a wonderful quilt our grandmother made. I don’t know when she made it, but she lived to 93, and my sister who gifted it to me is 80, and four of us sisters aren’t far behind her, we are in our upper 70’s, so I’m guessing it must be close to 100 years old and in excellent shape. I immediately came home and put it on my bed and it looks so pretty and reminds me of grandma. Since moving to SC in my mountain travels with my adventuring daughter, we have gone into shops displaying the most amazing quilts!! I’ve also seen them draped over a clothesline. The work on these masterpieces is just beyond amazing! I wish I had the talent to sew but my three older sisters, and one just below me, got all that talent, lol! May everyone have a blessed day, and special blessings to Granny!
Randy, I have those same memories of cold sleeping rooms and quilts stacked so high you couldn’t even turn over! My Grammas house had 10 ft ceilings and it would be really cold and good sleeping. To this day, I can’t sleep warm, I have to be cool. Gramma taught me to quilt and I have made a few quilts myself. I also have quilts she made for me. Thanks for the memories everyone. Love and prayers to all, especially Granny.
I remember in one of the books you read, a man had lost his wife. He and the children would quilt at night, after he got home from work. It’s amazing how strong people were back then.
Continued prayers for Granny❤️
I am a quilter and would love a copy of this book.
When my grandmother passed away I found several finished quilts that had never been put on the bed. I think I found a family treasure!!!
I love quilts and have quite a few. I used them in my classroom when teaching about the Underground Railroad and how they were used to pass messages, give directions and offer safe haven to those running to freedom. I appreciate how the older ones were made by hand and marvel at the tiny, meticulous stitches on each one. I would love to read the book, but just appreciate this blog so much and the information you share on so many great topics. Much love and continuing prayers for you all. Your friend from SC, Jane
Quilts are a ‘thing’ of beauty whether they are put together haphazardly or intricately. Back in my childhood time, they were often called ‘rag quilts’ or ‘crazy quilts’ because they were made from old clothes no longer fit to wear and put together from wherever the next piece came from. Functional and warmth was the goal.
Quilting parties were popular during my childhood. The neighborhood ladies would have a frame hanging from the ceiling, and work and talk by the hour on all sides of it. The mill houses had small rooms, so the frame took up most of the space, leaving just enough for some chairs along the walls. We kids were in and out during these paties, sometimes crawling under the frame to get to a door. I guess the women made those quilts for each other, turn-about fashion, because I don’t remember them taking down the frame and moving it to someone else’s home.
My grandmother made quilts, but only functional patchwork. In the 70’s she made a king size quilt for me. Polyester was popular then and she used scraps in a patchwork pattern of my dressed. My Mom loved to sew and she made most of my dresses. My grandmother would have a quilting party and her friends would come over to help. Because it was a king size quilt, my grandfather had to make a frame that was big enough. She used a print sheet for the back. I still have and use the quilt. I guess it’s a antique now since it’s over 50 years old!
This is my favorite think about your post, you bring up memories of things we haven’t thought of in years.
Thanks for the memories
After my Grandma passed away, we found 5 beautiful quilt tops in a chest in the back of her closet. Her daughters didn’t know these existed. One of the girls took them to a woman to be finished. She added the warm layer and the back and quilted them by tying yarn. Such a beautiful gift!
I love quilting for family and friends. I also belong to a group that makes quilts for shelters, people that have lost their homes due to fires, people with cancer, etc. it’s very satisfying to know your quilts are going to someone in need. I would love to read this book by John Rice Irwin. Thanks Tipper!
Some of the quilts I’ve seen at quilt shows are masterpieces. I love seeing both old & new ones. They are truly works of art.
Truly interesting, as my daughter and I are avid quilters. Needless to say, there are no blankets in our homes, lol! Quilting is a hobby, craft, folk art and a true labor of love. My daughter always tells me don’t over think it mom, it’s a process. What fun we have had picking out patterns, fabric and notions. I must say it can be a very expensive, when we first started in 2000 premium fabric was $5.99 a yard, it’s now around $14.99 a yard. It’s worth to me to be able to share this with my daughter.
As always, praying for Granny.
I love everything about quilting. I taught myself years ago how and it was not easy at all, but each quilt I’ve made has become a treasure to me and my family. Passing down the memories of each quilt to my granddaughters is very rewarding and special to me.
Quilts. Very good post. I originally come from New Hampshire and quilts were a part of our yearly transition to fall and then to deep winter. When I was growing up in the 50s we had quilts as an extra layer to keep warm and not have to run the heater all night.
In 1991 I moved to Hawaii and in 1992 I became a deacon and Sunday school teacher to high school age youth. I belonged to Kawaiahoa Church in Honolulu. This is the church the New England missionaries founded when they arrived in the early 1800s. An interesting side note is that I was from New England and my students were all of mixed Hawaiian race. Great kids.
Back to quilts. One of the many Hawaiian heritage programs the church provided was the making of Hawaiian quilts which are world famous. Once a week the older women would gather and hand sew the Hawaiian quilts. I attended one day to watch the process and it was almost spiritual. To see over twenty women gather together to make a beautiful in the old fashion way was truly a one of a kind experience. I was told that most of the Hawaiian quilts on sale today are machine sewed except. for the finishing sewing. By doing this they can be sold very cheaply. The ladies at our church did 100% of of the sewing which made them more costly. I was told it was not the cost that mattered but that they were truly hand sewed. All the ones I have seen are works of art. My sister-in-law before she passed away completed a hand sewed showing the history of the Smith family from the middle 1800s to today. My brother-in-law has it in his home in Blaisville where he now lives. Quilts a journey from purely utility to works of art. Bless the women who take the hours to create them. Have a blessed day. Praying for Granny and your entire family.
I am so lucky to have several quilts made by those women who have gone before me.
When Mom died she had a lot of quilt tops made for the family members that wanted them and she always did all the sewing by hand herself and it made them more important to her kids and grandkids.
My melma quilted by hand I have a couple pieces that she had made me that will always be priceless to me. She took scraps of her children’s clothes to make patch patterns she even made her very own mattress from old blue jeans that she quilted up to make a feather topper mattress it was neat to look at all the different type of patterns on this mattress topper she had made with her very heavy quilts she had made as well. Those are memories I have of her. She never used a sewing machine everything by hand when her husband was in the army she would quilt and care for her 10 children she had. So I call it from rags to riches is what her quilts meant to me because every piece had a special memory see in each stitch.
As a quilter I can appreciate the time and love put into any quilt that is made. I am lucky to have several quilts made by my great grandmother. They are beautiful and every stitch by hand. I could never have the patience or skill to put in all of the tiny stitches. I love them.
Old fashioned quilts were the original “weighted blankets!” Nothing better. 🙂
Love this. I have made many quilts and I am still making them. Great gifts for little ones!
I have recently started the quilting journey and was given a quilt from my grandma that was made by her grandma. The old ways of quilting by hand is my favorite quilt style. I found some old flour sacks and old tea towels and can’t wait to hand piece a quilt to pass along to my children. Have a blessed day all.
Mom and her mother, Mammy, pieced quilts for everyday use and were heavy and often tacked, the quickest way to get them ready for the beds. The non-batted quilt I am making with blue jean material will weigh a ton when it’s finished.
I had not ever thought of what Mr. Erwin had to say about quilts being the greatest store of folk art. But I expect he is quite right.
I have made two quilts. I wish I had one that I inherited from a beloved relative. The history of all the varied patterns is so interesting.
What treasures! I’d give anything to have one of my grandmas!
I am fortunate enough to have inherited quite a few quilts from family members who are no longer with us and will pass them down to my kids. Some are well over 50 years old. They are so treasured!
Have a great day ! Prayers and love❣️
I remember both of my grandmothers and Mom quilting. I could sit on the floor under the frame and tie knots while they quilted on top. My wife quilted quite a bit before she lost a lot of her eyesight. I have one quilt that a great grandmother pieced the top for. It’s for a regular size bed and not big enough for our queen size, so I use it sometimes for napping on the sofa.
I’ve always wanted to make a quilt but, to this day, I have not taken on the challenge. I did get out my 1976(graduation present) Singer sewing machine just this past week with great enthusiasm for making some adorable beanies for my 5 month old great granddaughter, only to find the poor old thing had given up the ghost. My cousin has offered me one of her many machines ♡ and I’m going to take her up on her offer. perhaps a quilt is also in my future! Love, love, love the way your posts and videos always stir up the best memories. Thank you for sharing your beautiful life and family, Tipper.
Fond childhood memories of crawling under the quilt rack and playing as my grandmother and all of her friends quilted. Every once in awhile the ladies would let me attempt a stitch or twoThey went house to house getting all the quilt tops done. Seems they did a hodgepodge of color combinations! Are we too matchy-matchy now when we plan and put a quilt together? It used to be the intricate stitches that was the focus! I quilt but still my favorite quilts are the mismatched colors of the old quilts.
I love quilts! I have never quilted, but I am about to try making a quilted baby blanket for a friend. A very small project. I hope I can do it okay. I have seen such beautiful quilts made by ladies in our town. They are truly works of art. They sell them to raise money for the volunteer fore department here.
A couple of years ago, I quilted a pieced top that my grandmother put together when I was a little girl, I am 69. There was still a bit of newspaper along a few of the seams. With each stitch , precious memories flooded my mind. To me, quilts are memories bound by stitches, that envelope us in their warmth.
I make quilts, but mine are mostly t-shirt quilts. I do machine stitch the top, but once I layer them instead of machine stitching to sew all the layers together I tie mine down ever 6-8 inches to ensure the layers (top, batting and backing) all stay intact before I add on the binding to finish them off. I think it makes a more comfortable quilt to snuggle up with and not stiff from all the stitching from a quilt design quilting machine. I have made two fancy pattern quilted quilts that were beautiful to look at, but just not soft enough to snuggle up.
I have old quilts I’ve scavenged here and yon and some ain’t too pretty. They weigh a tremendous amount though and would keep one warm on a very cold night. I’ve started saving good material and plan to sew doll clothes and pot holders to start some day. Here’s one for ya: my friend Sandra is a doctor and her husband is a big quilter. Their living room looks like a scrap and table factory he’s so into it! He makes lovely quilts too. He’s got a new sewing machine and man does he wear it out! lol what’s not to love about loving and caring hands MAKING blankets as opposed to scratchy and itchy polyester (plastic) blankets we all use-when benefits of wool and linen to health are clearly known… hmm it makes me ponder on forfeiting the family and working for the ones you love to to work and leave it all for STUFF…
Interesting! I didn’t think about those nice artistic quilts not being used for everyday. I like the ones that have flour sacks with the brand name on them for the backing
Tipper,
I love this article. It brings back memories of my grandmothers. Both of them made quilts. I am blessed to have several of their handmade treasures. My maternal grandmother made numerous quilt squares using sugar sack cloth. She also made my mother and aunt’s dresses from sugar sacks. I have a collection of her sugar sack quilt squares in the pattern she called little dutch girls. She never completed this quilt and my hopes are to create a quilt using the squares to honor her. Sending up prayers for Granny and your family.
Quilting for me is such good therapy along with sewing in general. I have set aside my quilt days for smaller projects at my age now, but I’ve never lost the love of it. As a matter of fact, I’m going to teach/help a dear friend of mine to make a quilt for one of her many grandbabies in the upcoming future.
Prayers for Granny from Texas.
While my mom sewed our clothes when I was little, she never made quilts. However, The first building we would visit at the Indiana State fair was the Woman’s building, which housed the most beautiful quilt exhibits. Such color!
My sister is a quilter and she has done some lovely work. If I win, I will send the book to her!
I have always wanted to make a quilt. I have made lots of crochet items and sewed lots of other things, but I dream of making a quilt. I tend to take on projects I can complete in a couple days. My grandmother made quilts and one of my aunts left my dad a quilt she had made especially for him after she passed away. It is beautiful. My mama made quilts for my brother and sister when they were little and had bunk beds and they were precious…made of scraps from old clothes. One of these days I will get started and make a quilt if my own.
The book sounds lovely!
I’ve only made 2 queen size quilts. The rest have been baby quilts.
I love the old ways
I love beautiful quilts I’m from a large Family and my Mama made all our quilts
She would spend hours arranging the patterns and sewing a lot by hand and on a treadle sewing machine. She would have me and my Sister’s cut out pieces for Her. With all Her other chores inside and outside She had 2 gardens. I don’t know how She managed to do all the work She did. She fed everybody that came to our house. She made us girls dresses out of flour sacks. I look back and I’m amazed at all the work Her and my Daddy did raising us children and tending a big farm.
I would love a copy of this book. I’m sure I would enjoy it a lot.
I was gifted a beautiful quilt made by my friend’s mother many years back. It is smaller than an average bed quilt and I have it sitting on the sette in my bedroom. It’s a lovely artistic piece.
I have made a few in my time. The time spent is priceless. My grandson and family have my Wedding Ring quilt. He is serving in the Army his second term. Our great grand babies we haven’t seen in close to a year now. Hopefully, they will be moving back into the states soon. God bless.
Once my mother retired from her job in a factory, her goal was to make quilts, as well as other crafts. She made a patchwork quilt for me. The pieces are mostly velvet. She added some items from my babyhood years, such as a sock and similar things: butterfly quilts, Wedding Ring quilts, and Crazy Quilts. My mom did most of her quilt-making in the 1980s. Her health began to deteriorate in the 1990s, and she was no longer able to make her quilts. In 2001, my sweet mom died, but some of her quilts live on.
Nothing is more embedded in sentimentality than quilts. They were the heart of the home, made with love to warm and bring beauty.
Tipper,
Thanks for the memories. My mother quilted. Would love a copy of John Rice Irwin’s book.
I love quilts and definitely consider them works of art, and when a beautiful thing has a practical use it’s a two fold gift. I love the line in the book about rowdy children, unbathed old men, and untrained infants… I can just hear my grandmaw now…. Get off that bed with your dirty clothes!!
I can remember my great grandpa helping my great grandma quilt when I was a child in the mid late 1970’s. I wish so much I had got one of these quilts. My grandma is still living (age 100) I’m going to see if she has one of her mom & dads quilts
I must read this book! The funny thing at my house this week, we bought a king size bed. Of all the 100 quilts I’ve made, I have no king size quilt. I have some sewing to do!
Wow, I never knew there was so much more to quilting. Thank you Tipper, for getting my curiosity up.
A family quilt is a true legacy to possess. I am very thankful for the one I received feom my grandmother.
I love looking at handmade quilts and the newer ones you see today are beautiful. My cousin makes some of the brightest colored quilts I have ever seen and they are stunning. Our grandmother made quilts for my sister and I and I really cherish what she made when we were little. She also made baby blanket quilts for all of her grandkids as they came along. She also made a quilt for my 2 older children, her great grands, when they were born. I still had my pink baby blanket, so when she wanted to make another one, I asked her to make a blue one, so my daughter and son each had a baby blanket from their great grandma.
I love quilts and will be looking for a set of quilted pillows for my living room on a visit to the Lancaster, PA area next week. We visit the area a few times each year and enjoy the food and shopping. We saw the production of Noah for the second time at Sight and Sound in September and highly suggest any of the shows they offer.
Good mornin’ Tipper. I love the fall garden tour video. Yep those are Hollyhocks. I love quilts. I made my first quilt when I was 8 yrs old. I asked Mama for a needle and thread and then I cut tiny pieces of fabric from my winter flannel night gown. I hand stitched the tiny “Crazy Quilt” together and proudly presented it to my Barbie Doll. My Daddy was not very happy about my shorter winter nightgown as he trimmed off the bottom ruffle and re-attached it to the much shorter granny gown. I didn’t get a spanking, just a firm talking to. My Mama never learned to sew but Daddy could. She said she never got store bought clothes growing up and she wasn’t going to sew so we could have store bought clothes. The city kids made fun of her when she went to school because of her feed-sack dresses.
I have some quilts from dear ladies in my family. Every time I use them it is a precious memory of them.
I don’t know of anything that is any more comforting than a homemade quilt. On real cold nights my mother and are grandmothers would pile “qiver” (Appalachian: meaning “cover”) so high I could barely move underneath the weight. Yes, most of the year they were neatly stored on a pallet stacked nearly as high as the ceiling in a spare bedroom underneath a bedspread to keep out dust, light, etc. Looking back to the memories of my childhood at my grandmother’s house, I know it was a shame to “hide” such beauty. Nowadays, I also realize the time, work, pride, and love that went into each one. We keep a heavy quilt at the foot of our bed on colder nights that my grand mother and her mother made. The stitching is the only thing “ornate” about this one, but it is one of the heaviest quilts I’ve ever seen…………and it is very warm.
I think it is more commonly spelled “kivers” (rhymes with rivers) in my part of Southern Appalachia. It is one of those words wherein the singular and plural both end in s. Kiver is a verb meaning to cover. Kivers can be one quilt or many.
The Dictionary of Southern Appalachian English has “kiver” but refers me to “cover” which has it also spelled “civer” and “kivver”. “Qiver” isn’t this dictionary at all.
Would love to read that book. Always glad to have good recommendations.
My mother made serviceable quilts from very small squares to keep us warm on cold winter nights. We could have as many as four over us because the wood fire would die out overnight and it was so cold in the morning you could see your breath before Mama or Daddy got the fire to going.
Now, my sister in law makes beautiful artistic quilts which I am passing one each down to my four granddaughters.
Unless you’ve quilted before you cannot truly appreciate all the hours put into making one.
Thank you for all you give to all of us. I would love to have a copy of this book, A People and Their Quilts.
I have a deep love for quilts. I have several made by my mamaw. Strip quilts, Dresden plate, flower gardens, fans, and the only wedding ring she made. I treasure them. We place the quilts and other heirloom treasures around in our family pictures.
Mamaw quilted for warmth so the older ones are very heavy and made with all kinds of material including curtains. I have a strip quilt that has pieces of material Momma sent her after she made my sister and me jumpers. It also has pieces of curtain material in it. I treasure it
I’m never as sad when I go to secondhand shops and see quilts there. The time and energy that it takes to make them and see them end up in a thrift shop hurts my heart. I have a grief quilt from 1930 that was given to me by an elderly lady who had no family. Someone made it when her father passed away. It is not in good shape. If the Lord allows me I will work on it when I retire. It’s borders are black and it’s tied in red. I’m sure it was a very beautiful piece in it’s time.
God bless y’all!
Quilts from my grandmother are some of my most prized possessions.
I have a wonderful and beautiful friend who quilts and her creations are amazing… I can’t wait to share this post with her! ❤️
Tipper,
It always amazes me to read about how much these people accomplished and sometimes in the worst of conditions. They must have stayed busy, constantly, during daylight hours, because unlike us, they had very little lighting, if any.
Sanford, I was born in 1954, both of my maternal grandparents were born in 1888. We lived beside of them. They were always busy doing something everyday of the week. The only day they didn’t or wouldn’t work except to feed the chickens, mule, hog and milk cow was Sunday. I think Grandmother cooked her big Sunday dinner on Saturday. Some of their children would always come and eat with them after church every Sunday. One member of Grandaddy is of him straightening out old bent nails on rainy days to reuse. They raised a family of seven children during the Wars and Depression of the early 1900’s farming 40 acres of land with a couple of mules. Their old home only had one bare bulb light in each room hanging on an electrical cord from the ceiling with a pull cord switch. No grandchildren has ever loved their grandparents any more than I loved them. I spent every minute I could with my Granddaddy. For most people nowadays, Sunday has no more meaning than any other day of the week.
I remember my grandmother making quilts, she had a frame she would put it over, I loved my grandma, and still do, even though she has been gone many years, I hope you have fond memories too, God bless you and have a great day, God bless Granny Wilson, I’m glad Paul got her telephone for her, I’m glad Paul recovered his, praise God
I have very fond memories of cold nights or even colder nights when the power went out laying in bed with my sisters under a warm heavy handmade quilt. wow that just brought back memories. Thank you!
I remember my grandmother’s quilts that were certainly made for everyday use. I remember when I was a young kid spending the night with her and having so many on my bed I couldn’t move. Some of the best sleep I have ever had in my life was sleeping in a bed in a cold unheated bedroom with several quilts on my bed. I liked to crack the window open an inch or two in the dead of winter to get some fresh air in my bedroom and bury up under those oldtime quilts.
Randy,
Once my second eldest brother commented that Mom had put so many quilts on the bed that he had to get out of bed just to “turn over!”