Are Appliqued Quilts More Elegant?

It was interesting to note, as I read about the history of quiltmaking in Twentieth Century Quilts, 1900-1950, by Thomas K. Woodard and Blanche Greenstein, that some quilters once considered appliqued, or “laid out,” quilts more elegant than the pieced or patched ones.  As the authors said, in some areas of the country, there were “socially superior overtones” to this method of quilt construction.

I’d never considered this idea before.  I realized, when I looked at appliqued quilts, that many were very intricate and required a great deal of work.  This is true, as well, about patchwork quilts made with many tiny pieces or with curves.

What’s your opinion?  Is there an elegance found in appliqued quilts not evident in pieced ones?  Personally, I’ve found both types have their simpler patterns and their more intricate ones.  Both can be equally beautiful.

However, this was an interesting tidbit of quilting history.