My Quilting in the 80’s
March 18, 2008 by Mary Emma Allen
Filed under Home & Living
The b5media Lifestyles Channel, of which Quilting and Patchwork is a part, recalls the 1980s for their Theme Day this month. I’ll reminisce about the 80’s as it relates to my quilting.
At that time I was operating my in-home quiltmaking business, writing a quilt business column for a Quilt World Omnibook magazine (which no longer is published), interviewing quilters for the local newspaper, and learning all I could about this fascinating topic.
Beginnings of my Quiltmaking
Although I first made a quilt with my grandmother, in the 1940s, my quiltmaking business began during the United States’ Bicentennial Years of 1975-76, when my mom needed quilts to sell in her country grocery store. The lady who made them couldn’t keep up with the orders. There was a resurgence of quiltmaking during that time with anything quilted and patchwork having great appeal.
The quilts evolved into pillows, table cloths, potholders, placemats, skirts and aprons…in fact, anything in this line. A write-up about MEA’s Quilts in Yankee Magazine almost overwhelmed me with orders, but was exciting, too.
Projects that stand out in my mind:
- Missouri Star quilt for one of Mother’s customers
- Patchwork aprons for costumes
- Sunbonnet Sue quilt and pillow shams for a little girl’s bed
- Quilt in Southwestern colors I was asked to design
- Hand quilting two older family quilts
- Quilt order from a prisoner
- Taking a quilt design class taught by Michael James
Quiltmaking…a Family Affair
It’s enjoyable now to see my daughter, Beth Mastin, participating in quiltmaking. She’s become involved in areas I never tried…such as dyeing and painting fabrics and making fabric for mixed media art. (Her blog is Meandering Threads, where you can view some of her projects.)
My granddaughter currently is making a Civil War era quilt for a school project with reproduction fabrics of that era. It shall be interesting to see her finished work.
Did you participate in the Bicentennial quilting and the resurgence of the 1980s? I’d love to have you share your story here.
(c)2008 Mary Emma Allen
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