Kara Mastin quilt; image by Kara

Now Kara is going to college and wants to take GG’s quilt with her.  Many of the ties had come out so it needed re-tying.  As she tied, and then her mom joined her, I thought, “The legacy of quilting goes on in our family.”

Beth, when she was Kara’s age, had helped me tie the original quilt for GG.  Now it had come full circle.  A grown-up Beth was working on the quilt with her daughter.

It’s also something I must write about for my Trails End Quilters blog, where I relate my quilting heritage.

(The quilt above was made by Kara for a project in American Studies.  It’s based on Civil War era patterns with Civil War reproduction fabrics.  Kara also is taking this to college.)

Post from: Blisstree

Tying Great Grandmother’s Quilt

Image:sxc.hu

 For women of years ago didn’t need to find a hobby.  They had all the handiwork they could manage as they made quilts for beds, crocheted and hooked rugs for their floors, sewed clothing for their families, made samplers to teach young girls stitching, did gardening as a necessity (although they planted flowers to cheer their lives), and wrote letters as a means of communication.

 Through Mother’s family, I’ve found my quilting heritage.  My grandfather, in his journals, mentions his mother attending quilting gatherings (he didn’t call them bees).  My mom spoke of learning to sew when family and friends gathered.  Her older cousin wrote her about quiltmaking (and I still have that letter). 

I recall learning to quilt and hook rag rugs at my grandmother’s side.  My mother encouraged me to pursue this as a home business at one point in my life.  My daughter and granddaughter have continued this art.

 So….record the memories of family crafts.  Take pictures of your work and that of family members.  Save old quilts and quilt squares and try to find their history.  Retain the stories of your family craft heritage for future generations.

Post from: Blisstree

Recording Your Family Craft Heritage

In recognition of Grandparents Day, this Sunday, September 7, we’re writing tributes to our grandmothers and grandfathers.  When it comes to quilting, I have to credit my mom’s mother, my Nanny, for my initial interest in quiltmaking.

When I was about 8-years old, I helped Nanny stitch by hand, quilts for my sister, brothers and myself.  I sat beside her in her farmhouse kitchen, she in her rocking chair and me beside her. 

“Take small stitches,” Nanny would tell me.  “We don’t want gaps in the quilt.”

We must have done well, Nanny and I, because the quilt stayed together through many years of use, only fabric has worn out, not the stitches.

I still have that quilt, made of feedsack fabrics and leftover scraps from Nanny’s sewing.  I know it’s mine, because Nanny inked our names on one corner of each child’s quilt.

Do you have any memories involving your grandmothers and quilting?

(Amazon image; click on image for details.)

(c)2008 Mary Emma Allen

Post from: Blisstree

A Tribute to My Grandmother for My Quilting Heritage

Your response to my giveaways (Bloggy Giveaway at Quilting & Patchwork , ends 8/1 and Another Giveaway at Quilting & Patchwork, ends 7/31) has been wonderful.  I’m pleased so many of you wanted to share your involvement with  quilting whether you are a quilter/fabric artist or simply appreciate quilts.

I enjoyed hearing about your quiltmaking, your quilting heritage, and the stories of heirloom quilts.  I plan to share some of those stories in posts so more people will get inspired about quilting.  What wonderful stories you’ve shared!

Perhaps we can start a dialogue among Quilting and Patchwork readers.

By sharing, you can help one another find encouragement and inspiration as you travel this journey, either as a quilter, fabric artist, or simply a collector and lover of quilts.

(c)2008 Mary Emma Allen

Post from: Blisstree

Thanks for Your Response to the Quilting Book Giveaways

I had the pleasure of writing a guest post, Do You Have a Heritage of Needlework, for Chloe at Tangled Thread. 

I think you’ll enjoy reading it.  Share with me, in the comments below, the needlework in your family or how needlework has influenced your life.

Also, why not journal about this…in a notebook, scrapbook, or online blog?  Then your family heritage will be preserved for future generations. 

(Amazon image)

(c)2008 Mary Emma Allen

Post from: Blisstree

Mary Emma Allen Writes Guest Post at Tangled Thread

 Children have been connected with quilts and quiltmaking since pioneering days.  Either they were involved in making them (often learning at the early age of 6 or younger) or using them. 

I recall, at 8-years old, sitting beside my grandmother and helping stitch the quilt she made for my bed.  My mom tells about making quilts when she was 6-years old.

 This seems an appropriate topic to write about in summer when youngsters may have time to become involved in quilting and fabric art activities with you.  You can develop a quilting heritage as we have in our family.

Here are 5 of my favorite posts about children and quilts:

*Blankies – a Quilting Heritage from Moms & Grandmothers

*Quilting With Grandmother

*Beatrix Potter & Peter Rabbit Influence Quilters

*Making Doll Quilts

*Sarah Jane’s Pioneer Quilt

Do you have any memories of children and quilting…either in your childhood or with your children?  Do you have a quilt from childhood that gave you comfort?

(Amazon image; click on book cover for more information)

(c)2008 Mary Emma Allen

Post from: Blisstree

Children & Quilts – 5 Favorite Posts

Tales of the Trails End Quilters blog consists of stories about my quilting heritage. 

My quilting heritage began at Trails End Farm in Milan, New York. There I often sat beside my grandmother cutting squares and sewing them by hand. Eventually I realized that my mother and her sister, their grandmother, and others made quilts here, too. Now my daughter, granddaughter, and I carry on this Trails End quilting tradition from our New Hampshire home.

 I delve into the genrations of quiltmakers in my family, going back to my great grandmother.  I know she quilted and attended quilting bees at neighbors’ homes because my grandfather, her son, comments on this in his writing.  (He kept journals as well as writing for the local newspaper in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s.)

Stories of one’s quilting heritage and memories of quilts and “blankies” made by ancestors and living relatives have great meaning to many quilters and non-quilters, as recognized by guest posters and visitors to my blog.  (You’ll also find reference to these and other stories at the Trails End Quilters blog.)

(c)2008 Mary Emma Allen

Post from: Blisstree

Quilting & Patchwork Mentioned on Tales of the Trails End Quilters

 Making quilts and coverlets for children and grandchildren has been a legacy from mothers and grandmothers for decades.  My grandmother hand stitched quilts for my three siblings and me. In fact, I still have that bed size quilt I helped her make although it’s quite worn and loved.

I made Rail Fence quilts for my grandchildren.  In fact, my then 4-year old granddaughter helped me make the one for her brother.  He toted that around with him for years, and his mom had to repair it with patch over patch over patch.

Tracee Sioux of Blog Fabulous has a delightful post, Blankie = Matriarchial Hug, telling about family traditions of quilts and quilting.  I love her description of quilting and mother love.

A feminine skill passed from one generation to the next from my great-great ancestors, the women in my family have used quilting as both their artistic expression and a physical manifestation of a love.

You won’t want to miss the entire article on her blog.

Did you have a blankie or quilt made by a relative when you were young?  Have you made them for the babies in your family?

(c)2008 Mary Emma Allen

Related Posts:

Kristen’s Teddy Bear Quilt from Granny

Memories of Granny’s Quilts

Post from: Blisstree

Blankies – a Quilting Heritage from Moms & Grandmothers

 As I read my grandfather’s writings, Fifty Years Ago, Rural Life from 1876, I was delighted to realize he had included information about his mother’s quilting at Trails End Farm, in Dutchess County, NY.  I know from this that my quilting heritage definitely traced back to my great grandmother, Mary Barker Coon.

 Papa Coon, as our family referred to Burton Barker Coon, writer and farmer, mentioned the women getting together for afternoon tea and cutting out pieces for quilt blocks. 

“They would take their sewing along and have a very pleasant time.  All the girls were brought up to piece quiltsk, bake bread and do all kinds of household chores,” he related.

Then he mentioned quilting bees when four or five neighborhood ladies came to help.  “Needles and tongues would vie with each other in making bed spreads and history,” he wrote.

Papa Coon called each quilt a “sort of souvenir piece.”

Are you researching your ancestry to see if you have quilters in your heritage?  Are you making quilts now as souvenir pieces for future generations.

I’d love to hear about the quilts in your family history.

(c)2008 Mary Emma Allen

Post from: Blisstree

Trails End Quilters of the 1870’s – My Quilting Heritage