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There are examples of eighteenth century pieces of clothing that remain from noble and royal households. For example, an underskirt for a Scottish wedding is now part of the Heritage Collection of the Quilters Guild, and dated at 1764. Although in the households run by nobles and royals, there were wonderful examples of luxurious and exquisite pieces of quilting, these were the minority. The very wealthy would import cloth from abroad and use it to display their wealth and social status. Hence we see silks, satins, velvets, and printed Indian calico used in complex quilting, often as backgrounds to embroidered hangings and bed drapes. These pieces would generally be made by professional craftsmen who would have been members of some of the early Guilds. Women would not generally have been employed on a commercial basis in this way until much later. In the homes of the less well off, the quilting and patchwork traditions would have a much more utilitarian approach, and although some would be very cleverly designed and executed, the main concern was to provide warmth without too much expense. |
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The cottage industry was very much part of the northern England and Welsh tradition, and as such, there would be quilters undertaking work on a commission basis, and either selling directly to certain wealthier homes, or through an agent. In Wales and some parts of England, there were also traveling workers. They would take board and lodging in a household and be required to provide new quilts for bedding, along with other stitch work in exchange for their keep. In Victorian times, fashion dictated the use of lots of bright colors and contrasting black. Fabrics were more readily available and there was greater wealth available in the new middle classes. Drapery and bed coverings that had previously been seen only in the houses of the nobility were now emulated by the new professional and commercial classes. Most girls of ‘good’ homes would be brought up to be competent, at the very least, with their needle and thread. So the practice of embroidery, patchwork, quilting, and appliqué was very much kept alive. However, by the beginning of the twentieth century and the outbreak of war, things were beginning to change. When war broke out, women found they had to work to help the war effort. This meant little time for hobbies, and rationing meant that everyone concentrated on getting enough food to feed the family and getting the domestic necessities. There was little time or energy for needlework as a hobby. By the end of the 1940’s, things had begun to back to normal, the country was becoming more and more reliant on manufactured clothes and bedding. Factories had sprung up across the UK, and imports began subsequently to add to the large amount of manufactured goods. Really it was the resurgence of quilting arising from the United States that helped Britain resurrects its quilting traditions. Now the Quilters Guild has a valuable role in supporting quilting in the UK. The Guild set up a British Quilting Study Group in 1998, and this provides invaluable support to the quilters of today with research and information. British quilting has, however, never managed to equal the art of the American quilting traditions, and America has been entirely responsible for spreading the word and the work of quilting across the world as far as Australia, Japan, South Africa and Europe. Were it not for America, the UK may have allowed its quilting history to fade away. Thankfully, however, it has helped to revive quilting both as a hobby and as an art form. |
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Australian Quilting On their way to Australia, women were given the materials and tools to make patch work quilts so that they could sell them and be able to support themselves when they landed. Only one of these appears to have survived, but it is clear that the British women brought with them the skills and traditions of quilting. Quilting was thought to be a ‘suitable’ occupation for a lady, and the quilters soon began to put their work together at exhibitions, and a market in quilts was quickly established. The British traditions were retained, and quilting in Australia continues to respect and reflect the styles and patterns of the mother country. However, for many years, Australian families were very poor, and generally the women were responsible for ‘making’ all the bedding, as well as all the clothes and household fabrics. In the absence of money to buy good cloth, the women used their initiative. They used old sacks, old grain bags and anything that could be used to give warmth. With luck, they would be able to find or get something to make a bed cover more attractive, and the sacks would be used as the wadding or batting. Old cloth would be cut and stitched either directly onto the batting, or as a face fabric, and whatever artistic talent the maker had would be used. Later on it became commonplace to obtain old sample books from traveling salesmen. So many quilts were made with suit cloth, as well as old curtains, and what ever else was available. These days Australian women tend to be too busy to do a great deal of quilting. And of course, with the goods from overseas much more cheaply available, it’s now a time of buy new and throw away the old. |
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