Quilt
A quilt ( English quilt "quilt", "quilt") is a versatile decorative blanket that can serve as a bedspread , but z. B. also suitable as a tapestry . Quilts are also used as an alternative to sleeping bags in outdoor and camping areas, usually with a separate foot section. The ceiling consists of at least two, usually three layers. The top is the visible side, the intermediate layer is a warming fleece made of wool, cotton, silk or synthetic. The back or the underside usually consists of a strip of fabric. These three layers are joined together decoratively by hand or with a sewing machine. This process is called quilting .
Design types
First, the textile layers are fixed with coarse basting stitches or safety pins to prevent them from shifting during further processing. Then they are sewn together with the smallest possible stitches in order to prevent later shifting, especially of the volume fleece. This can be done by hand as well as with a sewing or embroidery machine, with both techniques having a staunch following.
When quilting by hand, a short, thin needle is used, the size of which depends on the fabric to be processed. A thimble should be used for hand quilting for protection . Achieving an even stitch requires practice, as the stitches must always be of the same length and even on the front and back.
When quilting with the sewing machine, the fabric feed dog of the machine is lowered, if possible, so that the fabric can be fed hands-free. In addition, there are special quilting feet, which are usually moved up and down by a small arm that is triggered by the movement of the needle, thus enabling the fabric to be guided more evenly. Here, too, the aim is to achieve a stitch pattern that is as even as possible by adjusting the sewing speed and fabric guide. An electronic quilting foot, in which a sensor registers the movement of the fabric and automatically adapts it to the speed of the needle movement, enables beginners to achieve a constant stitch length. In large long-arm quilting machines, the front and back fabric are stretched separately on rolls; the fleece lies in between. In contrast to normal sewing, the machine head is guided over the quilting sandwich on a carriage manually or under computer control.
There are several types of design for the top of a quilt:
- If the top consists of a - mostly monochrome - length of fabric, it is called a plain quilt or whole cloth quilt .
- If the top consists of colorful patches that are more or less artfully sewn together, one speaks of a pieced quilt in patchwork or mosaic patchwork. If the pattern consists of irregular scraps of velvet, brocade, silk and is decorated with embroidery and lace, it is called a crazy quilt .
- In an application quilt - applique Swells - are cut motives of fabric and applied to a substrate. The motifs can be abstract geometric objects such as squares and circles or shapes based on nature such as flowers or animals.
In addition to American quilts, there are also various techniques of wholecloth quilts such as French boutis or trapunto work , in which only individual parts of the quilted pattern are stuffed with a filling
In the contemporary art of quilting, elements such as B. from the application quilting combined with the whole cloth quilting . Art quilts are modern quilts based on individual designs and ideas from an artist who is particularly concerned with textile design .
Often abstract patterns are processed, so the question arises as to which patterns can be created from a set of basic building blocks according to fixed rules. At OSCON 2003, Mark Jason Dominus u. a. proposed a Perl project that solved this problem for a fixed constellation of basic patterns and rules.
etymology
The English word quilt is derived from the Latin culcita , (stuffed sack, pillow, mattress) and came to England via the French cuilte , where it can be traced in various spellings since around 1300.
history
Starting from China, quilting fabrics were widespread throughout the Orient. Crusaders used the fabric for vests to wear under armor and brought the art of quilting to Europe. A severe cold spell in England in the 14th century resulted in widespread use of quilting for clothing, blankets and tapestries.
The early American settlers, who had to work with the smallest pieces of fabric, led quilting together with patchwork to an artisanal art form that was still cultivated in some areas (e.g. among the Amish ). The joint work of the settler women at "Quilting bees" was an important social event, in which the prepared patchwork pieces were processed together into quilts. News and stories could be exchanged. Depending on the region, different styles were created for the quilts, which, as bedspreads or wall hangings, were often the only gem in the barren log cabins.
One of the biggest quilt museums in the world, founded in 1991, the National Quilt Museum , located in Paducah ( Kentucky ). There are also various other quilt museums in the USA.
The Patchwork Gilde Deutschland eV has set itself the goal of promoting and cultivating the traditional patchwork and quilting craft. The European Quilt Association has existed since 1989 .
In memory of those who died of AIDS, the Names Project Foundation began the now huge NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt in San Francisco in 1987 . Based on this model, a similar but much smaller project called the Names Project Vienna was started in Austria in 1992 .
Quilts as a motif in literature and film
- In Whitney Otto's novel An American Quilt (original title How to Make an American Quilt , 1991) women tell each other about their lives while making a wedding quilt . The novel was filmed in 1995 by Jocelyn Moorhouse with Winona Ryder in the lead role.
- In the crime novel And forgive us our guilt (original title A Piece of Justice , 1995) by Jill Paton Walsh , the geometric pattern of a quilt plays an important role in solving a murder case.
- In Earlene Fowler's detective novels about museum curator and hobby detective Benny Harper, quilts play a major role, especially in terms of their significance for everyday history.
- Sandra Dallas is a group of quilters at the center of her novel Club Patchwork Women (AKA The Persian Pickle Club , 1995), who plays the 1930s in rural Kansas. A curious journalist from the city discovered that the club not only worked together "like a woman" when sewing and quilting.
- Alice Walker's short story "Everyday Use" focuses on a quilt as a representative of Afro-American cultural heritage and the connection between generations.
- Margaret Atwood's novel Alias Grace is divided into 15 sections, each preceded by a drawing of a quilting pattern and its name.
See also
literature
- Lisa Bergene: Scandinavian quilts and bags . Verlag Schäfer, Hannover 2008, ISBN 978-3-86630-932-6 .
- Caroline Crabtree, Christine Shaw: Quilting, patchwork and applicé. A world guide . Thames & Hudson, London 2007, ISBN 978-0-500-51373-6 .
- Dennis Duke, Deborah Harding (eds.): Quilts . Könemann, Cologne 1996, ISBN 3-89508-224-4 .
Web links
- Patchwork Guild Germany eV
- Quilting pictures, history, technology
- Patchwork- und Quiltjournal the longest existing patchwork / quilt magazine in the German-speaking area
Individual evidence
- ^ The Oxford English Dictionary VIII, Oxford 1933 (Reprint 1961), pp. Q / 62.
- ^ The National Quilt Museum. Retrieved February 26, 2020 .
- ^ Names Project Vienna - Austria