Ample Old Scrap Bag

 "Among the earliest recollections of our childhood was the 

AMPLE OLD SCRAP BAG

that hung in the closet.  It was sort of a family savings bank, into which all the odds and end bits of dry goods were deposited.  It contained scraps left from the dresses of all female members of the female family connections, from the grandmother down to the baby.  If a neighbor volunteered a contribution in the shape of a roll of scraps, it was accepted as the highest favor that one lady could offer to another in those primitive days.

When the capacious receptacle was filled to its utmost extent, the sorting out of pieces, the blending of different styles of prints, and the harmonizing of colors preparatory to the long thought of manufacture of a quilt, was a joy of which ladies of the latter day have never dreamed.

For now times have changed.  Scrap bags are memories of the past, and people don't hoard up their dress clippings to make quilts of, for modern inventions have supplanted the old time industrial arts.  Today's quilts, the most bizarre of almost every known pattern, cut and color, are printed all ready for the frames and are sold for eight cents.  'Sic transit,' etc."  

Good morning!  

Ladies and gents, today we are going to play a new game offered here at Pennsylvania Piecemaker.  It's called "Phases and Crazes."  Are you ready?

First question:  

When was the above article published?

The answers are coming in fast and furious...

I'm sorry, The Great Depression is not the correct answer...wait here's another response...no I'm sorry it was not published at the turn of the 20th century.  Good guess though.

The above article was published in 1878 and featured in The Clarion-Ledger in Jackson, Mississippi.

Okay, take a deep breath and here we go again!  

Question 2:

What phase or craze was the writer referring to?

Wow, many of you are thinking 1878--and Crazy Quilts is a good educated guess but it is not correct.  Oh wait, a few of you budding (or actual) quilt historians have answered correctly!

The answer is Pre-printed or simply Printed Patchwork aka Cheater Cloth.  

A really good article on the cloth is here at Barbara Brackman's blog.

Third question:  

How accurate is the writer's depiction of what is going on in the quilt world during the last quarter of the 19th century?

Well most of you answered that correctly!

Answer:  Not accurate.  Yes printed patchwork was used but it was merely one type of quilt that became popular in the last quarter.  Crazy quilts, multitudinous quilts, log cabins, redwork quilts, and others were chosen by quilters throughout the last 25 years.  

Bonus question:  What does the writer mean by Sic Transit etc?

The full phrase is "sic transit gloria mundi" and it means "thus passes the glory of the world."

Throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, numerous articles were published about "olden times quilting bees"  Even more numerous were articles about "the return of quilting bees"--so many that I often wonder if the quilting bee or even quilting had faded or did the writer long for something else?

In this particular article, the writer expresses a yearning for the return of "industrial arts" aka industrious domestic arts.  Was the writer really writing about sewing or was he or she longing for a time when women were less independent?

The Civil War changed women.  They learned what they could accomplish and many changes occurred after the war--a big one being the establishment of women's colleges throughout our country.  A woman's economic independence would have been very threatening to many folks (not just men) and throughout the last quarter and into the 20th century, many articles seem to suggest that it was the end of civilization if women chose a career over family life--or worse if they chose to do both (although the kibosh was put on that--most company policies dictated that when a a woman married, she could no longer be employed by the company).

I've written about this before--see Log Cabin Lament here.  Still I am grateful to live in a time when I can be an independent woman and a quilter and pursuit the interests I choose.

Thank you for playing along with out little game today!

Tomorrow is Friendship Friday.  What's the weather in your neck of the world?  Any flowers blooming?  Any projects you want to share?  Email your photos to me at allentownquilter@gmail.com.

Have a safe and happy day!