Saturday, January 3, 2015

Are you going to QuiltCon?


Are you going to QuiltCon?


...because I'm bringing eye candy...


In 2013, Roderick Kiracofe displayed vintage quilts at QuiltCon, kicking off what I feel is a wonderful tradition. And I'm happy to keep it going. This year, I will debut my 1970s collection at QuiltCon, and there will be an article about the quilts in the upcoming Quilters Newsletter Magazine. I will also do a webinar about quilt history with QNM in a couple weeks.

one of the colorful polyester quilts
One of the intriguing things about the 1970s quilts is the color. Chemically produced, synthetic fabrics hold color remarkably well. Polyester is one of those fabrics. It is very resistant to fading because the pigment is part of the chemical solution that produces the fiber. Cotton and other fibers are typically dyed, but the color is actually part of the fiber in polyester.

100% polyester double knit and very American
I was recently invited to write an article about polyester quilts for Blanket Statements, the newsletter of the American Quilt Study Group. It was a lot of fun reading about Wallace Carothers, DuPont, and how polyester was invented.

a smorgasbord of fabrics
 The quilts of the 1970s hold a lot of that history from a production point of view. There are many samples of polyester double knit, all colors, embossed, printed, woven designs, and other fabrics such as rayon and cotton-polyester blends throughout the quilts.

a quintessential 1970s moment, made of cottons
There is a spirit of discovery in the quilts of the 1970s, and it should be noted that the quilts in my collection are mostly made for domestic use rather than as works of art. These quilts are cheerful, even though most are not masterfully constructed. They are often quirky, too. After QuiltCon, the quilts will be displayed during Quilt County, later in the year at the Benton County Museum in Philomath, Oregon. I'm happy to have such great opportunities to share this exciting group of quilts!

6 comments:

  1. Will be at Quiltcon and was lucky enough to be able to get into one of your sessions. These quilts remind me of the quilt my mom made me..... not all the fabrics were poly but many of them were or were blends. That quilt weighed a ton! My manager at work recently gave me a quilt book from the 70's. It's amazing how many of the quilt patterns fit right in with the Modern Quilt style.

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  2. Sigh... I won't be there, but I'll look forward to reading about these in Quilters Newsletter. I am a child of the 70s and get great pleasure from seeing these! My mother started quilting then, and she hung Victorian crazy quilts all over the house, while sewing more "modern" quilts herself.

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  3. I got a really cranky flight back from Austin, but will be there again! See you!

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  4. Yes! I will be there! Thank you so much for sharing your collection and knowledge with us!

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  5. I will be there and look forward to being dazzled by your collection of bright vintage quilts!

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  6. Looking forward to seeing these beauties in person!

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