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Fabric of Our Life

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Every homemade quilt tells a story. The “words”—including the fabric, pattern, style, and stitching—reveal clues about where, when, how, and, in many cases, why the quilt was made.

And, for many 19th- and early 20th-century Southern Appalachian families, the “why” was survival, says Butch Helton, manager of the Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, Department of Tourism’s special events office. Helton’s organizes the annual A Mountain Quiltfest (see sidebar), a five-day celebration of all things quilting.

“The original Smoky Mountain quilting tradition wasn’t about design,” adds Helton, a Pigeon Forge native whose grandparents lived within the boundaries of the present-day Great Smoky Mountains National Park. “It was about needing a good bedcovering because you lived in a house without insulation. I remember my grandmother telling me that sometimes in the winter they’d wake up to see snow on their quilts.”

Back then, quilts often were made from usable remnants of old clothing and blankets. Mothers would set up quilts in the living or common room, and the entire family was expected to pitch in and stitch. Says Helton, “I have quilts that have been in our family a long time. It is part of our heritage. Our ancestors were making quilts just to keep the family warm. The quilts have patterns and designs to them, but for fabric, a lot of times, they used whatever they had that would provide the most warmth.”

Of course, quilting isn’t a uniquely Appalachian or even American craft. Marie D. Webster’s 1915 treatise on the subject—Quilts: Their Story and How to Make Them—traces the origins of applique and quilting back to ancient Egypt. The first “American” quilts likely were expensive, decorative versions imported from Europe or brought to the New World by colonists. And, among the most recognizable and coveted quilts handmade in the United States are those crafted by the Amish. Known for their fine craftsmanship, uncluttered design and bold graphics, Amish quilts commonly reflect religious and cultural values and family ties.

Yet, while the Smoky Mountain region isn’t the birthplace of quilting, the folk art is deeply rooted here and continues to flourish. The weekly Wednesday quilting bee at the Appalachian Arts Center in Norris, Tennessee, celebrates the region’s quilting heritage—and gives quilters a chance to collaborate on a group quilt or join in the lively conversation while working on their own hand-sewing project.

The Center is craft cooperative launched in the 70s as an outlet for low-income Appalachian women to sell handcrafted items, including pottery, weaving, blown glass, general sewing, and quilting. Today, men and women are among the 60 to 70 juried artists who volunteer at the center and show their work in the onsite gallery.

“We’re keeping the Appalachian arts alive and moving them along,” says Maynardville, Tennessee, quilter and songwriter Carol Ostrom, who taught herself to quilt nearly 45 years ago. Ostrom—who says she has “lost count” of the number of quilts she has made—typically crafts quilts on her own. It’s the community and creative energy of the weekly quilting bee, she says, that draws her to the Center each Wednesday. Adds Ostrom, “We’re adding on to the tradition, using modern techniques and traditional ones. There are some quilting purists who want things to stay all hand-quilted and even suggest you grow your own cotton, but that isn’t practical any more. Both hand-sewn and machine quilts are considered authentic now. It all evolves.”

A basic quilt is made of some soft batting or filler sandwiched between two layers of fabric and stitched in patterns or tufted through all thicknesses. The Log Cabin design—considered by many as the quintessential American quilt—is the theme of this year’s A Mountain Quiltfest, and is Ostrom’s favorite quilt to make. The traditional pattern (open to interpretation by the quilter) features a center square surrounded on all sides by strips of light and dark fabric sewn in sequence.

American quilters who could afford a sewing machine (patented in 1846, and available mail-order from Sears Roebuck & Co. for $20 or less by the 1890s) readily embraced the new time-saving technology by 1900.

“There are antique quilts made back in that era that may not have been machine quilted but they were machine pieced,” she explains. “Women were not stupid. They were busy back then washing clothes by hand, and making soap and making candles. They were looking for ways to save time. So if they had access to a machine, they would use it to machine piece the quilt.”

Today, quilt-design software makes it easy to incorporate digital images and intricately stitched embellishments. And, high-tech quilter sewing machine and quilt kits with patterns and pre-cut fabric make it possible to create quilts in hours rather than days or weeks. But for Ostrom, making a quilt—even a machine-stitched one—isn’t about how fast she can finish or how fancy the result.

“I don’t aim for speed,” she says. “I try to do a good job. And, when I am making a quilt, I feel a connection to this place and to the early Appalachian settlers. I feel like I am continuing a tradition and updating it some, which is what they did, too.”

See & Sew

North Carolina

Tennessee

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