So somewhere down the line we were sold a bill of goods. That bill of goods was that we were not to use anything but 100% cotton in our quilts. Other fibers were not to be considered unless, of course you were an art quilter. Every other serviceable or beautiful fabric was discounted. Okay there were a few people who pushed the boundaries such as “Blue Underground”. They created silk quilts that were beyond beautiful, but few could afford all that silk. I could see quilters touching the other fibers and loving them and the wheels were turning in their heads saying “they are not cotton”. Then they would put it down and walk away. There were more of us, but not many that would quietly use other fibers in their quilts. It was like a quilting underground. We were careful not to let the quilt police find us. But then the millennial arrived onto the scene. She had more nerve and less money to spend. The recession had hit her especially hard. No new jobs for college grads of the mellenium. So, she turned to her mother’s stash of scraps. She turned to thrift stores to find interesting pieces of fabric. She turned to solids, because they were cheaper. And so, combined with the recent Gee’s Bend exhibits, the modern quilt movement was born. Again it was something born out of need. Many of us now older quilters could come out of the closet because it was now acceptable to be different.
I want to show another result of this movement…Cuddle by Shannon Fabrics. We carry a good deal of it at the Bungalow. Hurray for Polyester!
