A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day....07-29-03...Quilts, Men, America and Such

Billie; FreeTheHostages | FreeTheHostages

[Billie]

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day

Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997.   Over 100,000 people have registered for posting privileges on Free Republic, and the forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world.

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day was introduced on June 24, 2002. It's only a small room in JimRob's house where we can get to know one another a little better; salute and support our military and our leaders; pray for those in need; and congratulate those deserving. We strive to keep our threads entertaining, fun, and pleasing to look at, and often have guest writers contribute an essay, or a profile of another FReeper.

On Mondays please visit us to see photos of A FEW OF FR'S VETERANS AND ACTIVE MILITARY

If you have a suggestion, or an idea, or if there's a FReeper you would like to see featured, please drop one of us a note in FR mail.

We're having fun and hope you are!
~ Billie, Mama_Bear, dansangel, dutchess, Aquamarine ~

by FreeTheHostages
design by Billie

A quilt by one of the greatest living quilters, Michael James.

Guys quilting? Who's in control here??

Don't worry, it's still the women. Whether it's a traditional floral beauty, a lovely Baltimore album quilt, a positively painterly quilt, a breathtaking applique quilt , or a more modern quilt , quilting is still mostly women's work.

Michael James has got it right though: he's struck by how democratic and down-to-earth quilters are. Everyone has a story about their special quilt, and quits, for everyone, touch them some place deep. It's a positively American art form. And it's an art form that always pays homage to history and tradition, even in some of it's great modern and dramatic forms by modern quiltmakers such as Katie Pasquini-Masopust.

Lots of conservative women attend quilt shows! I saw lots of Republican bumperstickers at the 2003 Vermont Quilt Festival. But not many men of either the Republican or Democrat variety there. {Sigh} I tried to persuade one male Freeper who I know lives in Vermont to attend this festival, and I got a private Freepmail saying: “If you ever see me at a quilt festival, just shoot me.”

What is it with men and quilting? LOL – apparently not much. Well, for what it's worth guys, you are the subject of the first of four facts I do present in this post regarding quilting:

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1) Quilters Love Men – Especially Diver Dave

Blue Ribbon for the Best Landscape, 2003 Vermont Quilt Festival

Quilters love men. Men have been there for us – hanging quilts, driving us to the fabric store, paying our fabric bills, ignoring the occasional pin in the carpet – but most of all, pretending to understand us.

Isn’t it cute? The way he lovingly drives you to the weekend quilting bee, unaware that you and your girlfriends are spending the weekend plotting how to run the town while letting the men think they are in charge? The way he pretends to admire your latest quilt – without comprehending that the quilt explores female despair at having to live with a man who does not understand a thing about quilting?

It's just as well the guys don't know the details of quilting. Then we can explain that we can't clean the house just now because we are "exhausted" from quilting.

GailA with her 'helper', Rocky, relaxing after an exhausting day of quilting

Who is YOUR FReeper Quilt Guy? Is it DIVER DAVE?

If you quilt, you know a man who suffers for your quilting. Here I accept nominations for Free Republic Quilt Guy of the Year. Who's your Freeper Quilt Guy? Tell me the story of how your man has suffered for your quilting. What does your quilt guy do for you? Does he babysit the kids while you’re off at some wild quilting sleep-over slumber party? Does he not complain that there are some pins hidden in the carpet? Or is it just so cute the way he pretends to care what your latest quilt looks like, hiding his boredom?

P.S. I will be giving another copy of Ann Coulter’s book Treason to the best nomination, but I should warn you all that Diver Dave will probably win, even if his wife doesn’t quilt, because he’s always coming in second or third in my contests, and I just think it’s time he won something. And thank you for playing. With that, on behalf of the hostesses, this half-hostess (for increasingly obvious reasons) thought I'd put to rest once and for all these rumors that my contest threads are fixed. :)

(With thanks to GailA for her quilted animals!)

In the pioneer days, quilting was seen as creative and useful, so the men wouldn't stop the women from doing it. The women were able to create a work of art without it being though of as frivolous. It was a way of fulfilling a creative impulse in an acceptable way. The trade-off, though, was that, until recently, quilting was not seen as an art form, so men were hesitant to get involved. Hmm, what’s so wrong with that? Let the guys play golf with each other at Augusta National – I’ll be quilting that weekend with the girls!

Men: You can't live without them, but you can quilt without them.

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2) Quilting is Conservative

It’s such an American – and a conservative – thing to do. The very idea of quilts is conservative – to save and use those scraps of cloth, not to waste a thing. One of my favorite quilts at the Vermont Quilt Festival this year is a quilt made out of all different little scraps which has for its title, simply, "Used ‘em!”

Quilting is respecting history and remembering, things conservatives are good at. Here’s a link to quilts that remember the victims of 9/11. Never forget. Panels from this quilt project travel around the country.

Especially after 9/11, there have been many more patriotic quilts and, temporarily, a shortage on stars and stripes and patriotic fabric in the quilting shot. We Republican women were not caught short: we already had been favoring the red, white, and blue. Right, GailA?

A very traditional "flying geese" border design.
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3) Everyone Should Quilt

WHAT?! YOU SAY YOU DON’T QUILT??!!! Oh my goodness, don’t talk such nonsense!!! Apart from burdening and annoying your man, there are 1,000 other reasons to quilt, girls.

First and foremost, wouldn't you want to OWN something lovely like this quilt by GailA?

Or how about this beautiful quilt done by RJayneJ?

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4) Quilting Is American

And, finally, the long pedantic part of this feature. JUST STOP READING IF THIS IS ALREADY TOO LONG, OK? Hee hee, no one's putting a gun to your head, people!

Quilting became a conservation between various immigrant groups to America. Various European quilting traditions mix in American quilting history with native American textile and bead work.

The term “African American” is a very appropriate description of the weave/strip tradition of American quilting. While the textile traditions of African peoples are less thoroughly documented than other aspects of folk art, it is known that there were distinct, prominent influences of four civilizations in Central and West Africa: the Mande-speaking peoples, the Yoruba and Fon people; the Ejagham peoples, and the Kongo peoples. As slaves and their textiles were traded heavily throughout the Caribbean, Central America, and the Southern United States, the traditions of these four distinct regions became intermixed. Thus by the time that early African American quilting became a tradition in and of itself, it was already a combination of textile traditions.

Originally in Africa most of the textiles were made by men. Yet when slaves were brought to the United States their work was divided according to work roles, female slaves often ended up quilting. Female slaves doing domestic chores made some of the first African American quilts. There's some modern scholarship suggesting that some of these seamstresses documented paths to freedom on the underground railroad by quilting maps onto their masters' quilts!

Seminole Indian strip quilting is my favorite. If you've never quilted and are thinking of getting started, this is a good first book:

So many traditions mixed in a lively brew the colonial textile work from European immigrants. And wa-laa – there you have it! America's quilt. And as every quiltmaker knows, if it seems to you that you have too many colors and too much chaos going on, just add another color to the stew! Quilts are all about the noisy chaos of America, a colorful, chaotic fabric of peoples bound to one God and one land.

Blue ribbon for most whimsical, 2003 Vermont Quilt Festival

People say quilting is a way of connecting the generations, through the age-old beautiful techniques of lovingly piecing lives together. Quilts are love. In pioneer days, many women lost their children when they were young, and buried them with an indigo and white "mourning quilt." Even though the grandmothers and great-aunts might not be around to teach and encourage a new generation of women, they have left their influence. Many women who quilt for a long time leave pieces "behind" in a store, planning to leave work for the next generation to pick up on when they transcend to the Church Triumphant. Younger female relatives can be comforted by these bounds that transcend time.

Vermont: that's where I learned to quilt. Kind of an extraneous, self-absorbed fact – the sort I specialized in – but frankly that's the best segue I can think of to introduce to you some of my favorite summer vacation photos from the 2003 Vermont Quilt Festival.

Happy Quilting, FReepers!

THIS WEEK'S THREADS 07-28-03 Military Monday

Opinions by our own 'King of Ping' The guy's good, folks!

Thanks, Mixer!

1) Click on the graphic to open the Calendar.
2) Once there you can click on any month and even click to the right to go into next year. Once you are in the month that you joined FR you will need to click on the number in the calendar and then an add item screen will come up.
3) In the next box enter your name in the "Calendar Text" field and then click on submit.
4) If any of the screens fail to load simply click on refresh in your browser and that will usually fix it.
5) If all else fails or simply if you want me to do this for you send me a FReepmail and I will gladly do it for you. ~Mixer

[Calpernia]

{{{{Angel}}}

Stuffed sack does make sense literally. I do think it is funny though :)

[FreeTheHostages]

Definitely a conservative skill! :)

[WVNan]

Great report on quilts. You make me want to dig out all those quilts I've started and never finished. WV is famous for quilts. The Cabin Creek Quilts are world class.

[Libertina]

Oh my, what a comfy and lovely thread today! I just love it. Thanks you Billie, Mama_Bear, and the ever active FreeTheHostages!

[Billie]

That's a great project, Cal! Kids' art is so cute, too! Be back in a bit. :)

[WVNan]

Hi Pippin. I've missed you in the past few weeks, being so busy and all. Pray you are well.

[dansangel]

((((((((((Libertina)))))))))))

Haven't seen you in a month of Sundays! It's always so nice to see your smiling face. :-)

[FreeTheHostages]

wow, that's very fine quilting

[FreeTheHostages]

Actually, those weren't typos induced by my hectic work schedule. Those were new uses of words that should be familiar to any literate person. The Thin Man's vocabulary skills are obviously a little weak.

[FreeTheHostages]

Thanks for your kind words (and sorry I'm late getting back to you -- meeting ran long). Diver Dave has already one the contest!! Isn't he clever?

[FreeTheHostages]

I come from a long line of quilters, seamstresses, knitters. Mom has made a quilt for all 15 grandchildren and umpteen great-grandchildren. Art Ritis came to visit mom and she is no longer able do much sewing, knitting, quilting, crocheting or upholstery.

Actually, that's kinda PROOF that you are type of man who supports women who quilt. :) I knew it! LOL -- but really, you've placed very high in the last 2 contests and I *did* want to make sure my thread today didn't feel like it was excluding the guys, so I truly, very seriously, will provide you with a copy of Ann's latest torpedo book.

[WVNan]

Hello Angel. Good to see you. How are things going for you?

[WVNan]

OOps! The quilt didn't take. Oh well....love you anyway.

[FreeTheHostages]

I have a couple of quilts my Mother made, and she has one that her Grandma made, back in the high plains of West Texas (it must be nearly 100 years old now).

Old quilts, such as the one your mother's grandmother made, are now generally very valuable, and even though your family of course would not want to part with them, some would say it's a good idea to get it appraised some day just so that you can insure it.

[Calpernia]

That's no problem. I was actually surprised to see Firebrand on this thread. I never noticed him here before. So I had to lend support to him, the bossman :)

[FreeTheHostages]

LOl, you mention your quilt looks "quiet." Funny you should mention. I once owned the website name "quietquilts" where I was going to make and sell quiet quilts. But there were 3 problems with my business idea:

1. I realized I would never, ever sell one of my creations.

2. My quilting style -- surprise! -- tends toward louder colors.

3. A lady whose son is autistic and who makes special, heavy quilts which make it easy for autistic children to sleep wanted to use the name to sell the quilts to the autistic family community on a non-profit basis, and I had a hard time not giving the name to her.

[FreeTheHostages]

:) Thanks for stopping in. Yup, quilts are perty!

[FreeTheHostages]

but I took your advice and stopped. LOL!

Hee hee. I put that advice in there for you. {{{The Thin Man}}}

[FreeTheHostages]

Aw, LadyX, your husband sounds terrific. And the idea of giving an afghan to a dying relative -- that can be a very important gift.

When my Uncle Richard was diagnosed with terminal cancer, I made him a quilt in aqua and white - the colors he said he wanted. Aunt Nita said he loved that quilt and used only it from the time it arrived until the next year, when he died. He wrote me a thank you note, and Aunt Nita said that's the only thank you note (he being a Vermont carpenter who delegated social notes to his wife) she'd seen him write this decade.

It made me happy that I could help, and my Mom was happy I helped her brother too.

Quilts can be magical, that way.

[FreeTheHostages]

LOL, I'm armed and dangerous when I quilt too. the sharpness of those fabric cutter wheels still unnerves me. I'm sure it would unnerve wolfie, too