lundi 4 juin 2018

Quilt Museums Bring Gratitude And Honor To The Heroes Of The Past

By Margaret Price


Today, there are a lot of different kinds of museums that families can visit. There are botanic, space, and military museums to name a few. However, people tend to overlook one kind that is rich in history due to the people who made contributions in making it, and what they have done for the country and rich in culture due to how these people have lived during the trying times of the past. This has made quilt museums unique, and wonderful compared to the other museums.

During the colonial period, the living conditions are tough. Families are to live in houses made from light materials that are unable to protect them from harsh temperatures. Plus, having three meals a day was a luxury rather than a necessity. With a combination of those two, family members get sick easily and death looming in.

Men during those times were the only ones allowed to work for money. Women were left in the houses, they were to take care of their respective houses, food preparation and preservation, and taking care of the other family members. However, the salaries of their husbands are too meager to make all ends meet.

Food is the number one priority of the household, their need of clothes, and other garments that will bring them warmth during the lowest temperatures are being put in the bottom of the list. This resulted to quilting. Housewives would then gather every available fabric there is just to keep their family warm, including used clothing. These fabrics are made into bedcovers, or place to cover the window, to stop the cold from coming in, or to use as blankets for children.

As the years passed by, quilting became a hobby. It became a skill that became prominent among women of any age. So prominent, that it became a custom for young females to make 12 quilts that are pieced and 1 quilt that is an applique for the bridal bed. When it is decided that the couple is to be married, all thirteen quilts are sewn together to make one masterpiece quilt.

Mothers also give quilts to their children as heirlooms. As their children enter adulthood, the quilt will be given as a token of their family history. This quilt will be passed on to the next generations which will bring the future generations a peek at their family history.

This, too, had helped communities in the past. Communities held quilting bees where they gather to quilt, sharing techniques, fabrics, stories, and food to one another. There would be singing, dancing, and courting among the young people.

The purpose of a quilt is not just to keep the sickness and death at bay. They can be put onto walls and become decorative pieces in the household. This would also manifest the talent of the women in the household.

The next time you visit a city with tons of museums available. Try going to quilt museum. There might a chance that the piece of cloth being used in a quilt might from be a uniform of a civil war hero. For people to enjoy the present, sacrifices were made in the past, which resulted to a better future.




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