VINTAGE SHIRTINGS, 1870-1925 by Sara Morgan

Between 1870 and 1925, quilters were fond of using white shirting fabrics for pieced quilts. The standard shirting prints were small, isolated figures on white or off-white backgrounds. During the decade of 1874-1884, Allen Printwork's line of shirtings were among the most popular. Quilters used black, muted red and medium blue on white grounds, with small geometric, floral and striped patterns.

Around 1925, plain white cottons resumed their popularity and began to replace shirting as a standard background fabric for pieced designs.

During the Seige of Vicksburg (May1863-July4, 1863), quilting never ceased...it became a past time for keeping spirits up and making the best of a bad situation.

A ridge located between the main town and the rebel defensive lines provided the diverse population with safe houses for the duration.

Over 500 caves were dug into the clay hills, which were deemed safer than any home, structurally sound or not. Women did their best to make their living spaces comfortable, bringing quilts, rugs, furniture and pictures to hang. They timed their activities with the rhythm of the cannonades. As a result of the caves, the Union soldiers gave Vicksburg the nickname of "Prairie Dog Village."

Purchased from an exclusive antique fabrics merchant, this rare estate collection from Sara Morgan features fine prints with intricate and delicate details. The Eagle print is truly majestic and will work beautifully with historical quilt reproductions from the mid 1800s.

This Special Edition 30s collections is a rare find - straight from Sara Morgan's stash! The focal print is a combination of all of the florals in the collection, handsomely laid out in a smart log cabin motif. New, never-before-seen prints in interesting and unique colorways are sure to delight reproduction and retro fabric lovers.

Although the 1930s was the era of the Great Depression, women’smagazines were full of optimism. Cheery fabrics and colors could be found on new quilt patterns in an attempt to keep creativity alive as homemakers struggled to sew practical items for their families Although quilters were still interested in creating quilts that reminded them of their heritage, they wanted them in happy pastels and lighter colors.

Newspapers also picked up on the surge in quilting and began to feature quilt patterns, as did catalog companies. At the Chicago World’s Fair in 1933, Sears included an exhibit of the winning quilts from their national competition, which had reached women all around the country and netted a response of 24,000 entries.

Toybox III - Miniatures c. 1930 by Sara Morgan

You’ll love this adorable collection of unusual and hard-to-find juvenile and toy motifs! Filled with kitty cats, playful children, dogs, ducks, bunnies and more, these tiny prints are sure to delight quilters and kids of all ages.

Lincoln Era, 1860-1865

This Rare Estate Collection comes from fabrics found in antique clothing from General Stores in New York City, Philadelphia, Charleston and Richmond.

The General Store was quite popular in rural areas around the country, especially during the mid-to-late 1800s. Folks depended on their local mercantile, not just for the necessities such as coffee, spices, baking powder, flour, sugar, eggs, milk, butter, fruits and vegetables, honey and molasses, cigars and tobacco, but also for a host of other “essential” items.  Store owners tried to anticipate the needs of their customers and often extented credit or bartered for their goods.

What a find! Sara Morgan shares some of her goodies from a very special private collection of vintage swatches she is lucky enough to have acquired for her own stock.

These moons and stars motifs have been reproduced in popular reds, rich burgundys, dark brown, and faded blues from the early-to-mid-19th Century. These small, delicate prints are perfect as fillers with larger patterns or on their own with the appeal of calico-style petites. You’re sure to find them perfect for both vintage reproduction quilts and for projects with contemporary twist.

Wrappers were the casual dresses the women wore for everyday activities. Made to suit the season in either cotton or wool, this comfortable dress was high necked with long sleeves and a free-flowing body. Less fitted than more formal dresses, the wrapper didn’t require hoops, corsets, or bustles, was easy to make, and could easily be adjusted for maternity wear. The style was practical and enduring in popularity and suited women of all ages, including young girls.

As with any dress goods, after the garment was completed, the leftover pieces went into a scrap basket, eventually joining other scraps to make quilts for the family.

We tend to think of quilts from the Civil War era as full of blues, grays, blacks - generally dark colors. These fabrics, reproduced from a quilt of the same name in the Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum collections, is a cheerful exception.  Most of the fabrics in this quilt date back to 1860-1880, although RMQM believes the black ombre may have been a little earlier. The vibrant green color in the small-scale prints was obtained by an overdyeing process popular at that time. The other prints, although typical of the time period, are somewhat rare finds: the dark red with blue and brown, the double pink with machine ground, turkey red with chrome yellow, and brilliant Prussian blue. It is these beautiful fabrics that inspired Blue Hill Fabrics™ to re-create a vintage collection that would appeal to both traditionalists and contemporary quilt artists.