Old Doll Quilts

Did you know that often girls two hundred years agotop by the time she was six.
made their first quilt by the time they were sevenSewing was (and probably still should be) believed to
years old? And frequently that first quilt might haveinspire virtues deemed necessary for every child:
been made for their doll.neatness, attentiveness, patience, perseverance, and
Yes, doll quilts. While charming in their own right, theyacceptance of routine and repetition.
are difficult to find because during the period theyGirls in upper class families also learned to do
were made, they were considered unimportant andneedlework, although they used finer materials and
insignificant.more intricate designs. It's not unusual to find crazy
Many were made from leftovers and got hard usequilts using velvets, wools and silks that were made by
from the little girls who owned them. Quilts made bychildren in upper class families.
young girls are likely to reflect their lack of refined skillsUnlike children today, children in the 1800s had little
in hand stitching.other than their imagination to play with. Only the upper
Girls in the early nineteenth century were trained fromclass could afford to purchase dolls imported from
the time they were very young in what was thoughtEurope, so children created dolls from sticks, hankies,
to be their life's work. Since a young girl would likely becorncobs, or whatever else they could find.
stitching all of the clothing, linens and bedding for herIt wasn't surprising that girls would want to create
home, before sewing machines, hand sewing was ansomething just like they had for their dolls. Often, the
important skill to learn.girls would take pieces left from worn out quilts and
It seemed natural, then, that doll quilts would be themake them into quilts for their dolls.
perfect practice piece. Not only were they small, but aSometimes, they would replicate a bed size quilt using
girl could start with something simple, like strips, andsmaller pieces, to be sure to re-create the pattern of
then work up to making a nine patch, and even sewingthe bed size quilt top. Other times, they would use
curves.patches left over from bed size quilts to make their
Beyond that, if she chose, a young girl could piece adoll quilts, even though the quilt top design would be
more complex design, using triangles as well aslost.
squares in her doll quilt.Most of these quilts are pieced, not appliqué, and
Both girls and boys were taught to sew by theirsome have been made from children's handkerchiefs
mothers, often before they learned how to read. Aprinted with holiday or religious themes.
very small child might begin sewing using an unknottedDue to labor saving devices, and smaller families,
thread, and then gain even more practice by countingtwentieth century mothers had more time to include
threads on a scrap of fabric.creative components in their doll quilts - nursery
It was not uncommon for girls to be expected torhymes, animals, and even pastel colors.
complete a nine-patch by the time she was nine yearsQuilts today are made in all different sizes, each for a
old. Amazingly, some mid-nineteenth century diariesdifferent purpose. Some large quilts have never seen
record quilt tops being finished by girls as young asthe top of a bed, even though they are the size of a
five.king size bed quilt.
One quilter, Edith Bell Sims, says she began a quilt atIt's not unusual for a small quilt to be made to be a wall
age three, with her mother cutting the fabric, markedhanging, with no intention for it to be used as a doll quilt.
the sewing lines, and pinning the pieces together. EdithI wonder whether maybe some of those tiny quilts
then stitched the patches - initially by hand and later onhung on walls and not doll beds.
her new treadle sewing machine. Edith finished her quilt