| Quilting began in America from a shortage of fabric | | | | time. Small quilts were made to welcome a new baby |
| and the ingenuity of the early settlers. Women would | | | | into the community; large bed-size quilts were made |
| turn worn-out clothes, blankets, curtains, towels, and | | | | for a young couple getting married; and other quilts |
| sheets into works of art to keep their families warm | | | | were made as blankets were needed or when fabrics |
| during the cold New England winters. As with so many | | | | were available. As girls grew up, they joined the quilting |
| other community events, such as building homes and | | | | circles, learning quiltmaking skills, becoming a part of the |
| barns, sharing the harvests, and celebrating, quilting | | | | quilting community, and continuing the tradition initiated |
| became an activity that brought families together for | | | | many generations prior.As America grew and |
| the common good.Women would gather, often weekly, | | | | changed, so did quilting. Quilting circles continue their |
| to sew. Fabric, patterns, and labor were shared. | | | | tradition in some communities, both in geographical and |
| Frequently, everyone in the group would work on the | | | | in social communities. |
| same quilt so it could be finished in a shorter period of | | | | |