The Quilting Bee

• Tweet
• Pin It

In days of old, women would gather at a quilting bee to socialize and share gossip. It was a way for them to get away from the tedium of their daily work to socialize and work on something for their neighbors. Today, these gatherings are used to make a decorative pieces of art, rather than a functional quilt. The tools that are used today are improvements on the ones from the past, as technology has made it easy for women to quickly make a quilt.

Today, when women gather to make a quilt, the hostess generally has the supplies needed on hand, as well as the quilt pattern that will be followed. The fabrics that are used can be purchased at any local quilt shop and the finished product is likely more for decoration than for actual use. Technology has provided quilters with quilting machines, negating the need to finish the stitching completely by hand.

Pioneer women would get together weekly if time allowed, to form their quilting bee. Each would come with some unused fabric in order to put together a quilt for a soon-to-be bride or just to make an extra coverlet for an ill neighbor. The variety of fabric pieces used at each bee guaranteed that each quilt would be unique. Not having access to quilting machines that technology has provided us with in the 21st century, these women produced extraordinary handmade quilts. They were made either from memories or from an idea that a woman had, as patterns were hardly ever used.

The socialization that surrounds a quilting bee can be found in any generation, from pioneer women all the way to the women of the 21st century. The only difference is the need for the finished quilts. They used to be made because they were needed for bedding purposes, and now they are looked upon as works of art. Along with the changing times, the tools used to make quilts have also changed. The tools have adapted and melded with the times, they are more ergonomically produced. However, there are tools that will greatly decrease the amount of time it takes to make a quilt.