Beginner Quilt Patterns: Learn quilting easily.

Home > Doll Quilt Books > American Doll Quilts

Pattern Book "American Doll Quilts" - $22.95

Back in the olden days in America little girls would learn to sew by making doll quilts. If you are a beginner, you can learn the same way these little girls did. The beginner quilt patterns in the book American Doll Quilts is the easiest way to learn that I know. Actually, quilting can be overwhelming if you start with a big project, but it is easy if you start with a small project you can easily finish. All the patterns in the book are designed so that an adult, or a child who is being helped by an adult, can easily sew the quilt pieces together by hand or machine.

American Doll Quilts

American Doll Quilts
16 Projects

Kathleen Tracy's book is a walk through the American history of quilting and each of the projects is taken from a different historical period. In the period of 1776 to 1820 quilting was not very common in America. Women had to make their own cloth through time-consuming procedures like spinning and weaving and, at the same time, they could buy ready-made bed coverings from England. There just were not a lot of incentives to make quilts during that time. Two of the quilt types that were made, Broderie Perse and Medallion, were more for showing off needle-work skills than making blankets to keep warm. The quilt patterns in the book include an example of each of these two quilts (they are very easy for a beginner to make).

Quilting began to flourish in American after 1830. Many textile factories were set up and machine-made fabrics were widely available. After the treadle sewing machine was invented the long hours of piecing fabrics together by hand was cut way down. This was a time when the quilt block became very popular and blocks were named after everything you can think of --- famous battles in wars, political movements and just the daily experiences of the people (like Broken Dishes and Shoo Fly). Kathleen's walk through history is fascinating!

Back in these olden days life was harsh and women needed to focus on survival, particularly for the farmers and pioneers. Warm bed coverings were needed if the family was to survive intense winters and there was little money to buy anything. Every scrap of fabric was kept and sewn into a quilt. After the work of day was done, women often sat down to an evening of piecing together their fabrics. It was about the only truly creative activity in their lives. They found it very satisfying to pick out the colors and designs of the scraps and blend them together. When the quilt tops were finished, women would often get together with neighboring women in Quilting Bees to put the top, batting and quilt backing together and actually do the quilting. Quilting Bees were the great social events of the day.

Click here to see the 16 quilt patterns in the book. Whether you are a beginner or not, these quilt patterns are just darling and a lot of fun to sew. They are great for either your collectible dolls or for the toys your children play with.

Pattern Book "American Doll Quilts" - $22.95

Beginner Quilt Patterns American Doll Quilts

Beginner Quilt Patterns
American Doll Quilts