From Revival to Reinvention: Quilting in America, 1971-2023

Department: Fashion and Textile Studies: History, Theory, Museum Practice
Advisors: Montegut, Denyse
Committee members: Davidson, Hilary; Carlson, Brooke
This qualifying paper traces the most recent quilting revival in America from the 1970s through modern-day and examines the circumstances of early and late Revival quilters, with exploration into whether early and late Revival quilters are indeed part of the same quilting movement. Investigating the factors that sparked the revival in the Seventies, and the evolution of the quilting industry that grew around Revival Quilters in the years that followed, characteristics of quilters are defined as the decades progress and the nature of Revival Quilting changes. Quilters’ dialogs with the growing quilting industry affect commercially available products in the hobby market, as well as the output of those who engage with the craft and how quilts are created. As new tools and technologies change, the ways in which quilters engage with the craft evolves dramatically. While post-millennium quilters find their foundations in the quilting revival of the Seventies, increasing developments in technology and the internet give them unprecedented access to peer dialog and educational materials. New avenues to careers in quilting, grounded in YouTube, social media, and e-commerce, begin to emerge. In light of this exceptional level of access to the quilting community, sewing supplies, and pattern material, the author seeks to redefine post-millennium quilters, proposing a new term scholars may use to refer to them: Connected Quilters.
Keywords: Craft; Material culture; Quilting; Quilts; Sewing; Textile arts