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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 29 ส.ค. 2024
- What do we know about the story of quilts in America? For those who love quilts, many of the stories we have been told might not be true to history. In this entertaining presentation, quiltmaker, editor, and rogue historian Mary Fons shares some of her discoveries in the world of American quilts. Gee's Bend, Amish quilts, the quilts on the Underground Railroad - these stories and more play a part in Mary Fons's popular presentation, 'The Myths in the American Quilt Story".
If you like this video, you'll love Mary's live show on Twitch! Multiple times a week, Mary goes LIVE to share more "quilt nerd" content with her passionate audience (they have dubbed the show "Quilt Church", if that tells you anything.) Visit / yomaryfons for Mary's current schedule and join the quilt conversation.
Just an FYI. I remember my Grandmother quilting by the light of the fireplace after the kids and Grandkids were asleep. It was the only time she had to work on her quilts after doing her household chores and helping watch the Grandkids.
Really enjoyed this alot! Can you imagine judging a quilt by if scissors or rotary cutter were used! Hee hee.
Nice video. Thank you for telling the truer side of the Gee Bend quilts. As an Black American I'm always troubled when some folks think we live in a closed vacuum as it relates to life. Like your presentation of the information.
When I posted in reponse to something about the Underground Railroad Quilt being a myth I had someone reply that the Myth felt right to her so she would believe it. And that explains a lot about some issue we have in society. I love myth busting or confirming occasionally.
Love you Mary Fons!
I usually machine piece and hand quilt. Years ago I took my mother-in-law to a quilt show and there was an exhibit showing how a quilt is made. She looked at it, sniffed disdainfully, and said, "Hmmp! Machine pieced!" I said, "Mara, how do you think I do my quilts?" You could literally see the idol tumbling off the pedestal! She replied, "Well, in my day, it wasn't a real quilt unless it was all by hand!" (By the way, she had never made but one quilt in her life--a baby quilt that took her 9 years!) Okay, how far back do we have to take it to make it an authentic quilt? Back to my great-great-grandmother who started with her own sheep, produced her own wool fabric, and turned it into a hand quilted quilt? I don't intend to give up my sewing machine and my beautiful patterned cottons!
As a former first grade teacher who was skeptical of the tale, I so appreciate you addressing the quilt code.
Mary I watched your interview with Karen Brown and I am now subscribed to your vlog, not because of the contest but because I really missed you. I used to watch your quilting vlog all the time and just lost you when the show was finished. Quilty was fun, lively and informative and I really enjoyed it. Your humor, intelligence and story telling ability are true to life in your new show also and I love it. Keep on being Mary Fons just the way you are.
Thanks, Mary. I loved it. In the hidden genius department, my church regularly receives blocks and quilt tops, like foundlings, that are dropped as a "gift" for our group that makes quilts for charities. They are usually tops that the quilters didn't like well enough to finish. We usually manage to add a border, or washing to make it okay, if one is looking for a warm hug. (We call ourselves a "circle" not a "bee" .)
Thank you for this very informative video. I had heard of many of these myths and your explanations and examples really helped me understand. I recently saw a saying on Facebook that said, "Whenever a child learns critical thinking, somewhere a conspiracy dies. "
It is refreshing to hear clever banter with wit and factual bravado.
I love the comment about not another binding tutorial! Thank you!!!!! I love learning about the history and the stories behind quilting vs just beginner techniques. Thank you for changing it up!
I used to get together regularly with 3 friends to quilt. One day one of the husbands asked us why getting together to quilt was called a "bee." One of my friends said, "It's because we "be" quilting."
Gossip buzzes.
Lol
Then why is a "working bee" called a be? Its just what we call a productive get together - maybe?
Mary you ROCK !! Excellent, brilliant, and blessed to see you again thru Karen Brown. SO HAPPY you are still "real"..... Thank you for being you....... happy New Year !
Thank you Mary! I have missed seeing you on TH-cam. I first watched EVERY Quilty video you made when I first started quilting about 3 1/2 years ago. You are funny, wise and SO VERY helpful!! I'm so excited for this new series.
Wonderfully informative! I saw your interview with Karen Brown and followed the link here. So glad I did! Myth number 4 really hit home for me. I was one of those that got interested in making a quilt in the 1976 “ revival “ era. I joyfully collected my materials, sewed my top, and quilted it all on my little Kenmore sewing machine. I was so proud of my accomplishment. One lady whom I respected said it wasn’t a “real” quilt because it wasn’t done by hand. It devastated me and I didn’t sew another thing until 17 years later when I moved away and got a job at a fabric store. Love you and your open attitude with a passion for digging for the truth.
It is heartbreaking when someone you care for actually demeans something you care about. Keep doing what you love, it makes you whole
Karen brought me here, and this is a freaking hour long video about quilt history!!! Alright folks, let's set up camp- we found our little corner of the internet!
Who is Karen?
@@Diniecita Karen from Just get it done quilts, another Utube channel, she did an interview with Mary Fons.
I couldn't have loved this more! THANK YOU for sharing all of this!
I found the history utterly fascinating. Great job!
I’m a French women so I never heard of those myth before, it was so interesting to learn more about the history (real or not) of quilting in the US and what impact it has on todays beliefs in the matter. I love you way of explaining things !
I am so happy to learn from Karen Brown of Just Get it Done Quilts that you have a new TH-cam channel. Thank you for your ongoing contributions to the quilting community!
Oh my gosh ...I learned so much and really appreciated your thoughts on “accidental genius.”
That was wonderful, thank you for putting that together!😍
This is the quilt content I love to quilt to!
Hi Mary. So glad to find you here via your interesting interview with Karen Brown. I love myth busting, it gets us to truth.
I subscribed to your channel today after watching your interview with Karen. I thoroughly enjoyed your presentation and will watch more of what you share. Thank you for your thoughts and your willingness to tackle the myths we all sometimes take at face value. You question our preconceptions in a way that I find particularly enlightening and unafraid. Thank you
Interesting video and lots to think about. I loved the book "Hidden in Plain View"; now I need to reread it and think on it some more. I always thought the way the info was shared was a bit too good to be true, but it is one of those stories I wanted to believe because it speaks so strongly of persistence, ingenuity and most of all of hope. Thank you for sharing your knowledge-lots to think about and more to learn.
Good job Mary! You are knowledgeable! I love your style! This is your passion!
Loved listening to you Mary. Really enjoyed all the myths and your feelings about them. I think you found your calling. Kept me interested!
Funny how you pointed out the newspapers on wall. I remember my great grandmothers home having newspapers on the walls. They made flour/water paste and put newspaper as wallpaper. Just brought back a very old memory. Miss my Ma Taylor!
The funny thing about the intentional mistake is that I heard about it regarding oriental carpet weavers. It is fascinating how myths are used and transformed in all different cultures.
Thanks, Mary. Great info. I appreciated all the issues you addressed. When it comes to hand work versus machine, I just love creativity. Period. I love possibilities and differences and all the things. Anyway... thanks for posting!
Love your honesty, approach and challenge to think about these myths in the context of our complicated history! Thanks Mary, keep em coming.
Interesting to hear about the history of American quilting. Another fan of Karen Brown and happy to binge on your channel to catch up!
Loved your presentation. Thank you!
Thank you so much for this, I hadn't been "tuned in" for the 90's version of Gee's Bend, or the Quilt Code, so these were fascinating. I have to say the intentional mistake, made me laugh; I've heard this in the past, and know it for what it is, the desire to find beauty in the oops, so you don't have to rip apart all the work you've already done. I am looking forward to reading some of the materials you have mentioned and learning more. I enjoy finding things that make me want to learn more and I am certainly finding so much more in the craft I love. Thank you again.
I freaking love this. As a history nerd, quilter, and overall critical thinker, this is my jam right here. Thanks for your thoughts on the myths surrounding quilts and quilt history! Well done! Also almost spit out my tea when you mentioned QAnon. 😂
Another tacit implication of the "She didn't know she was a genius" myth is the idea that the quilter hadn't worked diligently over a period of time to carefully improve her craft and become a better crafter. Her great skill was just an "accident" and not really the result of her own efforts.
I enjoyed every minute! The historical aspects of quilting are significant and so very interesting!
Thank you Mary for this nuanced and interesting piece! It's so nice to see you again - I'm here because I caught your interview with Karen Brown and immediately subscribed, oh yes. I'm a big fan of Quilty from back in the day! Love and peace from Sally, Gloucestershire, UK x
Very enjoyable Mary! Thank you!!
I love you Mary! "If you get up and say things in front of people it can be great or it can cause damage." This needs to be inscribed on White House Door. If only DC had IA common sense!
Great video. Love all your work. Looking forward to the next.
I love quilts. Every quilt tells a story. ❤️❤️❤️
Wow....this video! Chef's kiss!
Well thank you, Hannah! :D
Loved this one, natch. I never believed the Underground Railroad one. Love mythbusting that doesn't involve explosions or math, just discussion and reading. Anyway, I'm Scrapitude.
Mary ... I think I am in love with you! You almost lost me in the beginning when you were saying some people think you shouldn't think about or talk about the quilting done by people who don't look like you...and then you went ahead and applied your critical thinking and research skills to your subjects to draw very well supported conclusions about these quilting myths! It is only through such effort that we can reach out to one another and understand each other as people, so in my book you got it right! Love your stories, love your passion, and most of all I love your intelligent curious mind! Mark me down as a new subscriber!
Wonderful!! I just watched your interview with Karen Brown and could hardly wait to watch your videos! Thank you, I’ve learned so much from you
I just learned from your interview with Karen Brown that you have this channel. Such a pleasure to hear you speak. I will subscribe to anything you produce.
Mary that’ was fascinating! Thank you Karen Brown for letting us know about Mary’s channel!
Thank you for sharing these truths.
Yay! I’m so glad you’re doing these videos. You have always been one of my favorite people (that I’ve never met, lol).
I like myself better for listen to this lecture 🤩.....I realize I’m a fact person that can still be inspired by things that “could have, probably didn’t, happened” and realize yes... even the “not really true stuff” is also telling something too! I read a book “ invention of wings” it’s a historical novel. One of the characters in this book inspires me to do a “story quilt” of my own life...
THANKS FOR THE GREAT VIDEO ❣️
I really love your fact/belief system discussion. Thanks so much for your Quilts Must Go On Series. Great work, am really enjoying your videos.
Really enjoyed this. Keep them coming. and Thank You!
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HEY!! I discovered you on your interview with Karen on Let's Get It Done! I'm SO GLAD that I did!!
You are SO interesting!!
Yayayayayay!!
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Very interesting, thank you very much! You've shown how absolutely everything happens within a wider context.
Karen Brown brought me here. I like the lectures and the topics that you discuss in your new channel. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks to Karen Brown “justgetitdone” quilts I found you. Love the history of quilts.
Wonderful video! Great info. Love knowing more about the history of quilts and quilting.
I apologize for commenting a year later, but I was so fascinated by this discussion that I had to! In particular I loved your framing of fact vs belief. As a fact person myself, it’s been really helpful for me to try to understand why people believe things that might not be factually true, and the “why” behind that can be so illuminating. Why do we as Americans believe these things? What does it say about our culture and our history and our self-image? I need to do some reading!
A quilt is a quilt , handmade or made with a sewing machine!! I’ve never believed that myth of quilts used on the Underground Railroad. I see beautiful quilts all the time ❤ Amish and others!!
Inspiring! Thank you Mary! Agreeing to disagree is an art also! Much to learn, and keeping it open allows us to continue to learn.
Great episode! Thank you for sharing all this info.
Wonderful on so many levels! I always like listening to you, Mary, but this time was true gold. I was doing an independent study of Gee's Bend and had decided I wasn't going to continue as I realized I don't care why or even how they made what they made - I only want to look at the quilts! As an artist (writer) I hate when people confuse the art with the artist. It's why I so appreciate Elena Ferrante's approach. Anyway...whew! This was great!!
Thanks Mary.... Glad you are back. Reconnected through Karen Brown. Love the video
Thank you!!!
I used to be a Mennonite we never intentionally included a mistake in a quilt. We aimed for perfection. Quilting bees are organized to have a reason to make the husband watch the kids. So mom gets some time off. The main thing that happens at any bee is Gossip. You attend because you were invited and it's rude to decline. Also, because if you are sitting there sewing at the frame, no one is going to talk about you. Only the absentees and the husbands.
my take away with this episode is that we really have to go beyond the surface and if its a real interest we will delve deeper and if its not then its ok to expand that others have their beliefs and value systems. thank you mary fons!
On the idea that the quilt blocks in the underground railroad weren't being used yet: I don't think if they were trying to leave messages in secret they would want to use quilt blocks that were common place that might be displayed by the "enemy" in every day life. Seeing a common place quilt block could confuse or steer those escaping slavery in the wrong direction or to harm. It makes sense to invent a different or new block to communicate through a picture since most of these people didn't read. The secret was kept secret because it could mean death if you supported the relocation of slaves northward. It is plausible that in time these quilts were either recovered with other fabric or burned to hide any involvement with the relocation efforts. I don't know if the Underground Railroad story is factual or more of a folklore passed down through generations. I do think it is very possible that it could be reality embellished. Either way I enjoyed the story, the reproduction fabrics and history of that time period. I enjoy your info on quilt history and hope you do more.
You’re doing good! Keep going!
Wow lots of food for thought here. Thank you Mary for delving into this topic.
Thanks Mary! Loved your talk and learned tons.
I just watched you with Karen of Just Get It Done Quilts. So glad to discover you on TH-cam again! Also glad to be introduced to Quiltfolks!
Wow - this is a thorough inquiry-based way to think about ALL art! I really appreciate your candor and I plan to look up the books and articles - thanks from this HS art teacher! I am sharing this with my professor:)
How INTERESTING!!!!!!!!
I appreciated learning more about the quilt code controversy, and knowing that there are not--at least, currently--facts to support it. That's what I tuned in to find out! I don't think it's accurate, however, to pit facts against belief. Beliefs are generally based on one's perception of the facts. It's actually the facts that underpin a given belief which may be incorrect or incomplete, providing a faulty foundation for beliefs. I agree with the presenter's belief--based on facts--that this controversy will not be easily resolved and that we should all "just get along," as the saying goes.
Love love love love love love LOOOOOOOOOOVE. Will definitely be rewatching this one (and getting my hands on that Sanford Biggers book!!)
Very well done! I learned a lot. Thanks!
That lady in the photo is definitely staring at us, Mary. She did not want her photo taken. eep. :)
I was told in school, that if you used a machine to make a quilt it wasn't a quilt but a comforter. Not sure why I was thought that.
Wow... excellent video! So glad I found your channel through Karen Brown. I'm loving the history and quilt education as a newbie quilter. Thank you!
Loved this! Heard about you from Karen Brown’s (of Just Get It Done Quilts) Quilt Circle and listened to this video while quilting. Fascinating, especially your words about facts v beliefs and what that says about us. I subscribed and will look into your other videos.
Karen brought me here as well. I love the interpretation that is sensitive and interesting. A new fan.
Karen Just brought me here too! Her interview with Mary was brilliant. I’m hooked now!
Brought guy t to your utube channel by Jaren Brown interview. Can’t wait to watch and listen to your topics while I’m quilting.
Thank you
Karen sent me over here looking forward to seeing more of you happy quilting btw I subcribed
I’ve been fortunate to obtain the big hard cover book all about Gees Bend quilts. They are so amazing!
i absolute loved this video. you did such a good job breaking everything down (factually 😉). I’m a new quilter, but have always loved quilts from all over. i have even have one i bought in China when i was much younger. I’m a retired elementary school teacher and love reading and learning new things. Thank you for sharing all your knowledge with the rest of us. I’m a fan!
What a wonderful video. Thanks Mary. You’ve done so much research. So very fascinating. So many myths discounted..so refreshing. Thanks. 🇦🇺
You go girl!!
Your delivery is so funny!!!, Yet sincere . Thanks for sharing our story of quilting also. I am a quilter, and you have inspired me even more.
Mary, loved all of the fascinating info shared here, keep going. First time hearing about Gee’s Bend was here, the same day a dear (non quilt) friend of mine brought me a book she had found “The Quilts of Gee’s Bend” it’s a beautiful coffee table book featuring women from Gee’s Bend and their quilts. Don’t you just love how the Universe works.
So interesting! Love your sense of humor. And yes I agree with most of what you said. 😁
Quilts r more than quilts. Thank u for ur interesting take on the things we believe. Today we all need to examine this premise in every aspect of society. I will rethink things......as I quilt! Thank you for ur interesting talk, keep them coming!
Came here to bust your myth that mythbusting is unpopular. 😜 If you haven't heard of the podcast You're Wrong About, check it out! Wildly popular show debunking our collective memories of touchstone events, especially for people in our age range.
I basically exclusively hand-piece and hand-quilt because i like doing really fidgety EPP, and i get the "you're doing it the right/authentic way" ALL THE TIME and i always kind of laugh it off because I almost NEVER meet other EPP quilters, and the vintage/antique quilts and blocks I have acquired since i started quilting almost all have at least some machine piecing. It just isnt a realistic way to efficiently make enough quilts to properly fill all of a person's quilt needs ESPECIALLY in cases where they are essential to keeping your family warm. The earlier generations of quilters in my family almost all machine-pieced (and often tied their quilts rather than fully hand-quilting them) for that exact reason. I can understand folks who don't like the texture of FMQ-finished quilts (including me! They're just very stiff in a way i don't enjoy since i grew up with hand-quilted, machine-pieced quilts) but to say that handpiecing and handquilting is "the right way" is SO absurd. The right way to make a quilt is whatever way you make a quilt!
Mary, so happy to find your channel. Came here from Getitdone quilts. I will be subscribing now to make sure I don't miss anything. Love from a cold and snowy Northern England, Loraine.x
WHEN are you going to make another installment?!?!?!
You are SUCH a great lecturer that you have us hungry for more!!
PLEASE!! How about PURDY PLEEEEZZ!!
🤣😆😂😆🤣
Generations of my family are from Oklahoma, and further South than that. They have all always claimed that the Quilt Code was real. It wasn't that specific story... but it was a warning here and a show as to where to go for the meeting or if someone that was unsafe was at the house. (the monkey wrench) Also, one has to remember that so many of the blocks have similar names, especially the Monkey Wrench Block. The Snail Trail is technically a Monkey Wrench. As is the Shoe Fly, and several others. Yes, there were some quilts that may have more than one of the blocks to make a simple statement, but no one knew if the people were with the underground railroad or just loved the blocks. Only specific places and people were using the code, supposedly. Just like the markings on the trees. I mean, who would be looking for arrow markings on trees? Would you think a broken heart carved in a tree wasn't about the death of a loved one there, or that it mean to go alone further? So many thing are accepted due to the generational information. BTW, I learned about the Quilt code in the early `1960's , when my Grandma showed me the quilts made by my Great-great Aunt in the TB sanitorium back in the WWI era. The story is old as my family it seems... as my Great-great-great Grandma is the one to tell the story to the following generations, inclueing my grandma. She was born in 1860. Doesn't matter if it's true or not at this point. The fact is we needed more people to help resolve the slavery problem and the financial problems that followed afterwards for the entire United States!
And yes, I feel better after the puppy pic! mwahs little poochie!
Another myth? *Patchwork did not start in America." There are existing patchworks (one of which was originally quilted) going back as far as 1320 or a bit later, and a painting from the 1270's shows a patchwork coverlet of some sort.