Textiles and the Triplett Sisters

As I was auditioning some fabric for a new quilt inspired by a 19th century quilt, I considered some animal print fabric. It made me wonder when pre-printed textiles in animal prints were first used and when did these prints begin appearing in quilts. It was my hope to find research done by a diligent expert to answer my questions. Sigh, no such luck! Society’s fascination with animals in art, can be traced back to cave art. As our early “culture” grew, we used animal skins for clothing, so no pre-printed textiles were needed (or available for that matter!) As the textile industry began, we see birds and animals depicted. Early Palampores show all manners of creatures including birds, mongooses, lions, tigers and…feet. (Yes, one Palampore even features feet, the human animal, because the Palampore was...

Okay, so I may be rushing the announcement of the new year, but really, I think 2020 has been a year most of us would like to forget or at least move forward. However, I don’t want to ignore the holiday season. Happy Hanukkah or Kwanza depending on what you celebrate. Merry Christmas to all, which is what we celebrate. Because Christmas is close to my heart, naturally my thoughts went to red and green quilts, which I’ve featured in the blog! In about a week, we will celebrate the new year with a new Triplett Sisters Block of the Month: Bird in a Lace Cage. If you haven’t already purchased the pattern to join us, please do! We’d love to have you working together with Kay Triplett and Cynthia Collier as our leaders. Here is...

Considered by many to be the most popular chintz for quilt makers in the 1840s, the Mexican Shellflower, Calla Lily and Tulip can be found in many beautiful chintz quilts. This textile was one of the “Famous Fabrics” that we tracked in our book Chintz Quilts from the Poos Collection where we provide a list of the many quilts using the fabric. The Victoria and Albert Museum has the original antique fabric in unused condition. There also appears to be a block printed border fabric that was made in 1824 prior to the larger floral fabric. The larger flower fabric was created in England during 1830s to 1840s, although the specific manufacturer is unknown. The existing textile shows that unlike other medallions of the period, this was not originally designed as a medallion. It has one...

It is hard to believe that it is already the end of November! Time has moved so slowly through this difficult year and yet, it doesn’t seem possible that Thanksgiving is almost here. This year we will be giving thanks for you! Thanks for those who read our blog, host a zoom program or workshop, participate in one of three Triplett Sisters BOM and to those who shop on our website or Etsy shop. When we lost more than 80 bookings to the pandemic, it was very disheartening. We weren’t going to be able to connect with you through our quilts. Instead we found other ways to connect. THANK YOU! To celebrate the coming holidays, we are pleased to announce three exciting developments:First, we are lowering the price of the 25” Fruit Basket Medallion to $30,...

“Scissor cuts or snips” in German is the art of paper cutting a design that frequently has a rotational symmetry. Many of us played with this art form as children creating snowflakes out of folded notebook paper. It was also commonly used for silhouettes, valentines, birth commemoratives, and artwork. The art form is more than 2,000 years old with the oldest surviving papercut found in China and dates to the 6th century. Papercutting came from China to Europe and by the 14th century had spread throughout the world. However, because the art form was brought to Colonial America by Swiss and German immigrants who settled in Pennsylvania, the German terminology has dominated the art form in America. In America, the technique was used on more than paper, but also fabric. The technique appears to have been...