American women used making quilts and coverlets as a way to express their artistic abilities and skills. These were either pieced, woven, embroidered, or appliquéd and were some of the handmade objects that were made by the American women.

It didn’t matter about your social status between the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries women all over America were making these quilts and coverlets.  Many of these quilts and coverlets were made mainly for keeping warm; however they were also designed in a way that was pleasing on the eye.  They often times were made with significance that was far beyond that of just being a cover for a bed. When the quilts of the nineteenth century were being made a good bit of the population of America was moving to the west and they were starting to settle in the wilderness.  The bed covers were some of the few objects that were decorative that women had in her home. These were also necessary and easy to transport.  Bedcovers were many times given as gifts when getting married. Some young women would even make them so that they could take them with when they moved to the house of their future husband.  The bedcover might have been important to keep and remember her old life with if the home that she was moving to was far away. You would find quilts that were made to celebrate the birth of a new child as well. These might have also been given as a gift of thanks to members in the community that has importance like a minister. Sometimes quilts and coverlets would be made to remember the dead.
The most popular bedcovering in the eighteenth century was quilts that were made of only one type of cloth. These were often times called “whole cloth quilts”. These quilts and coverlets were very practical, this is because they were extremely warm being that the top as well as the bottom of the quilt was wool and it was also filled with a wool batting. The layers were then stitched with the running stitches that were made in a decorative patter. You could find this quilt either coming in from England or being made in colonies. There were also quilts imported that were made with tops that were silk, or had lengths of copperplate that was English printed cotton. This was mainly in the second half of the eighteenth century.

During the eighteenth century the beds used were designed to be draped fully with curtains.  The curtains used for enclosure severed the purpose of not only warmth but privacy as well.  It was not uncommon for a woman from New England to make bed hangings that were embroidered for their favorite bed in full sets. These sets would include a head cloth, valances, a coverlet, and four curtains.  Coverlets might be defined as a unquilted bedcovering that has a single layer.  The bed hangings were generally colorful and most coverlets were actually made using linen or cotton/linen. These were then embroidered using wool. There would be things like birds, trees, flowers, or even vines embroidered.  You would also find bed rugs that were popular in New England. Quilts and Coverlets were good for helping to protect the users from northern winters that were very cold. These bed rugs were heavy wool pile covers that were decorated with embroidering of floral motifs.

After the start of the nineteenth century in the United States there were printed cottons that became widely available. Most of these in the start of the century however were coming from France or England. It was not uncommon for the women to take cut outs from the patterns of these chintzes and sew them on white plain bedcovers. In the Mid-Atlantic as well as the Southern states the appliqué quilts and coverlets were quite popular.  However they were also found throughout the nation. During this time the bedcovers often times has a designed that was centrally focuses.  After a few decades has passed during the century it was common to see small patterns that were repeating replace the larger patterns in quiltmaking popularity. You could get these either from overseas or from textile mills that were opening in New England. Calicos were being used for the making of coverlets and “pieced quilts; there were many small fabric pieces that made up the decorative top layer of these bedcovers.  These small fabric pieces were being stitches to form the design making beautiful quilts and coverlets.

With the coming of the middle decades the making of quilts was starting to be acknowledged as a form of art within most communities. It was becoming more common for quilts to be produced for reasons of than that of covering a bed. These were even made at times to commemorate a relationship or even an event. When this was the case the quilts were well taken care of by the owners as well as treasured. These types of quilts were beginning to be known as “album” quilters when there were made from a group of women. If they were being made by just one individual they would be known as “presentation” quilts. These were normally made for a specific occasion like a marriage.

During the second quarter of the century there was a different type of bedcovering that was beginning to become more popular leading to quilts and coverlets not being as popular. This was that of a cotton and woven wool coverlets. These could have been made at home however close to the end of the 1820’s it was becoming increasingly popular for these to be made professionally. Around the Midwestern states and the East Coast it was actually becoming more popular for men to weave and they would set up their shops in communities that were rural. These people would make table coverings, carpets, coverlets, and more at local markets. You would find that many of these were actually immigrants that came from Germany or even the British Isles. These places both had industries for weaving in place around the start of the nineteenth century.  The weavers that came from Germany were trained in linen weaving. They would produce household liens as well as blankets and coverlets. The German weavers used different techniques for making their quilts and coverlets. One of the techniques was related to damask weaving. In Pennsylvania is where the German weavers settled. They then made their ways to Ohio and Indiana. The British weavers settled in the New Jersey-New York area. The British weavers were trained in carpet weaving.

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