We're revisiting the Vintage Series this post, featuring the fan. Some of you may just enjoy the pictures, and others will savor the history right along with me. Either way, I invite you to stay a while.
Besides, who could resist a good book with a comfortable quilt? So, linger and read a bit here on what makes that quilt so appealing...
Marin Hanson, in writing about Nancy Cabot and Her ‘Exotic’ Quilt Patterns, tells us "in the 1920s, ‘30s, and ‘40s, quilt designers had an affinity for exotic or oriental patterns. In the era of Charlie Chan in the movie theaters, the words “oriental” and “exotic” were often used interchangeably and quilt patterns that had an exotic flair were all the rage."
"One designer who heavily promoted this trend was Nancy Cabot, the pseudonymous quilt pattern columnist for the Chicago Tribune. Because her column was widely syndicated, quiltmakers all over the country would have been familiar with her exotic patterns, which ranged from Japanese Poppy to Chinese Gongs to Persian Poinsettia. Often, however, many of Cabot’s patterns were exotic in name only. As with other early twentieth century designers, she recycled traditional patterns and gave them new names, likely in the hopes of adding appeal for a new generation."
"Fan motifs had been around at least since the late-nineteenth century Crazy quilt craze. They were transformed into repeat block patterns and became popular in the early twentieth century, with names like Grandmother’s Fan and Imperial Fan. Cabot took variations of these and gave them exotic names".
One of these that Cabot renamed was the Chinese Fan (c. 1943), a gorgeous predominantly pink one I've featured as the background of my blog site. (Can't see it using your iPhone, tablet or email? Check it out on my blog by clicking on www.ppatchworks.blogspot.com). Regardless of the origin of its name, I simply like it! The fan variation quilt in the pictures shown with this post is lovely, as well, and deserves a fan or two, no pun intended.
No comments:
Post a Comment