Der Frauenhandwerkskunst: Die Kunst des Quiltmachens

The Art of Quilt Making.

It is difficult to know when this ancient art came to be. Most likely, as all great inventions go this too was a creation out of necessity.

Imagine this, the inhospitable desert terrain, the bitter winter and the age-old Rajasthani penchant for being constantly on the move. Sundown in winter always sent the temperatures plummeting among the dunes.

What you needed was a warm cotton filled quilt to sleep in.

Quilting is the sole purview of women. The grandmothers, mothers, wives, daughters work together surrounded by meters and meters of our block printed fabric panels and lots of carded cotton to make the quilts. These women are often not educated in the conventional way but this art gets them recognition and livelihood.

Two women work on the same quilt together, one holds and the other quilts, switching on the go. The back of the quilt is laid on the carpet covered floor and the inside layers on top of it, so the inside faces the quilters. Quilters then spread the carded cotton evenly and cover it with the second layer of the block printed fabric. They attach the two block printed panels using a running stitch to hold the filling in place and stitch an integrate design to add to the beauty of the quilt.

All this work, from the carding to the filling to the quilting, is typically done by artisans whose families have been practicing these skills for generations.

Once the quilts are ready they are hand washed, dried and packed for shipping.