Monday, August 13, 2007

What's in a Name?

Have you ever wondered how quilt blocks got the names they have? I know I have. Some blocks are very easy to see how/why they got their names, but some just leave me wondering. Take for instance..........the Churn Dash......which for years was my favorite block and is still a favorite, but how did it come by the name Churn Dash? There is nothing in that block that would make me think of a churn or dashing? I guess I could do some research, but sometimes I just like to wonder what our foremothers were thinking when they named blocks. The 4 patch, 9 patch and most star blocks are relatively easy to figure out, I think, but you have to really stretch the imagination for some other ones. Maybe that's what our foremothers were doing......stretching their imaginations or perhaps they were just expressing their creativity in the best way possible at that time. I guess I will just keep on wondering about it.

Make it a great day!

2 comments:

Deb said...

Hi Jan! You know that Barbara Brackman is a quilt historian who has done lots of work with quilt blocks and names. You might start your research with her!

JanJ said...

Thanks Deb! I have heard of Barbara Brackman's book, but have never seen it. One of these days, I am going to go to the library and check it out. I think it should be very interesting.