Old Time Quilting advice

Patterns carried the info for 36" fabric into the '70s. I remember thinking
about that. I also bought fabric at JC Penny's, well into the '70s when I
was working there. G Just found a piece of 36" in a batch of stuff I bought
from an estate sale a while back.

And remember, in Japan some fabric is woven at 13-14" wide. (for kimonos and
yakutas.)

Pati, in Phx

Pat in Virginia wrote:

B:
The JCP in Valley Stream NY also had good fabric department. It
was at the foot of the escalator in the basement. The workers
were very patient and helpful. That was when I was in High
School. Last time I was there, a few years ago, the store was
more stylish but the fabric was long gone and the sales help were
hard to find. And they call this progress?

Years later I worked in a small fabric shop and we still sold
some 36" fabric. That would have been early 1970. If anyone has
old patterns, go look at the yardage charts. That should give an
idea when the widths started to change.
PAT in VA/USA

Butterfly wrote:

I remember buying fabric at J C Penney's, in the basement, and the gal
(Joyce was her name--and I can picture her as if she was standing next
to me--she was GOOD) bringing it to our attention that the fabric was
now wider so we wouldn't NEED as much and then she helped me lay out the
pattern. The Manager, at the time, was extremely good about the Fabric
Dept Ladies helping you understand how the difference could affect your
laying out : ) You NEVER felt rushed. I was sad when she retired.
Butterfly (not even sure if that store is still there)

I was taught in jr. high to was fabric before cutting. Shrinkage of cotton was
much more a fact of life then.
That little machine was a measurematic. Couldn't easily use them for knit
fabrics because it would stretch them out of shape. House of Fabrics quit using
them because they were leased, and the expense was more than they were worth.

Pati, in Phx

Nell Reynolds wrote:

Do you remember the little machine (about 4" wide by 6" high) that stuck up
above the edge of the cutting table? It had a horizontal notch that the
saleslady ran the folded edge of the fabric through, after maneuvering it
back and forth once or twice to find the starting point. Then she pulled it
through and a gauge measured the yardage. When she got to the length you
asked for, she pushed down on a lever on the side which made something cut a
snip in the fabric. Then she TORE it across and wrapped it up. And nobody
ever thought of washing fabric before cutting it out.

Nell, still in nostalgia

"MB" wrote in message
...
Does anyone remember when fabric stopped being loomed in 36" widths?....
( just love trivia !)....Mary

Snipped:
I got a copy of a quilt book that was published in 1959. I was amused
by some of the things written and thought you all might get a kick out
of some of it.
"Almost all materials suitable for making quilts come in a
width
of 36
inches."
(remember 36" fabric! It's been a long time since I've seen any)

It could also have something to do with cutting patterns on 45" as opposed
to 36". You get more leeway with 45", don't you?

Smee

"The Nielands" wrote in message
news:guc3b.279292$uu5.62488@sccrnsc04...
I remember working at a fabric shop in the late 60s, and I'm sure we still
had 36-inch fabric then, but 45-inch was becoming much more prevalent. I
have no idea why 45-inch became the standard, but it could have been smart
marketing on the part of the fabric manufacturers. If it took 2-1/2 yards
of
36" fabric to make a dress but only 2 yards of 45" fabric, my guess is the
consumer gravitated to the 45" fabric. Now, we're all smart enough to
realize that the cost was probably about the same, because the cost for
the
45" fabric was most likely higher than that of the 36" fabric. But if
people
felt they were getting by with less (we do let our minds play tricks on us
sometimes) and then preferred the 45" fabric as a result, the
manufacturers
were probably quick to give them what they wanted.

Then again, it could have been due to changes in machinery!!!

Louise in Iowa
"Patti" wrote in message
...
Yes, it was definitely after the War.
You can still get fabrics from a 36" loom nowadays, eg Broderie Anglais.
I have a feeling it was in the sixties.
.
In article cW83b.276516$YN5.187730@sccrnsc01, Julia Altshuler
writes

When did the industry standard change to 45" widths? And why?
Obviously it wasn't too terribly long ago. Was it after WWII? Did it
have something to do with fashion or machinery? I'm curious.

--Lia


--
Best Regards
pat on the hill

"Nell Reynolds" wrote in message
...
Do you remember the little machine (about 4" wide by 6" high) that stuck
up
above the edge of the cutting table? It had a horizontal notch that the
saleslady ran the folded edge of the fabric through, after maneuvering it
back and forth once or twice to find the starting point. Then she pulled
it
through and a gauge measured the yardage. When she got to the length you
asked for, she pushed down on a lever on the side which made something cut
a
snip in the fabric. Then she TORE it across and wrapped it up. And
nobody
ever thought of washing fabric before cutting it out.

Nell, still in nostalgia


Not true about not washing. My mom _always_ washed the fabric first.
She didn't want my dress to shrink a size after it was sewn. I also learned
early on to wash ready-made garments before I ever wore them. I got
a nasty case of hives when I was 10 or so from a brand new blouse.
So, I wash everything first - clothes and yardage.

Happy stitching,
Janet of Gar