How to Make a Flour Sack Quilt

In the middle to late 1800's, cotton feed and flour sacks replaced barrels as a means to hold products for the farm and home. Women discovered the fabric of the sacks made beautiful quilts and undergarments. Sometimes, the women would remove the labels. Other times the labels were left for humorous effect, such as the "self-rising" label one woman kept on the drawers she made for her husband. Read this eHow to learn how to sew a four-quilt sack.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Thread
• Pins
• Ruler
• Sewing machine
• Flour sack material
• Scissors

1. Buy flour sack and feed sack fabric from your local fabric or quilting store, or online. Sites like eBay, Erica's or Sew Nimble have a good selection of fabrics.

2. Decide on a pattern. You can find quilt patterns in books such as "Feed-Sacks," by Edie McGinnis, or "Quilt Revival," by Nancy Mahoney.

3. Go online for quilt patterns, such as those found at the Quilter's Warehouse. You also will find free patterns from Free Quilts or the Quilter's Cache.

4. Make certain you have all the supplies you need, such as sharp scissors, plenty of thread, pins, a good surface for laying out your squares and a reliable sewing machine.

5. Sew the squares together leaving a 1/4-inch seam allowance.

6. Set the backing you have chosen on the table. Lay the batting over it. Set the finished quilt top over both layers, and use pins or basting stitches to put all the layers together. Keep the layers even and the corners square.

7. Quilt each block either by with a machine or by hand.

8. Bind the edges of the quilt with binding, which can be found at any sewing or quilting store.

Resources

• The Quilter's Cache offers free patterns.
• Free Quilt offers free quilt patterns.
• Quilter's Warehouse sells quilting patterns.
• Sew Nimble has pre-cut, color-coordinated squares.
• Erica's sells flour sack fabric.