Quilt More, Worry Less With Care & Share!

Ever wonder how quilts are made? Quilting, or the process of stitching together layers of padding and fabric, is a hobby and a practice much older than you may think. Some historians claim the oldest quilts date as far back as 3400 BCE! And today the process of quilting lives on as a hobby with an estimated 21 million quilters world-wide.

18th century households in the United Kingdom often used recycled garments or leftover fabric pieces to create a full quilt. These processes were brought over to the American Colonies with settlers from Europe. However, unlike their European counterparts, only the wealthy American colonists had time to quilt during the 18th century. The finished quilts were often displayed, showing off fine needlework, rather than used practically. 

By the 1840s, the Industrial revolution had made it to America. This meant that factories could mass produce fabrics, making them much more accessible to the common family. Quilting became an activity that could affordably be practiced by all, not just the wealthy. While fabrics could still be purchased specifically for quilt making, some households still used scrap fabric to make their quilts, leading to interesting, vibrant quilt patterns. This practice is still widely used today. 

Care & Share is one of those places that helps keep sustainability through the quilting process alive in modern times. Through our connection with the local MCC Material Resource Center in Harleysville, PA, we are able to provide donated materials to the volunteers who cut, sort, and process the fabric that is then used to create hand made quilts and comforters on site!

These quilts are sold, and the comforters are sent to locations across the globe to provide relief to areas that need it most. This is just another way your donations have a direct impact not only in our area, but all across the world!