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Quilting for the Amish girl starts when she is very young.
First she plays around the quilting frame in the family's
sitting room and as she reaches adolescence she is given a
chance to run a few stitches on a quilt or given some quilting
materials on her own to practice using an embroidery hoop. By
age 16 she is regularly quilting with her mother. With practice
the quilter hopes to eventually be able to make ten stitches per
inch while quilting through three layers of fabric and batting.
Amish women have been making quilts since the mid-1800s or even earlier.
Quilts serve a practical and functional purpose as well as being a form of
entertainment. Sometimes the women gather in groups for a quilting bee
which gives the women a chance to socialize and relax with each other.
Quilting for some women has become a business which enables a woman to
subsidize her family's income by selling her handmade quilts.
The Amish Quilter ornament is an ideal affordable gift for
any Amish collector.
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