Fabric & Pattern
Use:
Quality Cotton Fabric
Short Answer
Choose fabrics that are:
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The Most Important Part of your QOV is the Fabric
you use to piece the top and the Fabric used as the backing!
Here's a simple test to see if your fabric is suitable.
Close your eyes and feel it. Is it coarse or rough feeling? Is the weave loose? Can you see through it? Does it feel "hard" or scratchy and not soft to the touch?
If you answered 'yes' to any of these answers, the fabric is absolutely NOT suitable for a Quilt of Valor.
Think of it this way... in simple terms, would you want a wounded warrior or veteran to have coarse, hard or scratchy fabric near a wound or on his/her skin? Your QOV is being made to provide comfort and healing.
What you would want to snuggle up with - a quilt that's soft? Absolutely! And that is why you are asked to use good quality 100% cotton fabric. Your QOV is not being made for a charity case. It is for a soldier who serves to protect our country and our freedom. Don't they deserve the good quality fabric?
For any quilt, it all starts with the fabric. If the fabric is not good quality, no matter how pretty it is, how well you piece it, how well it is quilted or how great your label is, it will not last through the years or survive multiple washings. Not only does your QOV provide comfort today - it should be made to last for many years in the future.
You can get good fabric without breaking your bank account. Here are some ideas to obtain quilt shop quality fabric:
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Shop the sales at your local quilt shop. Also, many quilt shop owners will give you a discount if you tell them that you are making a Quilt of Valor for a soldier.
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Shop online. There are hundreds of stores online and there is always a sale of some kind going on. Try searching www.quiltshops.com and type in "patriotic fabric" or "patriotic sale" (no quotes). Using the Thumbnail search is best.
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Use a Google search for "quilt store" and you will get many results.
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Ask for funds from your community, service clubs like Lion and Rotary Clubs and VFW's. Check for some tips on fundraising under Basic Information (left hand column menu).
As far as pre-washing fabric, it depends on you.
Lastly, a mention about the thread you use to piece your top. Good quality 100% soft cotton thread is the best. Use machine quilt thread rather than the stiffer hand quilting thread. The weight of your thread should be 50. Do not use machine embroidery thread (40 weight rayon or polyester) to piece your top. It will not hold up in the long run.
Basic Patterns/Colors/Motifs
Short Answer
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The most popular colors are Red, White and Blue. Patriotic themes are loved by and large. BUT...be advised that not all recipients want Red, White, Blue, patriotic. And, remember that 10% of our military are women. What NONE of the recipients want are fabrics which are inappropriate...such as juvenile fabrics intended for children. What will happen if you choose to go this way is that your quilt may sit on a shelf gathering dust. |
Long Answer
A Profile of the Types of QOVS Made
Overview
Over the past years and more than 30,000 Quilts of Valor awarded, I have made some observations about what types of quilts our war wounded like and are receiving.
Generally speaking, the war wounded appreciate quilts that are patriotic in color and theme. Colors red, white and blue are popular as well as are eagles, stars, stripes and flags. Marines are especially keen on patriotic quilts as are active duty servicemembers.
Informal data
I took a month and calculated the percentages of types of quilts that needed a destination. See Table 1 below.
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Types of QOVS made in August (%) |
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Patriotic |
55 |
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Generic |
22 |
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Female |
10 |
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Unknown |
13 |
Table 1. Percentage of types of QOVS in one month period
I do not have information as to how many in a particular military branch received which quilts. I can say that quilts going to marine bases/hospitals are primarily patriotic. Quilts sent to other destinations are a combination of patriotic, generic and female. Typically for residential treatment centers for PTSD, quilts are generic or female themed.
Discussion
As you might have guessed, our wartime quilters made more patriotic quilts than any of the others. Patriotic had the largest number (55%) followed by generic (22%), female (10%) and unknown (13%). This is to be expected especially during wartime. We are now over seven years post 9/11 and have been at war for over six years in Afghanistan and over five in Iraq. Even though it appears that most Americans have forgotten that we are a nation at war, our wartime quilters have not.
I have always contended that any quilt we make for our war wounded is patriotic by definition. We're at war; I make a quilt for our war wounded; therefore my quilt is a wartime quilt and patriotic. I make this observation not only from our current quilts but those made during the Civil War.