What is Feedsack fabric?
Vintage Feedsack and Flour Sack Fabric. In the mid-19th century, heavy canvas or linen feedsacks (sometimes spelled as “feed sacks”) replaced many barrels and tins for the storage and transport of flour, animal feed, and other bulk goods. The invention of the lockstitch sewing machine, patented by Elias Howe in 1846,...
What is a feed sack?
In the mid-19th century, heavy canvas or linen feedsacks (sometimes spelled as “feed sacks”) replaced many barrels and tins for the storage and transport of flour, animal feed, and other bulk goods.
Who invented the feed sack?
The invention of the lockstitch sewing machine, patented by Elias Howe in 1846, made these bags practical for repeated use—the farmer’s name was often stamped on his bag so it could be filled back up. By the late 1800s, textile mills were producing strong, inexpensive cotton, which quickly usurped canvas as the preferred material for feedsacks.
What size is a 1940s feed sack?
1940s or 50s vintage print cotton fabric feed sack, a whole sack still sewn up as a bag with the original chain stitching. ... 1940s or 50s vintage printed cotton feed sack, still sewn up as a bag (fabric size about 36" x 36").
How can you tell if a fabric is a feed sack?
How do you know if what you find is really a feed sack? The most obvious way is if it's still sewn into a sack shape. If it's not, then the best way to tell is to find the stitching holes around the selvedge edges and across the width of the fabric. You'll often see the remnants of a curved seam, as well.
How old are feed sack quilts?
Feed sacks first appeared in the 1840s, when America's abhorrent reliance on slave labor made cotton bags an affordable alternative to wooden barrels.
When did fabric bags get flour?
Flour sack clothing was a staple for many from the 1920s-1960s.
When were flour sacks used for quilting?
Between 1840 and 1890 cotton sacks gradually replaced barrels as food containers. Many of the logos on the flour sacks were circular, a legacy from the time when these logos had to fit on the top of a barrel. Women quickly discovered that these bags could be used as fabric for quilts and other needs.
What kind of material is flour sack?
cottonA flour sack, feed sack, or flour bag is a cloth sack, usually made of cheap cotton, used to store flour or animal feed. Flour sacks are often printed with simple designs and trademarks to indicate the millers and companies making or selling the flour.
What is feed sack quilt?
In quilting: The golden age of American quilts. … of the 1930s popularized the feedsack quilt. Cloth sacks in which animal feed and flour and other staples were packaged were produced in a wide variety of cheerful prints.
How much flour is in a sack?
a sack of flour weights 49oz .
Why is flour always in a paper bag?
The reason flour is in paper bag (either 1kg/2lbs bags from supermarkets, or 25kg for bakeries) is to let it "breath": to get it oxidized. If you see an old (vintage) bag it's made of a net that lets a lot of air to get in.
Is flour sack and cheesecloth the same?
Flour sacks are not really sacks at all, but sheets of fabric made of very thin cotton threads. The weave is tighter than cheesecloth, but loose enough that you can see through the cloth. They're not really intended to be used as dish towels, except for maybe polishing streaks. What they are perfect for is straining.
What is flour sack cotton?
Flour sack dish towels are called "flour sack" because they're modeled after the thin woven cotton bags that flour and grains used to be packed in, which were re-used as towels. That thin cotton yarn and the looser weave make for a towel that's extra absorbent.
When were feed sack dresses popular?
They were made at home, usually by women, using the cotton sacks in which flour, sugar, animal feed, seeds, and other commodities were packaged, shipped, and sold. They became an iconic part of rural life from the 1920s through the Great Depression, World War II, and post-World War II years.
Why do you think quilts were popular during the Depression?
Quilts were popular during hard times because quiltmaking was a cheap hobby that made use of small scraps left over from other sewing. Makers often incorporated feedsack fabrics, which appear today to be the ultimate in recycling and frugality.
When were feed sacks invented?
In 1846 the invention of the “stitching machine” made it possible to sew double locking seams strong enough to hold the contents of a bag. Feed sacks were initially made of heavy canvas, and were used to obtain flour, sugar, meal, grain, salt and feed from the mills.
Why do you think quilts were popular during the Depression?
Quilts were popular during hard times because quiltmaking was a cheap hobby that made use of small scraps left over from other sewing. Makers often incorporated feedsack fabrics, which appear today to be the ultimate in recycling and frugality.
What was the purpose of the feedsack?
In the mid-19th century, heavy canvas or linen feedsacks (sometimes spelled as “feed sacks”) replaced many barrels and tins for the storage and transport of flour, animal feed, and other bulk goods. The invention of the lockstitch sewing machine, patented by Elias Howe in 1846, made these bags practical for repeated use—the farmer’s name was often stamped on his bag so it could be filled back up. By the late 1800s, textile mills were producing strong, inexpensive cotton, which quickly usurped canvas as the preferred material for feedsacks. Farmer’s wives took advantage of this new source of essentially free fabric by turning the empty cotton sacks into everything from dishrags to dresses. Some feed companies, alerted to this reuse of their bags, began to print their sacks in gaily colored patterns—since it usually took more than one bag to make a dress, the idea was to give the farmer an incentive to keep buying their products. One of the many interesting attributes of late-19th and early-20th century feedsacks are the odd weights that were stamped on them. The weight of 196 pounds came from barrels, 98 pounds from half barrels, and so on. Sizes weren’t standardized—100, 50, 25, 10, 5, and 2—until 1943. Nor were all feedsacks created equal. Those designed to hold sugar, flour, and salt, for example, had the tightest weave. At the other end of the spectrum was a fabric called osnaberg, which had a low thread count and was used primarily to bag animal feed. At the outset of World War II, there were dozens of U.S. textile mills producing feedsack material, from Bemis Brothers in Minneapolis, Minnesota, to Percy Kent of Buffalo, New York. Particularly collectible are feedsacks with prints depicting Disney characters or scenes from “Gone with the Wind,” as well as sacks that had patterns on them to help a busy homemaker turn them into an apron or doll . In fact, by 1942, an estimated three-million Americans wore at least one article of clothing made out of a feedsack, but by the end of the decade, cloths bags gave way to less-expensive paper.
How many people wore feedsacks in 1942?
In fact, by 1942, an estimated three-million Americans wore at least one article of clothing made out of a feedsack, but by the end of the decade, cloths bags gave way to less-expensive paper. In the mid-19th century, heavy canvas or linen feedsacks (sometimes spelled as “feed sacks”) replaced many barrels and tins for the storage and transport ...
When were feedsacks invented?
The invention of the lockstitch sewing machine, patented by Elias Howe in 1846, made these bags practical for repeated use—the farmer’s name was often ...
When was the lockstitch sewing machine invented?
The invention of the lockstitch sewing machine, patented by Elias Howe in 1846, ...
What material was used in feedsacks?
By the late 1800s, textile mills were producing strong, inexpensive cotton , which quickly usurped canvas as the preferred material for feedsacks. Farmer’s wives took advantage of this new source of essentially free fabric by turning the empty cotton sacks into everything from dishrags to dresses.
What was the name of the fabric used to bag animal feed?
At the other end of the spectrum was a fabric called osnaberg, which had a low thread count and was used primarily to bag animal feed. At the outset of World War II, there were dozens of U.S. textile mills producing feedsack material, from Bemis Brothers in Minneapolis, Minnesota, to Percy Kent of Buffalo, New York.
What is the tightest weave?
Those designed to hold sugar, flour, and salt, for example, had the tightest weave. At the other end of the spectrum was a fabric called osnaberg, which had a low thread count and was used primarily to bag animal feed.
Why were feedsacks used for sewing?
Even though the economy improved during the 1940s it was necessary to conserve because of the need for war supplies. Using feed sacks for sewing was considered patriotic and women still enjoyed finding attractive prints on feedsacks. Iowa quilter, Ethel Taylor Jordan, recalls how “Papa couldn’t go to the store and buy feed without one of us girls, if you were the one who needed material you were the one who got to go.” 4 Moreover if it was a long way to the store and a few sacks of flour were to be bought a fellow's wife or daughter might have had him move several 50 pound sacks of flour from a 6 foot high stack just so she could get the matching fabric she wanted. 5
Why did women trade feedsacks?
Women also traded feedsacks in order to get patterns that matched fabric they already had or for colors and prints they wanted. They were most creative in finding ways to get the varied fabric they wanted for their feed sack quilt.
What do feedsacks bring to mind?
Feedsacks bring to mind poverty of the Great Depression but at the same time there is a romance to the idea that women could make something beautiful from something so mundane.
When did paper bags become less expensive?
By the 1950s paper bags cost much less than cotton sacks. Companies began to switch over to this less expensive packaging. To combat this the feedsack industry actively promoted the use of feedsacks in advertising campaigns and even a television special encouraging the use of feed sacks for sewing. Although feedsacks were gradually replaced by other materials as late as the 1960s the fabric sack industry tried to compete by offering novelty fabrics including rayon and blended materials.
When did feedsacks become popular?
Eventually they saw a great opportunity for promoting the use of feedsacks. First feed sacks began to be sold in colors then around 1925 colorful prints for making dresses, aprons, shirts and children’s clothing began to appear in stores. Manufacturers began to paste on paper labels making it far easier to remove them.
What soap was used to make a sock bag?
Housewives used such methods as soaking the brand in kerosene or rubbing it with unsalted lard then washing it with lye soap. Later Fels-Naptha soap and Chlorine bleach were used. 2
Why did cotton prices drop?
Cotton had been king until the period of 1914 to 1929 when the price dropped out of the cotton market partially because synthetic fabrics like rayon became popular for dresses and undergarments. With the drop in the price of cotton even more companies began using cotton sacking as packaging.
How big is a feed sack?
Authentic vintage cotton feed sack fabric, TWO full sacks opened flat, fabric size of each about 36" x 44". These have ...
What size is a 1940s cotton feed sack?
Cute 1940s or 50s vintage fruit print cotton feed sack fabric - this is a whole sack still sewn up as a bag, 20" x 36" (36" w ...
What size is a vintage feedsack?
Vintage feedsack weave cotton fabric (never used for a sack), 36" x 50" long. Soft and lightweight, very fine and thin. Nice for ...
