I only make cuddle quilts and wall hangings. I probably get about 6 projects done a year at this point, but I am 53 and don't do a lot of other things. I didn't sew at all when I was raising my two daughters, and none of my ancestors quilted, that I know of.

In a year, I may make 6-10 quilts or wall hangings, maybe more. But keep in mind that most of my quilts are small projects, baby quilts, lap quilts, etc. where most of our ancestors made more bed quilts.

Keep in mind that for many of us (myself included) it may take 2, 3, or more years for us to finish any one quilt. They're called UFOs...UnFinished Objects....ahem.

My maternal grandmother in the coal hills of Kentucky quilted, but I'm not sure when she started or how many quilts she made, but I would think she made at least 12 quilts in her lifetime. I have a couple of her quilts and...she also raised 7 children. I don't know if she pieced by hand or by a treadle machine. I do know my paternal grandmother sewed on a treadle in the mountain town of Canton, NC, but she did not make quilts to my knowledge.

Teresa

My grandparents were pioneers around 1917 in Saskatchewan. There are no quilters in the family but I am sure they must have made some as it gets very cold here. Money was scant so I don't think they would make one every year, but there would be one for each bed. They spent more time on making clothing and the left overs and scraps from worn out garments went to blankets.

I didn't make any quilts until I was 45. I made a lot of clothing for my family and I enjoyed garment sewing.

I have done 3 queen quilts in one winter, January - June, that were hand quilted. Now I do more smaller ones and some are machine quilted so a combination of 6.

Let us know when his book gets published.
Jean

In 2006, I completed 30 quilts....45"X60" or 60"X72"...and most of them were tied. This year only 20 and they were mostly straight stitched on the machine. I also did 5 tops that are not completed yet.

Yes, I'm retired and love to stay home (until summer when I go up north to stay with the daughters).....

SharonG/FL

There have been times when I've made a quilt a month which would work out to 12 a year, but I don't maintain that level of output consistently. I figured out once that it takes about 30 to 35 hours to make one of my lap size quilts, so theoretically I could make one a week if I didn't do anything else. Anyway, it's not a contest for me, but just something that I enjoy doing. Sometimes I get really obsessed over a project and sometimes they take me forever. I am also one of those people who always finishes one project before starting another.

The number of quilts I make per year varies. This year I finished four UFO's (1 throw, 2 table topers & 1 wall hanging), made two baby quilts, one full sized quilt, one micro mini, and about to finish one large throw size.

When I owned and ran a business I managed to make four throw sized quilts and did many other sewing projects in one year.

I do all my quilts on a modern machine and only hand quilted the table toppers. I would guess the lady in your DH's story might have done a fair bit of hand sewing. I also have the convience of all kinds of modern time savers like washing machines and dryers where the lady in the story most likely had to hand wash or use an old ringger type of machine etc... 12 quilts in her lifetime doesn't sound unrealistic to me.

Foxy.

I don't know of any of my ancestors quilting.

I probably make 1 - 3 bed size quilts a year, and a few smaller items like baby quilts or wall hangings. I don't have kids at home but I do work about 60 hours a week at my regular work so lack of free time, more than anything else, is what keeps me from making more.

My first quilt was a full size hand quilted whole cloth and it took me 3 years to complete.
I was a working single parent of 2 and quilting was my recreation.
After that I made about 10 more over a long span of years.
I retired and bought an embroidery machine last year.
2007 I made 3 baby crib size, 4 lap size autograph quilts, 10 lap size raggedy edge, 2 full size raggedy edge.
I am now in the process of making a full size scrappy pineapple blossom that will be machine quilted and hand quilting a full size quilt for me.
DH is complaining that all I do is sit in front of the embroidery or sewing machine LOL so I did take up golfing with him. NOT CLEANING THE HOUSE MORE!!!!!!!!
I probably will not make as many this year but I do need to get started on a baby shower autograph quilt.
No one in my family that I am aware of quilted.
Rosa

In the first 6 years I quilted, I completed 1 or 2 quilts (lap to queen size) and a wall-haning or 2 a year, However, during the past few years, I've completed 3 wall hangings, a tree skirt and about a dozen trivet/coster sets for people, but, I have 2 wall hangings and 3 lap quilts that need quilted and binded--A lot of ufo's to finish in 08--Oh--and right before I logged on, I threw some fabric in the washer for a new project!
Last year I made a resolution to finish my ufo's--so much for that!

I am on my third bed quilt, but I just started quilting fifteen months ago. I was just wondering the same thing today as I was up sewing on this quilt. I've done smaller stuff over the years, like pillow covers, baby quilts and the like, but wasn't counting them.

Aside from my first bed quilt (a puff quilt made totally on machine) mine are piece by machine and finished off by hand. Doesn't make any difference whether a seamstress uses a modern machine or a treadle for piecing. I can work as fast or faster on a treadle than an electric. If I work at a full sized hand finished quilt, I could conceivably finish it in a month or two comfortably in my leisure time.

I don't work well unless inspired, however, and I can't just finish one quilt and then start right in on another without a break. I could see doing two a year without pushing.

I make three to four quilts a year. Mostly lap quilts, and the odd double. I work full time, so I can't manage any mroe than that.

I think that years ago it took longer to make a quilt because they didn't use rotary cutters and self healing mats.

I have been quilting for almost 7 yrs. I have made 6 queen size, 3 lap size,1 wall hanging, A full sized table cloth, 6 twin size, and numerous small projects. I have also sewn several tops for others, and I have quilted some for others. All my quilting is by hand. I also have at least 12 projects in progress. Each is in a different stage of the process.

It takes me several months sometimes to quilt a large quilt. I have 3 small boys and work 3 different part time jobs where my hrs are unpredictable. I basically have to be on call to work at all times for one, one I work 2-3 days a week and the other takes about 2-3 hrs each day 7 days a week.

My mother quilts, but has made very few quilts from start to finish. She mostly has hand quilted my aunt's quilts. Her mother must have made several all by hand-no machine. My mother once told me that all her sisters and herself slept in the same bed when they were little and had at least 10 quilts on it. I imagine there were also several on my grandmother's bed. I have a few of those quilts, but not many made it through in good condition with all the use.

Lynette

I found this interesting as I didn't realize how many I had made. It varies from year to year as to the number. I keep a scrap book with pic. of the things that I make so counted the quilts, wall hangings, and table runners. Total: 210. Many were wall hangins lg. and sm..
I didn't start quilting until all my children were gone but up until 9 years ago I worked fulltime and took lots of call. (I was an OR nurse) My first finished quilt, all hand done was finished 1983. I also have 4 pc. tops that need to be put togeather. This didn't include the framed pictures that I made, at least a doz., or the things like potholders and pillows, Chritmas stockings.
None of my parents ever quilted to my knowledge but I have the tredle mach. that was used to make cloths.
Jayne

Quilterpeg,

12 over 75 years seems way too few. I'm going to make some assumptions here - do feel free to ignore them if they don't fit the storyline.

If the quiltmaking was to cover her children, I think the output would be greater, especially if she had access to a sewing machine. If she were teaching any daughters to quilt, she might have each of several daughters working on quilts at the same time, and I'd count that as greater output, too.

If they (the family) had enough resources to be warm enough, and the protaganist is making quilts as a creative endeavor - well, I still think there would be more. But if it were a chore, like sweeping the floors and washing the dishes, well, 12 might be too many.

How isolated is she? Many in the 1920's still got together for quilting bees, in which a the quilting on a bed-sized quilt would be completed in a day or two, with 6 or more women working on the actual quilting. That could lead to greater productivity as well. One would piece the quilt in the evenings, then get together with neighbors for the quilting. So is the quilting a bonding experience to share with other?

Like I said, it will depend greatly on the motives of the woman.

I'd really like to here more about the story.

Oh, and with all the modern equipment, a very simple pattern, and absolutely no distractions, I can complete a double bed quilt in about 1.5 weeks. But I usually choose complicated patterns, so it takes longer.

This is such an interesting topic. I work full time and about 3 years ago, I was thinking that someone with a passion for quilting like I have should have better output than I seemed to have. I decided to make a list of all the things I completed that year. I started by going through my UFOs and wrote down all of them, then as I completed things, I checked them off. In 2005, I completed 24 lap or wall quilts large and small and I liked looking at that checked off list so started one for 2006 by transferring all the non-finished projects to a new sheet and continuing, I completed 18 and in 2007, 22. But along the way, I realized that when my daughters redecorated their apartments, I made the curtains, pillows and duvet covers and then there were Halloween costumes for my grandchildren each year....quilt blocks for my guild's raffle quilt....I guess at that point I realized that I was doing OK on time allocation. Wedding, graduation and baby gifts have been taken care of along with some community service quilts for my guild. I felt such a sense of accomplishment...that I know I will keep my "finished list" every year for my eyes only.

I read this post and it reminded me that I've been meaning to sit down and make a list of the quilts I've made - throw size and larger - because I've only taken pictures of some of them, and I just wanted to have a record somewhere of what I've made. I didn't include baby quilts or wall hangings. With my old Kenmore machine that my grandmother gave me when I was in 4th grade, I made 14 quilts. Then for Christmas 2004, my hubby gave me a new Janome machine. I must have been inspired because if I remember right, I made 14 quilts in 2005. Only 3 in 2006, and 6 in 2007. I recentely read an article on a women who did an open house quilt show as a tribute to her mom. Her mom used to finish a quilt a month, and as she got older it stretched out to a quilt every 6 weeks! That's amazing! Of course with my memory, can I remember where I saw that? No, maybe it was a post here, maybe an article in a magazine, maybe a newspaper clipping from my mom - that is why I need to start writing things down!

I have only completed two quilts, both baby quilts. I have one that is partly pieced together that I keep expanding and have the fabric for three more. Sadly, both of my machines are "ill" and I keep losing my patience when I try to figure out what's wrong with them.

My mom, who I got the bug from, was always working on a quilt when I was growing up. I know there's at least 5 still in our family, but I'd guess she made at least 5 more that she gave away. That's not including the baby quits she would make. Every time there was a friend, family member, or someone in our community that she heard was pregnant, she'd make a baby quilt for them. She also sold them at craft fairs, as well.

It doesn't sound like all that many, but when she isn't quilting, she makes a good chunk of her own clothing and all her curtains, tablecloths, etc.