Friday, March 24, 2023

Does Anyone Else Love Feed Sacks?

Feed Sacks by Linzee Kull McCray
I found Feed Sacks: The Colorful History of a Frugal Fabric by Linzee Kull McCray at the library.  I learned more than I ever imagined there was to know about those sweet cotton bags.

The book includes the history of feed sacks from barrel to bag; from growing and harvesting cotton to weaving cloth; from creating the print for the fabric through the printing and sewing of the sacks; and the transition from bags with company names to printed fabric and paper labels; and so much more.

This is a photo-heavy volume with images of advertisements, photographs of families wearing clothes made from feed sacks, photos of sacks from various times, advertisements, patterns, news articles, and, of course, feed sacks in all their variety.
Feed Sacks by Linzee Kull McCray
I was surprised to learn that pattern companies like McCalls created a selection of patterns particularly for use with feed sacks.  I was also surprised to learn that some companies that printed and made feed sacks also sold yardage of some of that same fabric.  Ideas for ways to use bags included aprons, smocks, pajamas, rompers, middies, mattress covers, handkerchiefs, dish towels, shoe cases, laundry bags, pillow cases, curtains, ironing board covers, bibs, and on and on.  Quilts were not at the top of the list but there are examples of feed sack quilts in the book, likely made from leftover fabric after making clothing.
Feed Sacks by Linzee Kull McCray
Bags were printed with all-over patterns, with border patterns, embroidery patterns, patterns for stuffed toys, aprons, and cloth dolls and their clothing.  The string used to close the bags was sometimes used to make crocheted doilies, as well as for other uses. 

Many of the photos in the book are placed on top of a photo of a feed sack, a great way to show more feed sack prints.  The last third of the book is of swatches of feed sack prints, many of them full pages.
Feed Sacks by Linzee Kull McCray
I was surprised to learn how much consumers influenced companies to sell products in printed bags and how responsive companies were to the desires of consumers.  Way to go, consumers!

I appreciated this statement from the book (on page 357):  "Reusing feed sacks was a way to survive, but it also allowed families to thrive.  Making use of what they had was not based on assuming some high moral ground; it was simply a way of life.  Feed sacks also proved to manufacturers that there was value in products whose reusability was enhanced."

I learned that at least 18,000 prints were created for bags.  One collector quit counting at that number and was still finding bags with prints she didn't have.

This book is a small 6½" x 8" but weighs a hefty two pounds because it's printed on beautiful paper.  My only two complaints about the book are that the font on many of the pages is small.  I reasoned that if they'd made it bigger, there may have been double the pages (and weight) or larger pages and still double the weight.  My other small complaint is that there's no index at the back.  Often when I read a book I'll remember something and when I want to go back to find it, I use the index.  Not possible with this book.

If you love feed sacks this book is worth the time to at least browse through it for the pleasure of the photographs.

I have a few feed sacks amongst my stacks of fabric.  I wasn't sure about these two, below, whether they really were feed sacks or not, but the book told me that one way to know is by the stitching across one end.  The needles and large string used to close the bags left holes that don't easily disappear.  It seems that these two were both used as pillow cases because they've been hemmed.
vintage feed sacks
The other three printed sacks I have are these. The two on the right are a slightly coarser weave than the one on the left, possibly used for meal or feed and not flour or sugar.  All three of these are still in their original bag condition with only the stitching removed from one end. 
vintage feed sacks
The bag with blue flowers is practically square, so it is probably a 5# meal bag.  Bag sizes and weights eventually became standardized.  I suppose that's helpful for collectors to know.
Feed Sacks by Linzee Kull McCray
If you love feed sacks you won't want to miss this wonderful book!

--Nancy.

8 comments:

  1. Very interesting! You are fortunate to have a good library that stocks books like this.
    I first read about feed sack clothes in a novel I read as a preteen, maybe the first teen romance I came across. A girl spends the summer at her aunt's ranch in New Mexico, meets a cute boy. The aunt makes a sundress for the girl, for the first date. [Chinese food and a movie, in NM in the 50s!?]...using feed sacks that had been carefully accumulated over the year. The girl is dubious: "--feedsacks?? Um no, Aunt Rachel, I'll just wear jeans?", but is later thrilled with dress. My love of feed sacks began with this book, I was probably about 12.

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    1. How fun that you remember that book, Lizzy, and that it was the beginning of your love of feed sacks.  Do you remember the name of the book?
      We do have a good library system that includes a dozen or more libraries around central Ohio.  Better than inter-library loan.  But, the company that published this book, Uppercase Press, has several other books that look interesting that our library does not have.  I'm especially grateful they had this one.

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  2. Looks like a really good resource on feedsacks. You have some lovely feedsacks there. I love the look and the history, but I have next to none in my stash.
    My Mom once made a quilt with mostly feedsack fabrics that had been gifted to her. I got the quilt and the scraps. But I gave the quilt back to mom when she wished she still had one of her quilts to gift to her hairdresser of 30 years. Of all the quilts I owned from Mom, that one (a Grandmother's Fan pattern) to me seemed more the style her hairdresser would appreciate.
    I have made a couple of tiny pineapple ornaments from some of the scraps, and have toyed with the idea of a mini Dresden with others, but have yet to act upon that.

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    1. I just have those few feed sacks, Janet. I don't know how I came to have them and would probably not have bought them individually. Perhaps they were in a box of linens at an auction, but who knows.
      That was generous of you to give your mom her quilt back to give it to someone else. I hope her hairdresser loved it!
      I don't know what scraps you have but so many of the feed sack fabrics I've seen have larger prints on them that might not work well for miniature quilts. But then, there are some other prints I've seen that would probably be great. You're an expert quilt maker so I'm sure you'll know how to best use your scraps!

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  3. Thanks. I love feedsacks, and used to have quite a few, but now have only scraps and pieces. At one time, they were reasonably priced at quilt shows, but that's been a couple of decades now, because, of course, they've been collected and there are fewer of them! We could also still buy 50 lb. bags of flour in feedsacks not too many years ago, and there were still some nice prints.

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    1. That's amazing that flowered feed sacks were still available for purchase in somewhat recent years, Susan!
      I think it's great that you have scraps of feed sacks because you used them! I have these few and can't yet bring myself to cut into them. I'm thinking of a quilt with roses so it may happen one of these days.

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  4. I love the little designs on the feed sacks but I don't own any. That is quite a comprehensive book on everything having to do with feed sacks. I bet it was fun to read. Sometimes the history of quilting is as enjoyable as the actual sewing. I loved reading The American Quilt by Roderick Kiracofe. I have a couple of Civil War history books by Barbara Brackman and the Beamish Museum Collection book that I loved reading about the history as much as seeing the quilt.

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    1. Like you, Robin, I love the little designs on feed sacks (and on 1930s and 1940s prints, too) but even though I have those few, I've never sewn with them.  Yes, the book was fun to read despite the small print.
      I was hoping our library might have the Beamish Museum Collection book but it doesn't.  I'm sure it would be fun to look through and read.  I enjoyed Kiracofe's book, too, but I read only the sections that interested me, not the whole book cover to cover.  

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