Celia Eddy's QuiltStory
Quilt-making Yesterday Today & Tomorrow

Pattern and Place. The Allover Wave Quilting Pattern in the Regions Surrounding the Irish Sea.

by Celia Eddy
published: 04/05/2006

The following is based on a talk given at the Antique Textile Fair on 6th March 2005, subsequently published in Vol. 33 of Text for the Study of Textile History and Design, the magazine of the Textile Society.
Pattern and Place
The Allover Wave Quilting Pattern in the Regions Surrounding the Irish Sea
The study of the movement of pattern, seen as an element of folk art, is as much a part of social history as is the study of the spread of other folkways(1), for example, language, marriage customs, food, clothing or any other established and distinctive cultural phenomena. Such studies are invaluable tools in the quest for answers to the basic questions which we all ask, whether individually or communally: Where do we come from? Who are we? Where are we going?

On a very small scale, the quilting pattern under consideration here illustrates the ways in which craft customs leave their traces as people move from place to place. The pattern is a utilitarian style usually known as "Allover Wave Pattern", or sometimes "chevrons”, and it is a distinctive pattern characteristic of quilts from regions which are geographically analogous, that is those which border on the Irish Sea: the North West of England, the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland.

Although there is plenty of evidence of quilt making in the North West, the quilts of this region have achieved no such fame as the quilts made in the North East. While there may be many reasons for this, it is at least possible that the absence of the elegant and sophisticated use of quilting patterns, which developed into such an outstanding feature of the North East's tradition, partly accounts for this. Also, there seems to be no evidence that quilt making played a part in the local economy in the way that it did in the North East. Despite this, many quilts survive from these regions and, considered together, provide interesting and thought-provoking material.

Allover Wave quilting shown on back view of Seascale Quilt descibed below.

In 2004 Tullie House and Museum in Carlisle exhibited most of the quilts in its collection. Twenty six quilts, all originating from North Cumbria, were shown in Stitches in Time: Quilts since 1790. A significant number of them were quilted in the Allover Wave pattern, confirming the prevalence of the pattern in this North Western corner of England.(2) The pattern also features frequently in Northern Irish and Isle of Man quilts and although to date no examples have appeared from Southwest Scotland this does not prove that the pattern was not known in that area and, indeed, it would be surprising if it was not. What can be said with certainty is that the social and cultural links between the western side of Cumbria, the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland were strong; in Cumbria these are confirmed by evidence from local families who have traceable family connections with both Northern Ireland and the Isle of Man, some going back to the early 19th century and continuing until well into the 20th century. Families in Northern Ireland can also point to links and influences from this part of England and from the Isle of Man.

In the nation-wide documentation carried out by The Quilters’ Guild of the British Isles between 1990 and 1993 the highest percentage of quilts showing the Allover Wave quilting pattern originated from the Isle of Man or Cumbria.(3) The documentation did not extend to Northern Ireland but quilts held in collections there confirm the popularity of the Allover Wave pattern. Another shared characteristic of the quilts in these regions is that they tend to consist of only two layers, i.e. containing no wadding or filler, although this is not by any means always the case. A quilt recently brought to me for cleaning and restoration appears to date from the mid 19th century, judging by the cotton prints used in the patchwork. The quilt was made in the village of Seascale in Cumbria and is believed to have been in the owner's family continuously. It is a most unusual example of a traditional medallion style of English quilt, the centre medallion being formed from small Log Cabin blocks which are then surrounded by a series of pieced borders. The quilt is extremely dirty and some of the patches have disintegrated so that the cotton wadding is revealed in several places. The outstanding feature of it, however, is that it is quilted in the Allover Wave pattern, the quilting being very even and well-executed.(4)

Another shared characteristic of the quilts in these regions is that they tend to consist of only two layers, i.e. containing no wadding or filler, although this is not by any means always the case. A quilt recently brought to me for cleaning and restoration appears to date from the mid 19th century, judging by the cotton prints used in the patchwork. The quilt was made in the village of Seascale in Cumbria and is believed to have been in the owner's family continuously. It is a most unusual example of a traditional medallion style of English quilt, the centre medallion being formed from small Log Cabin blocks which are then surrounded by a series of pieced borders. The quilt is extremely dirty and some of the patches have disintegrated so that the cotton wadding is revealed in several places. The outstanding feature of it, however, is that it is quilted in the Allover Wave pattern, the quilting being very even and well-executed.

Allover Wave Pattern in America
This style of utilitarian quilting is also known in America. According to Barbara Brackman, it is called " elbow quilting" in the South but is not often seen after 1900. She says: "A typical pieced quilt of 1850 might be quilted with lines about an inch apart, plotted to meet at right angles in the centre of the block."(5) Records show that the major exodus from the North of Britain took place between 1717 and 1775 and the emigrants embarked not only from the large centres such as Liverpool and Belfast but from small Northern ports such as Londonderry and Carrickfergus in Northern Ireland, Kirkcudbright and Wigtown in Scotland and Whitehaven and Morecambe in Northern England.(6)It is not unreasonable to speculate that these voyagers would have carried with them the familiar Allover Wave pattern but there is so far no direct evidence of this.

1. David Hackett Fischer, Seeds of Albion, Oxford University Press New York,1989. Page 8ff for discussion of meaning and significance of terms such as ‘folkways’, ‘folk art’ etc.
2. Stitches in Time: The Tullie House Quilt Collection Catalogue. 2004. Quilts in the collection can be viewed by appointment. Telephone 01228 534781.
3. Various authors: Quilt Treasures The Quilters’ Guild Heritage Search.Deirdre McDonald Books in assocation with The Quilters’ Guild, London, 1995.
4. A full the description of the quilt, and an account of its cleaning and restoration, can be found elsewhere in the Heritage section.
5. Barbara Brackman, The Quilt Detective: Clues in the Needlework, 2005, digital newsletter.
6. David Hackett Fischer.op.cit. Page 605.