The Future Of Quilting
When I posted my last thread on this forum, “New Fold And Sew Style Quilts Instruction Video Links,” I could not help but to continue on this train of thought of chosen construction techniques and fabric wastage a bit further into another eye opening direction. How about entertaining a thought of how you or another quilter will actually produce quilts in 5, 10, 20, years from now and beyond even that future time frame.
Out there on line there are some huge hints that there will be trade-offs as well as ease of actually sewing up your desires and ideas as never before possible:
- In “A stitch through time: Quilting sews our past to the future,” the reader is reminded that the past does influence the future more by a simple change in attitudes and techniques as well as sewing aids: "..........The last quarter of the 20th century was a time of unparalleled growth, variety and excellent workmanship,".......New tools, new ways looking at quilts as more than bed coverings, a plethora of fabrics and notions all provided more and more options for creativity……….”-http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705336309/A-stitch-through-time-Quilting-sews-our-past-to-the-future.html?pg=all
Now it is still impossible to predict the future exactly how it will be. But there are some hints being developed right now on demonstrating just how sewing projects like quilt projects might come into reality through in both the near and far future:
- No human hands or brains are needed any more to complete any sewing product in these micro-sewing factories. . All is needed now is an online request and the envisioned idea becomes reality with little (near future) to no (bit further down the road) human involvement. The ultimate “dumbing down” of the future quilt user-will not be needed at all. While cheap (actually more accurately free) student labor is used in this new lab, there is very little need for even free labor with the adoption of more automated options after the micro factories become more numerous. - http://www.etextilecommunications.com/#!090814am4u/cbxu
- The coming of the “soft arm” robots that will finally accurately mimic the human arm in it’s natural grace and brawn and take the place of your hands and arms guiding fabric through the sewing machine or doing similar muscular movements. http://www.businessweek.com/articles...st-the-machine
Yes, for many here, truly a perfect melding of no waste and near instant creation of any sewable product (including quilting). But a complete divorce of the most important part of the quilting process, both mental, emotional, physical, even spiritual-YOU!
As far as for my own adoption of these new processes, I think for the most part, I pass. I rather cut, sew, and use whatever my own hands could create for my and some other's needs and wants. I still prefer to use simple no frills mechanical sewing machines, draw on paper and cloth in real time, measure-cut-and place the cloth pieces under the presser foot myself, and enjoy using the product as long as I can sew on my own without assistance of any kind-especially electronic in nature. I am well verse in using computerized machines of today and probably could use ones on the horizon as I have done so back when I was in the fashion industry using all the new aids of that time. I just elect not to use them. I feel better for this choice.
Last edited by Bicycle Hobo; 01-07-2015 at 11:02 PM.