Deliberate mistakes by the Amish - - - -
 

If the Amish make a deliberate mistake on a quilt to be humble -

Do they do the same on a piece of furniture?
On a meal they are cooking?
On a piece of machinery they are building?
On breeding their livestock?
On putting up a fence?
On a building they are putting up?

Isn't it an oxymoron if one is humble deliberately on purpose? Like, because if you didn't deliberately make a mistake (because you're really too good to make one by mistake, you see) then people would think you're really trying to be like God. :rolleyes:

i never did get this.

Jan in VA

They accept the fact nothing is perfect and tend to leave a mistake when it happens. They make from scratch, everything, so, there are always ( flaws) some you may not notice or perceive as a mistake- just like when you show a non quilter your quilt they have no idea it is not exactly the way you intended it to be, only you know your errors. Each time they cook doing all from scratch and memory the same dish can be different each time- use one seasoning once, something different the next.... What ever the case, they don't stress over not having/using exactly the same. And woodworking is the same. Maybe this piece of wood has a knot in it the next one does not, its used anyway, the carpenter may be unhappy with it, but we see it & think its beautiful. Or that fence may have 2 or 3 slightly warped posts-- a perfectionist with plenty of $ may toss those posted, the Amish are going to use them. Its not so much they go out of their way to create imperfections, they accept imperfections and acknowledge only God is perfect.

you said it right:they accept imperfections and acknowledge only God is perfect.

it is a myth that the amish purposely include a mistake.

Why is it perceived that the Amish are perfect (by some)? Of course they do beautiful work, they are human. Just sayin'... ��

This explanation makes sense.

I know I don't ever have to worry about intentionally making a mistake....they happen all on their own and I frequently miss them to fix.

I like the way you said it.

WE have been discussing copywrite a lot in quilt group lately. My question here is this.....if you are using a pattern and you make a mistake and leave it, thus making it your own, does that mean it no longer pertains to any copywrite issue?

I try very hard to not make mistakes BUT, I do. I don't have to try to make mistakes, they just happen.

I have a friend who always messes up one block on her quilts on purpose because of this. Drives me nuts. But they are her quilts she can do what she wants.

Quote from an Amish woman :- I make enough mistakes so don't need to do it on purpose.

This is what the Amish quilters told me. Ask an Amish quilter. Get it from the horse's mouth!

no, it does not mean that.

I have never heard this concept before. My Mennonite mother would not have thought making a mistake acceptable. I've never seen this in practice in their quilting.

I TOO like what Lynnie said. I made one small mistake in my Bargello quilt that I posted here. I only found it out AFTER I quilted it. But I do accept the fact that I am human and being disable, I make MORE mistakes than I want to count. :(

I personally think "the myth" just adds to the charm of an Amish quilt. I am lucky to have one of their beautiful creations & I will cherish it forever.

An Amish lady has quilted three of my tops. None of them came back with any noticeable mistake. All I noticed was the beautiful handwork, and I gave thanks that she was willing to help.

Lynnie nailed it with her comment. Thanks, Lynnie! :thumbup:

Lynnie was quoting from the post above hers from ckcowl. She didn't make it up. There are several other posts here that credited Lynnie with that quote.
The credit needs to go to ckcowl.

I was told by my Grandmother that only God excepts imperfection. So when you make a quilt, to always have a small flaw in it whether noticeable to the eye or not. That way at night if the enemy (Devil) tries to fallow the pattern of the quilt to attack you, he will run into the flaw & back away. You will then always be protected by our good Lord while sleeping.

How about other things that are made by humans?

Yep, you're right. Mistakes happen when I read things quickly. Ckcowl is the original poster.

I have also read that this is a myth. Amazing how they keep being repeated through the years.

Hi everyone,

i find this very interesting. As a child in primary school I was told that those who weave Persian rugs will purposely make a mistake as only God can create perfection. Whether that is true or not, I still look for this on purpose error if I see a Persian rug, and it's been about 38 yrs and I've not see a mistake yet! X
Mags
x

I suppose they are not mistakes, but it is true that makers of these rugs change the pattern in a few places, making it look like a mistake. We have a Turkish rug on our living room floor, and the changes in the pattern are not noticeable until you get right down on the floor and look for them; but they are there. All the chevrons go one way, except for that one right there. It is turned the other way. The patterns are so small, it is hard to see if you aren't looking for it.

I was told the same that it is a myth- a deliberate mistake is not humility at work anyway

My mother was Amish when she was a child and had lots of Amish relatives. She said she never heard anything about purposely making a mistake to keep you humble. It is a myth as far as we know.

What she said!!

My understanding as well

Maviskw you have made my day! All this time I wanted to know!
BrilliantMags
X

When I'm dealing with customers who are overly stressed about working on a project or a new quilter worrying about making mistakes, I always refer to this 'old-ism', (for lack of a better word). It's amazing how the stress immediatley disappears from both their bodies and faces. As they leave, I tell them to have fun, and usually get a releaved smile.

I would question if they make mistakes. I have seen a lot of their work and it is pretty darn near perfect...

I have read that exact thing, Jan. It said, more or less, that they would never intentionally have an error in a quilt because that would indicate that they thought they were so perfect they just HAD to make an error on purpose since only God is perfect. I believe this is fact.

I am not trying to be humble....I just make mistakes. I have joked about leaving them on purpose because nobody is perfect.

Yes..it is a myth...I know many Amish women and they are amused by that theory! The Amish that I know work very hard on their quilts, and I have seen them reworking patterns or stitches that aren't right. Just like us..they want to do their best, but sometimes they make mistakes.