Newspaper - Flour Sack Cloth

If you have watched my Facebook for any period of time you are aware of how much I love Flour Sack cloth. It has such a deep meaning for me. I am writing this article while wrapped up in a small lap quilt made from flour sack cloth. My parents were both born in the 40’s and my mother has spoken often of how her mom made dresses for her out of flour sacks. I was quit young when mom first mentioned this and images of scratchy woven fibers with big company emblems printed on the front came to mind. Then one day, while walking through an antique shop with her she pointed out this beautiful cotton fabric and announced, “This is Flour Sack cloth!” All the ideas of scratchy fabric left my mind and I looked for this amazing fabric everywhere we went. The story of flour sack cloth is not only a fascinating history but a good study in economic trends. Flour used to be stored in barrels but barrels had many issues that always seemed to cause extra cost for both the consumer and the company. The invention of the sewing machine, which has a fascinating history of its own, turned the world around and by the late 1800’s manufacturers were using it in the production of flour sacks. Cotton fabric was cheap, the sewing machine made the creation fast and the output of flour increased. By the 1900’s sewing machines were in many homes and homemade clothing was growing. The sacks were made of white cotton and the manufacturers emblem was easy to remove by soaking the fabric. Flour Sacks are approximately one yard square making it easy to use in clothing design. By 1930 over 4 million Americans made their clothing out of flour sacks. Patterns were being made to fit the specifications of flour sacks and manufacturers were taking note. They began to print simple patterns on the fabric making them more desirable and of course, the ladies chose their flour based on the print. Companies began to compete trying to win the affections of the shoppers by producing the most unique and beautiful designs. Dolls, stuffed animals, and quilt patterns were printed on the fabric. Ladies made dresses, shirts, children’s clothing, dolls, stuff animals, quilts, blankets and dish towels out of their recycled flour sacks. By the 1960’s companies began using paper bags for flour and the cloth began to disappear from use. The Smithsonian’s American history museum has a flour sack dress from the 1950’s and you can still find 1-yard by 1-yard square flour sacks in antique shops. The patterns are unique showcasing beautiful wildflowers, animals, birds and even scenes from far off places. I have made several purses from flour sack cloth, and you can view them here.

Purses