Vintage Appliqué Quilts

The art of applique quilts has history dating back to the 1700's in France. Quilters used the technique of "broderie perse" which means Persian Embroidery. Broderie perse is also known as chintz quilting since flowers and other motifs from glazed chintz were used in its creation. The making of applique quilts using the broderie perse technique became very popular in England early in the eighteenth century.

Using the technique of Broderie perse to create Applique Quilts was quite time consuming. That made the Applique Quilt special and was reserved for show and not every day use on beds.  The Applique Quilt was usually used only for special occasions.  Since they creation was so time consuming only the wealthy had the time and money to make these special quilts. Being created as a fancy show bedspread and used for special occasions they were usually very well cared for and preserved. This has resulted in the survival of some vintage antique applique quilts.