Feed Sacks: The Colourful History of a Frugal Fabric

Encyclopedia of Inspiration #1

by Linzee Kull McCray, Janine Vangool (Series Editor)

Volume "F" in the UPPERCASE Encyclopedia of Inspiration

Feed sacks are the perfect example of a utilitarian product turned into something beautiful. Author Linzee Kull McCray explores the history of the humble feed sack, from a plain burlap or cotton sack to exuberantly patterned and colourful bags that were repurposed into frocks, aprons and quilts by thrifty housewives in the first half of the 20th century. Extensive imagery and at-scale reproductions of these fabrics create an inspiring sourcebook of pattern and colour—and offer a welcome visit to a slower-paced way of life.

The Encyclopedia of Inspiration is a multi-volume book set released in whimsical (non-alphabetical) order. The first volume, F, is Feed Sacks. Botanica and Stitch•Illo will follow early next year.

Genres: Quilting, Nonfiction, History, Art, Reference, Design, Crafts

544 pages, Paperback

Published December 1, 2016

Reviews

[Shelby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved seeing feed sacks originating from Nebraska towns like Beatrice, Lincoln, Omaha, and Ravenna.

[Jessie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mindblowing tbh

[Catherine Woodman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been a fabric person all my life. In fact, when I was in a fabric store buying this book, I was unable to keep my attention on the task at hand, which was to buy this book. The fabric was so distracting. That said, I really knew very little about the history of printed fabric used to package goods before reading this wonderful book, which is a compendium of feed sacks as a reflection the culture of rural America in the first half of the 20th century. The circumstances that farmers lived along with the sheer volume of goods that they brought onto large farms was something I knew little about, and I was surprised that a book on fabric would teach me all of that, but it did. The book has dozens of clippings from newspapers, industry magazines (one hilariously entitled Bagology), advertisements, and clothing patterns (yes, there were patterns with layouts that echoed feed sack sizes), which are fascinating windows into another time.

The fabric associated with feed sacks were unbelievably varied. The fact that it took about four 100 lb. feed sacks to make a dress, and there were hundreds of patterns makes getting 4 the same kind of a feat. The book is full of photos throughout, and the last section has hundreds of pictures of different fabrics. So this is a coffee table book for those amongst us who cannot resist fabric. Do not miss this!

[Rebecca Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fascinating story about a wildly successful early 20th century marketing innovation: enticing consumers to purchase a product (chicken feed, flour, sugar) by sending it to market in useful, collectible, desirable packaging. The feed sack companies were the first to realize how much influence women had on purchasing decisions, even with respect to products that were overwhelmingly purchased by men. I'd known that these printed feed sack fabrics were commonly used in quilts, but had not realized the extent to which feed sack fabric dominated home sewing in the first half of the 20th century, used for women's dresses, children's clothing, kitchen curtains, and underwear for the entire family. I purchased the book hoping that it would be a visual encyclopedia of prints that I could use to identify feed sack fabrics in vintage quilts. Although there are many full color examples in the book, it seems there were too many different patterns printed on feed sacks (over 18,000) and too few records kept of them for anyone to produce a reference like that.

[Lesanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This lovely book was so fun to read (and to look at). If you love coffee table books or cultural history books, you'll enjoy this sweet one. There are 850 different fabric patterns printed in the book, and I could just imagine all the clothes made by mothers in the 1930s and 1940s and beyond. There is information about all the companies that produced feed sacks--to hold grain and corn to voting ballots. Crazy to think that these were used ubiquitously in our past. I also loved all the advertisements printed throughout the book, which would highlight the products being sent out in the bags. There's a lot to learn from this book, so pick it up and start reading!

[Lilia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I own very rare books but I own the entire series of THE UPPERCASE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF INSPIRATION (I even preordered the 4 last books of the series) because :
1/ I want to support this small Canadian publishing company
2/ They are fully supported by subscriptions only (for their Uppercase Magazine) and book sales
3/ They promote creative artists from all over the world from all fields and media
4/ The encyclopedia books are absolutely stunning. Gorgeous pictures and valuable text contents
Buying their books is a great way to help promote art, the artists and cultures overall.

[Teresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Did you know that there are over 18000 examples of feed sack? That's where one private collector stopped counting!

Tons of illustrations and some great memories of feed sack clothing fill this book. It's a fascinating history that is so much deeper than most of us know.

However, there were stories and explanations that were repetetitive...the same or similar comments in more than one "chapter". it's a quick and interesting read.

[Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

I remember picking out feedbacks for a dress - Purina Chicken feed - when I was a young child. I went with my Dad to pick out the sacks that I wanted - yellow and pink were the colors. And this catalog of fabrics in colors and designs was delightful. I also enjoyed reading the history of the feed sacks and mills in different parts of the United States and seeing all of the sewing patterns available for projects.

[April Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book. It has a good history of the feed sack. There are pages and pages of them and also many photos, some in color, of women and children wearing their feed sack clothing. I would like to have a copy for my personal library. I make 1930's reproduction quilts as a hobby and this book makes me want all the fabric!

[Rachel Pollock · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you only read one book on feed sacks and their place in the history of American fashion, sustainability, the garment trade vs. domestic sewing, etc., this should be that book.

I'm in the midst of a deep dive into feed sack fabric (and particularly its place in quilting from a historical perspective) so I've been reading several books in this area and this title is exhaustively thorough. McCray delves into cotton sacks as packaging for various dry goods transformed into a reusable textile for thrift and how they leveraged that into a marketing strategy, how sacks were used in domestic sewing from garments to home goods to children's dolls and beyond.

The book is printed with full color photography throughout with hundreds of prints, labels/logos, and historical illustrations/photography from periodicals and flyers about reuse of the sacks in various applications.

Highly recommend!

[Elsabe Retief · Rating 4 out of 5]

The innovative spirit of Janine van Gool has no limits! What a brilliant and infinitely important manifesto this is of something that might have been forgotten completely! Thank you also for sharing your stash of feed sacks so we can really feel the quality and look of it. I have sewn my little gifted piece into my needle book where I can appreciate it often. In a world of fabric, touch is everything!!

[Carie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful book, and interesting if you like "all things textiles" especially vintage textiles. Published in Canada, I think I need to buy some more in this series to add to my textile book collection.

[Alycia Maurer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love history, and I loved this book. My Grandmother sewed with feed sacks. Very well written with tons of pictures.

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting history. Lots of photos of the fabrics.