July 2016 – Hawaiian quilts

While on a holidays in Hawaii recently I discovered that the Hawaiians have their own distinctive style of quilting.

As early as 1820 native Hawaiian women learned to make quilts from missionaries. The quilts had a single design radiating symmetrically from the centre covering the whole quilt. Inspiration for many of the designs came from the beauty of the flora on the islands.

Hawaiian’s also use the flag of Hawaii and other symbols of Hawaiian royalty in their designs.