Click here for PDF Version Published in Vintage Quilts, Fall 2000 Issue   At the turn of the 19th century, young ladies of good breeding were expected to learn the dainty arts of womanhood—china painting, beautiful penmanship, elocution, and most especially, fine needlework. Although they often learned it in school, little girls also practiced embroidery on "penny squares" provided by their mothers who selected patterns from a catalog at the corner dry goods store. A square of white cotton with a stamped design cost a penny, as did a skein of red floss. If a young woman was diligent, she might finish enough squares for her own quilt. Penny squares—today we know them by their more generic name, redwork.    Red embroidery on a white background has been done for centuries, most notably on the ethnic costumes of European folk traditions. However, the stitching style typical of redwork—figurative designs outlined with stem stitching on white cotton—first gained popularity after a bright red, colorfast dye made its debut around 1850. At that time, embroidery was popular for embellishing linens and home furnishings, and the women's magazines were quick to offer embroidery patterns to their readers. Godey's Lady's Book featured redwork designs as early as 1848. When readers washed their embroidered handwork, they discovered that the new brilliant red dye from Turkey held its color without fading or bleeding onto the background fabric. The complex manufacturing process for "Turkey Red" was a well-kept secret for decades and the complete "recipe" for the original dye is still a mystery.