Even Weave as Metaphor, first thoughts on feminism in textiles

In Thinking Through Craft by Glenn Adamson (p152) it says:
'For Jefferies and other Feminist artists of her generation, the notion of a flexible, evenly dispersed weave has itself come to seem like a model for a more democratic and egalitarian social "fabric" '.

An evenly dispersed weave is a visually pleasing thing, comfortable to touch and be around; potentially a more evenly woven society also offers these sensory pleasures.


(Jefferies refers to Janis Jefferies, an arttst with a particular interest in feminism and fibre)

Feminism in Textiles

Can textiles be feminist? 

Can they be political beyond the sense of cloth banners with written messages?
 
There is a lot of debate surrounding appearance and womens rights.  This has started me wondering if cloth has anything to do with these debates, or is it only when transformed into a form that it takes on 'personality' and, as clothing, becomes a discussion point.
Hobbies or skills associated with cloth have many messages:  Originally embroidery was a pastime used to occupy the minds of women in rder to prevent them from getting distracted by sex.  This was then twisted back onto itself by women being seen to do embroidery to show that they had sexual thoughts that they needed distracting from.
The exhibition at the Women's Library in east London at the moment focuses in part on the clothing and craft skills women used during the first and second waves of feminism.  Here now in the third wave, running concurrently with a resurgence in interest in handcrafts, it can be harder to tell what relates to feminism and what doesn't. 

Can cloth be considered gendered at any point?

I will continue on this point later...