Antique Quilt Number Two

Here's another antique quilt I have that uses feed sacks.

It's a simple four-patch surrounded by borders.  Each block is about 8-inches square.  I always think that it's kind of amazing, that after years and years and years, quilters still use the same patterns.  I've made lots of quilts that have incorporated a four-patch. 

The back of the quilt is made of the feed sacks, too -- all the same color.

 

One of the feed sacks is slightly darker.  I'm not sure if this was because it was from a different dye run than the other three or if the other three are more faded.  But there is a definite, visible difference.

 



I purchased this quilt at an antique shop in Beaufort, North Carolina.  It was in wonderful condition and was on consignment.  The owner of the antique shop even called the owner of the quilt to see if he knew any of the history behind it.  Unfortunately, he didn't.  It wasn't a family quilt, but he did know it originated out of Virginia. 

It's machine pieced, but it is hand quilted.

There is some minimal damage to the quilt, but it was so clean when I bought it, I didn't wash it.

I love all the bright, cheerful colors!

And just like the first antique quilt I blogged about, this one doesn't have a separate binding.  However, this time, the front of the quilt was pulled around to the back and used as binding.

 



Again, like a great number of antique quilts, there is no label on this beauty.  So I have no idea exactly when it was constructed.  I wish I did.  It's in such wonderful shape and you can tell the quilter, despite whatever limited resources she had, carefully planned this quilt out.  Four-patches aren't repeated and each four-patch is bordered in such a way that there are no two squares exactly alike and the eye travels from one color to the next without wincing.  She made use of what she had in the best way possible and didn't spare any fabric for borders -- a common trait among Depression Era quilts. 

So please, please....label your quilts!  That way if your quilt makes it into someone's blog in the future, there will be some kind of history to go on!

Love and Stitches!

Sherri

Jumping on the Wool Wagon

I fought it.  I really did.

I fought it hard.

But despite my best efforts, I succumbed to temptation and have started wool applique.

I honestly had no intention of doing so, despite two of my best quilting buddies in the world (thank you so much Theressa and Judy) telling me how much fun it is.  However, this little bird came to town....

 

His name is Bertie and he has a quilt called Bertie's Year and it was simply too adorable to pass up.  There is a block for every month of the year that features the little guy up to all kinds of antics.  Patti offered the entire series as a block of the month at Dragonfly.

 

The left side of my brain promptly kicked into gear...

 

"Don't do it...don't sign up for another class...Have you looked at your project sheet lately?  The list of classes you've been asked to teach?  Have you looked at your sewing room?"

 

"But it has a lot of embroidery," the right side of my brain responded.  "I haven't done embroidery in years!  Lots of new quilt patterns are featuring that!  It would be an asset to my quilting resume..."

 

"It will probably take an entire different set of rulers and fabrics and threads than you already have...and don't have space for until Bill finishes your new studio," left brain continued.

 

"The fabrics are included in the kit..." whined right brain.

 

"You absolutely don't need anymore handwork.  None."

 

"But Judy's  teaching....."

 

Yup.  The last one did it.  Judy Poteat is teaching the class.  One of the best quilters I know.

 

Her work is perfect.

 

She's as patient as God.

 

She can make anything.

 

When  I grow up I want to be Judy Poteat.

 

Right brain won the argument so now me and Bertie have a great time together.

 

My mother gave me all of her DMC floss when she moved into her condo, but I still broke down and purchased some pearle cotton to do the embroidery stiches with.  The pearle cotton shows up better on the dark background than the DMC floss does.  I use the DMC to whip stitch down all the wool pieces.

 

It is different than cotton applique.  I use a chenille needle.  It is thicker than an applique needle and longer, so it takes a little getting used to.  The wood doesn't fray, but we're appliqueing on flannel...

 

A fabric that I am having a love/hate relationship with.  It's a perfect complement to the wools, but it does fray like crazy and it is soooooooooooooo stretchy compared to cotton fabric.  We border the applique squares with half-square triangles.  It's  simple step, but sewing and pressing the flannels does have a learning curve that I'm yet to conquer.   I did the January block and absolutely hated the way it turned out.  I purchased another kit to re-do it. 

 

I love my little feathered friend and am finding the wool applique relaxing.  And it is fun re-visiting all those embroidery stitches I honestly thought I had forgotten a long time ago.

 

Love and Stitches,

 

Sherri

 

 



Antique Quilts

I love antique quilts.

I especially love the quilts made with fabric and feed sacks from the 1930's.  I love those colors and the ingenuity behind them.  It was pure genius for flour, feed, sugar, and tobacco manufacturers to make their sacks out of material that could be "up-cycled" into dresses, shirts, and quilts! 

Dating the actual quilts from this era (or any era, for that matter), can be tricky.  Just because a fabric or feed sack was manufactured in the 1930's doesn't mean that the quilt was made in that decade.  It could have been constructed in the 1940's or even later.  Quilters back then were no different in many ways from quilters today -- most of us have fabric in our stash that is years old, but if it fits our current need for color and shade, we pull it out and use it.  Who cares if we bought it in 1989?  It works.

Couple that with the fact that most quilters prior to at least the early 1990's didn't see the need to put a label on their quilt...and dating a quilt can be difficult and complete accuracy is nearly impossible.  At one time there may have been an oral history behind the quilt, but unless someone saw the value in writing it down, the actual completion date and maker of the quilt is often lost to history.

So it's easy to see how accurate dating is difficult.

I  have several 1930-ish quilts in my collection.  They're made from feed sacks, but other than that, I'm not sure where they originated from and who was the quilter.  I've had really good luck finding these in thrift stores...like the one below.

This is definite a quilt that was made just for warmth.  No fancy piecing or quilting is involved.  Someone took feed sacks, opened them up into the rectangles, pressed out the creases and sewed them together on the front (above) and back (below).

It is machine pieced and machine quilted on a cotton bat.  The quilter used diagonal quilting lines to hold it together, but did change the color of her top thread to match the material.

 

No material was spared for binding, she simply left the backing a bit larger and pulled it to the front and whipped it under to cover the edges.  I've discovered that this is typical for a lot of older utility quilts.

It's also kind of pretty, as the binding changes colors as it goes around the quilt. 

This isn't a very intricate quilt, as quilts go.  There is no special piecing or quilting.  In my mind I can imagine that the quilter was racing to get the quilt completed before cold weather set in for the winter.  She was busy with a thousand other things, so the quilt was constructed as simply and as quickly as she knew how.

It is in remarkable shape.  No holes, no worn places.  I purchased it in a thrift store at the beach.  It needed a good washing, but other than that, it is in terrific condition. 

I have a few other of these feed sack quilts in my small collection that I want to share with you this year.

Love and Stitches....

Sherri

Quilting Cuties Christmas

I'm still tying up loose ends with Christmas.... so bear with me with this one last Christmas 2014 post.

I believe I have told you before that I belong to a quilting bee called The Quilting Cuties.  This group began meeting at Hancock Fabrics in Greensboro -- back when they had a real block of the month where you came in, had a demo, and an actual teacher to walk you through the quilt process -- in 2001.

Ellen Freeman led both the High Point Hancock's (now closed) and the Greensboro Hancock's Block of the Month Club.  And when the corporate higher ups decided to no longer offer the BOM, we still decided to meet as a group and Ellen was our fearless leader.

I remember reading the Greensboro newspaper one day (back before nearly everything I read was on line...) and seeing the ad for the BOM.  Until that point I didn't know anyone else that quilted and was entirely self-taught.  Eager to learn and desperate to meet other quilters, I signed up, showed up and met the woman who became and still is, my quilting mentor -- Ellen Freeman.

Ellen led our group for several, several years until her husband retired and they moved to Shallotte, NC.  When she left, she put me in charge of the bee and we're still rockin' and rollin' right along, currently working on At Piece with Time. 

Ellen still gets back from time to time.  She even came to the High Point Guild September 2013 and gave a workshop on needle turn applique.  She was able to come to the Quilting Cuties Christmas party this year and brought along lots of show and tell.

A cute Christmas wreath made from a Twister....

A North Carolina quilt.   Ellen led our bee in a version of this quilt.  When she moved to the coast, she "beached it up," adding flip flops and a sea turtle.  She also changed up the cardinal.  The ones we did were made out of Drunkard's Path.  The one in this quilt is bigger and I think prettier. 

This American Flag is made of tumbler laid side-to-side instead of end-to-end.

Cute snowman....

Samples from classes she has taken through her guild....

Wall hanging.  I think she's loving the beach....

This table runner is from a guild workshop.  Each member brought enough strips for every guild member in attendance.  Members then exchanged strips and made Dresden Plates from then and sewed them into a table runner.

And lastly, a red work quilt that her guild is doing as a block of the month.  Ellen changed some things up on hers, but it's really cute.  I've seen more and more red work (brown work, blue work...) on quilts the last couple of years.  Hand embroidery on quilts is making a come back in a big way.  You've always seen touches here and there, usually to show details on applique, but the last few years I've seen more and more quilts, both in shops and in shows, that feature blocks and blocks of hand embroidery.

It was so good to see Ellen again!  I hate she's living so far away, but she's loving life at the North Carolina Coast and she's president of her guild (Brunswick Quilters).  I'm just hoping it won't be months and months before I see her again.  I always come away from her feeling like I can do anything and her work is so inspiring!

Love and Stitches...

Sherri