Y'all know how much I love scrap quilts. So when my aunt brought an old treasure over today to show me, I was grinning madly, admiring all the old fabrics. I didn't get any pictures of it laid out flat. I'm guessing it's about 5.5'x6'.
Anyone else been watching Barbara Brackman's Stars in a Time Warp series this year? You'll recognize some of these prints:
That gray, black, and red print in the center of the above photo is my favorite.
There are a lot of browns, a few pinks (mostly double pinks), reds, blues, and greens, and lots of shirting prints.
Many of the triangles have fabric that has completely disintegrated.
And I suspect there's been some fading over the years.
With my limited experience in dating quilts, I think it's pre 1900.
Here's a photo of an edge flipped over so you can see the back. (Which is actually a redder/rustier color than shows in this pic.)
And here's a corner where you can really see the wear.
This quilt was loved and used for many years. The binding is almost completely worn away, and the batting is very thin around all the edges. (And for the record, the binding is single-fold, straight grain.) There are stains here and there.
It's sort of the Charlie Brown Christmas tree of quilts.
My aunt doesn't remember where it came from, though we agree that it doesn't ring any bells as a family quilt for either of us. So, she figured it ought to go to someone who would appreciate it.
That would be me. It's now my Charlie Brown Christmas tree quilt.
I suspect I'm not the first person who ever loved it.
I'm going to link to Oh Scrap at Quilting is More Fun than Housework. While this isn't technically MY scrap project, I hope that 100 years from now, someone loves my scrap quilts as much as I love this old dear.
Lucky you! What a great study piece! From what I can see I'd put it right at the turn of the century, though many of the fabrics appear to be much older. Maybe it's the simple block design that makes me feel that way. Regardless, it's lovely and I know you will get much inspiration from it.
ReplyDeleteYou know I am not a quilter, but I love old quilts! There was one on my bed as a child that had bits from various pieces of clothing my mother had sewed for me, and I used to have a quilt that my grandmother made. (Sadly, that one has disappeared.)
ReplyDeleteIt is a real treasure and I love all the close-up photographs to see it so well, thank you! Your progress on the mystery is very impressive, too!
ReplyDeleteLucky you!!! That's a beauty. It's kind of what I was thinking when I thought about making my scrappy 1000 (or so) pyramid quilt!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great find, lucky you! I love a bit of good old fashioned inspiration any time!
ReplyDeleteLucky you! What are you going to do with it?
ReplyDeleteI have one that my maternal grandfather's mother made. Mother dated it pre-1926. Mom took the quilt and another one (My sister has it.) when they were cleaning out her mother's home after grandma's death. No one wanted them because they were worn like the one you have. Mine is a pickle-dish pattern, can't remember off the top of my head what my sister's is.
ReplyDeleteLucky you! You got an Oldie-but-Goldie Quilt. I love it too. Thank you for sharing with us all those wonderful pictures. It is entirely made of triangles? How big the triangles? May we have a picture of the entire please? That is if you have time ... between monkeys and piglets, of course lol. ;^)
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful treasure. I am happy it found a home with someone that will cherish it. Thanks for sharing this sweet old quilt with Oh scrap!
ReplyDeleteA treasure indeed, how wonderful!
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