Skip to main content

Collection #1

I'm cleaning out my quilt collection this summer, and I thought I'd post some pics of what I'm keeping. This is a lap-size log cabin quilt, made mostly of silk, which probably dates back to the early 20th century. It may have been cut down from a slightly larger size. The backing and ruffle are completely intact; sadly the patchwork has deteriorated quite a bit.

The quilt was reverse-tied, so the little bits of household twine holding it together show on the back instead of the front. That is fairly uncommon, but I think it was done because the quilt was intended for display instead of practical use. The ruffle was likely sewn on with a treadle (foot-powered) sewing machine; that kind of stitching has a distinctive appearance.

I believe all the patchwork was pieced by hand, as you can clearly see the hand stitching everywhere the silk has worn away.

Although it's in poor shape, I'm keeping this one because it is unusual in so many ways, and (to me) still lovely.

Labels:

Comments

nightsmusic said…
Unique in so many ways! I'm glad you're keeping it. As an aside, I used to make most all of my clothes since it was so much cheaper for the material than buying ready made and we were poor. I used a treadle machine that I still have and it still works! Every once in awhile, I still sit down to that. It's so very calming in a strange sort of way.
July 3, 2021 at 4:53 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Fell Off the Wagon

I did cut up that plastic dollar tote to make into something stronger, but got caught up with work and set it aside. Then last night some hand-dyed silk and pretty threads called my name, and, well . . . Felt SO good to do some handwork, except my neck began hurting about an hour into it. I tried changing the way I sit and work, but it's pretty obvious that the doc is right.
7 comments
Read more

Old Loves & Such

My guy kindly bought me my favorite Chinese take out the other night, and my fortune cookie offered up an interesting story starter: This sounds sweet, right? Only the first thing I thought of was an old love coming back from the dead . . . . must be October. In other lovely news, my favorite hand-dyed thread artist, Lorraine from Colour Complements , is moving her business from Etsy to her own web site. Many of my favorite sellers on Etsy are leaving due to the whole "free shipping" coercion debacle, which has also soured me on the site. To show support I did a little shopping at Lorraine's web site and got in these: I love her threads and trims; you simply can't buy anything like them anywhere. Her work makes my specialty thread box look like a treasure chest: At night I'm spending just as hour working on quilting the scrap project runner, and I'm making slow progress: I'll keep quilting the runner while I try to decide on a design for t...
2 comments
Read more

T-minus Day

This was our little Thanksgiving dinner last year, when it was just the three of us. Time keeps whittling down my favorite holiday; this year it will be just me and my guy, and we likely won't even have a turkey.* That will be a first in 35 years. I feel about Thanksgiving the way other people do about Christmas, and while it's a lot of work it's my favorite holiday. Of all the Thanksgivings I've had in the past sixty years, only three were truly terrible: one when I was a kid that I don't talk about (#1 most miserable); the time I roasted two turkeys together and hosted fifteen people whom I cooked for and served with zero help (the largest and #2 most miserable); and the one I spent in basic training (the #3 most miserable.) I have no pictures of any of those, thank heavens. In addition to doing all the cooking I'm the one who takes all the pictures, washes all the dishes and puts away all the leftovers. I suppose no one else cares because to them it...
5 comments
Read more