Day 30 (61) Tumbling Block Top

Another tumbling block star quilt but this one does not have a special solid center star. It does have some of my favorite crazy quilt cheater print (see the bird on the right under the pink diamond and more under the middle blue diamond). 1890.

here's the crazy quilt cheater again from about 1886

And here's a closer look of the crazy cheater diamond.

The color placement is FUN!

Day 29 (60) Bear Paw

The blocks on my Bear Paw quilt top are so fun! C. 1870. It has a label saying the blocks were made in 1852-60 but appear a bit newer.

Day 28 (59) Rolling Stone Signature Quilts

Rolling Stone Presentation Quilt - made for "Mifs (Miss) Sarah A. Xander, Weisenburg Township, Lehigh County (Pennsylvania) 1852"  Sarah was about 14 at the time.

The Rolling Stone was a popular block for signature quilts in German communities in Pennsylvania.

Day 27 (58) New Jersey Signature Quilt

I was distracted doing genealogy research on this chimney album signature quilt from Lebanon, Hunterdon County, New Jersey. I post some close-ups later this week. Main surname is Hoppough and was likely made for Elizabeth Hoppough whose name and birth date of 1835 are listed in a center block and her parents are also on the quilts as well as their next door neighbor Elizabeth Neighbor (no, I can't make this stuff up).

Day 26 (57) Petrogylph Rock Talk

I do non antique work and this is one of my favorites: a rock art applique with petrogylph figures and petrogylph fabrics. Named Moab Rock Talk since it pictures local rock art. Original Design.

Day 25 (56) Wild Goose Chase

Day 24 (55 days) Flower Garden

Hexagon quilts are one of the earliest quilt patterns and have been popular (on and off) for more than 200 years. There are seemingly infinite ways to arrange hexagons but the most popular style is in small circular arrangements that we call Grandmother's Flower Garden.
Here's is a more unusual arrangement and quite early

Also popular are the large scale medallion settings:

A more unusual variation is this diamond setting called Mosaic

Day 23 (54) Log Cabin

Log Cabin quilt in Barn Raising setting - Starley Collection. c.1885 from Pennsylvania. Lots of wonderful prints and a strippy bars  (pieced) backing.

Adore this Fox in a dapper hat!

Strippy or Bars Backing:  this type of pieced backing is often seen in Pennsylvania quilts.

Day 22 (53) political quilts

Ararat the elephant from the Kansas City Star in 1934. He was named for an elephant in the KC zoo NOT as a political symbol

(The rest of him)

This is Giddap "a Democratic donkey" also from the KC Star but created after the publication of Ararat in response to requests for a pattern of the Dem. symbol. 

day 21 (52) Unusual Applique

Sharing a pair of charming and unusual applique blocks from Pennsylvania from my collection.

Here's the pair together

And here is Karen Alexander's fancy computer mock up of a quilt with more of the blocks

There is actually at least 1 existing quilt made up of these blocks and they are an exact match to mine so I think my 2 blocks are leftovers from it. Hope to be able to learn more about it and share a photo. If you have ever seen another quilt or blocks with this pattern, please let me know.

Day 20 (51) More Birds and other fun fabrics

More bird fun...

And an interesting person - would like to see this is yardage. I wonder what else is on the fabric?

And this "snail mail" conversation print is priceless.

More of the quilt

Day 19 (50) Still Loving the Pillar Prints

One of my all time favorite fabrics are pillar prints and here are a few from my collection. All are from the early 1800s and from England.  Let me know if you'd like to see more of them.

Pillar print and floral basket - monochrome. Backing of double 9 patch quilt. c. 1835

Floral pillar print - part of bed curtains with a woven twill tape edge finish.

Grape and floral pillar print - wholecloth quilt.

Bird and floral pillar print.

day 18 (49) Odd Ducks?

This interesting quilt started as a standard Whig Rose but got strange by the border with birds, roosters and fish! I haven't seen another similar border and if someone else has please let me know.

It is machine quilted in a simple grid pattern.

Day 17 (48) Humble 9 patch

One of my luckiest finds was this 1830s blocks 9 Patch quilt top which was an early addition to my collection. It was sold on ebay as 1880s and I still remember looking at it with Trestain's Dating Fabric book and starting in the 1880s section and having to go farther and farther back in time to finally find the fabrics in the 1830s and pre-1830s sections. The blocks were put together at a later date by machine.

The top is chock full of wonderful early prints.

Here's more of it between 2 other early quilts.

Day 16 (47) Centennial Prints

1876 Centennial Prints are often found in 1880s and 90s quilts - if you look closely. Many are dated 1876 or bear the dates of 1776 and 1876.

This Centennial cheater print - preprinted patchwork is dated 1776 and 1876 and came in a red colorway and a brown one too.

Here it is in my 1880 Log cabin quilt - click on the picture to enlarge and see the date on the Liberty Bell.

And more of it in the Log Cabin.

And this is a literal "Centennial" print with the word Centennial and the dates of 1776 and 1876 forming a window grid. Again be sure to click and enlarge.

And the red hexagon is the center is dated centennial print from 1876 with 1776- 1876, the  Liberty bell and the names of the original colonies.