Antique 1880 Hexagon Mosaic Medallion

Hexagon Mosaic Medallion
circa 1880, Ohio, 86 x 70"

 This graphic antique quilt gives the impression of being sewn in wedge segments but is done in staggered straight rows.  Each row is cut from one fabric but a few fabrics are used in two rows.  2" Hexagons.  Purchased from Cindy Rennels.  A great mix of madder reds and browns alternating with black and white shirtings; small scale prints, clearly a well planned quilt.

Detail of center -- don't forget to click on it to see the fabrics up close.  The floral in rows 3 and 5 is especially charming.

Again, you'll want to click on pic to zoom in and see the upper row shirting, it is a delightful cherry heart design.  It is interesting to note how many elegant 19th century quilts have one or a few stripes or plaids, like the blue and cream stripe on the last row and the printed plaid below.  They add interest and are a great element to add to make reproductions look more authentic.

This detail shot shows the interesting quilting- straight line grid through the blocks rather than the traditional outline.  If I ever make a hex quilt, I will use this method -- much less work than stitching around each individual hex.

Rocky Road to Kansas via Pennsylvania -- Revisited

Another great late 1800's Pennsylvania quilt purchased from Donna (gb-best on eBay). There really must be something in the water as those PA quilters and their unique and funky color sense continue to amaze me. I don't think anyone else does pink in a such an assertive way with no fear. Okay, yes that is a lot of generalizing but after a few years of studying, it is easy to pick the PA quilts out of the line up.  To see a full picture of this quilt, click here.

This Rocky Road to Kansas has a lot of movement due to the use of the double pink Greek key print ground that reads as a stripe. That fabric choice would probably have pushed the quilt over the top had the maker not been so careful in piecing the 'stars'. They are arranged in a very controlled manner/order: red/blue in centers, then chrome yellow, then the same fabrics used in the facing points. The centers are double blue/Lancaster blue and turkey red with chrome yellow details. There are a number of mourning prints and the back is a great neon stripe.

And here it is with a  very different example of a Rocky Road to Kansas, made by my great grandmother in the 1930's in central Utah.  Click here to see more of the 30's Road

P.s.  Thanks for the lovely comments.  Glad you like this funky quilt and the photo of the 2 quilts together.   I'm thinking of doing a new lecture with pairs of quilts, comparing and contrasting.  And it would be a fun dating game - to have people decide which is older/newer.

For Flag Day, Patriotic Dolly Madison's Star

c. 1920, believe about 84" square

In honor of flag day, I thought I'd post an unusual red, white and blue, patriotic quilt.  I believe I only have 2 in my antique or vintage collection.  I generally collect scrappy, funky quilts but this one caught my eye, probably because of the creative color placement to make several different looks.  Interesting to study it and wonder why all 5 of the blue center, red point blocks are the same BUT


need sunglasses for the red and burgundy

 there are 5 different arrangements in the 11 blue point blocks --- look closely.  Here are 3 of them.

I also like the fearless use of the burgundy border with the tomato red (very large scale polka dot) in the blocks.  See the middle photo to see how clash-y it is.  The block is Brackman #2241: Dolly Madison's Star (Finley 1929) or President's Block (Nancy Cabot, 1930's) or Santa Fe (Hearth and Home 1885 -1930's).  This block seems to be pretty uncommon, not sure if I've even seen any others.  Please contact me if you have one, I'd love to see other examples.

Bloggers Quilt Festival-- Quilted Joy

Antique 1850 Rose of Sharon Applique Quilt

This is probably the happiest quilt I own or have ever seen!  This has to be what JOY looks like when it is quilted. This unknown quilter really upped the ante and filled every inch with applique and quilting.  Can you tell I love this quilt?  If you look closely, you will see that it is a 9 block, Rose of Sharon quilt with filler bird and grape vine applique and fancy floral borders.  **Note, this is an antique quilt from 1850**

The border is over the top with all the different flowers -irises, tulips, etc. I really like how the 3 stemmed flower groups have been stitched to make them into a basket. And the two different birds are delightful and the red birds really seem to be enjoying the blue berries or grapes. They do look delicious. There are a lot of embroidered details (stitching on appliques, etc.)--so much to take in. Enjoy-I sure am.  Please click on the photos to see more details.

If you have seen a similar quilt, please let me know as I haven't found anything close and neither has the dealer.
Click here to see my other Blogger Quilt Festival entry--  my reproduction of an antique cheddar orange star quilt.
Now back to visiting all the other wonderful quilts in Amy's Bloggers Quilt Festival (click on words not button). Thanks AMY!

Utah Quilt Appraisals

I will be doing appraisals on May  5, 6 and 7, 2011 at the Home Machine Quilting Show (HMQS) in Salt Lake City/Sandy, Utah. I am certified by American Quilters Society (AQS) to appraise all types of quilts-antique, vintage and newly made and traditional and art quilts. I will be in booth #514 so please stop by.  Appointments are still available, so please bring in your quilts.  And I can also appraise quilts that are hanging in the show or in special exhibits or booths.
    I will be doing a lecture Thursday at 2:00 p.m. on Challenge Quilts-how to find and enter national challenges. On Friday at 5:00 my lecture is on Learning from the Past-creating new quilts from inspiring antique quilts.  I will also have a special exhibit with 12 wonderful antique quilts from 1830-1900. 
  And in my booth #514, I will have several quilts including the red and green masterpiece Quaker  (Society of Friends) signature/inscribed quilt shown above.  Dated 1850 with more than 150 names, genealogy, Spencerian drawings, friendship sentiments and even a poem. To see some close-ups from this quilt, see my Valentine's Day posting.

Award Winner-- Alliance for American Quilts

Virginia is for Lovers, closeup of first block

  My 4 block applique antique reproduction quilt, Virginia is for Lovers, is the 3rd prize winner in the Alliances Quilt Contest with the Alliance for American Quilts.  What an incredible honor as there were more than a 100 quilts in the contest.  Thank you to everyone who voted for my quilt. Click here to see all the award winning quilts. 
  What did I win, you ask?  A gift basket including items from The Quilt Show.com, Quilters Club of America, Fons & Porter, Dharma Trading Company, Darlene Zimmerman, Riversilks, and C&T Publishing.  I'll post a pic when the basket arrives.
 

  And if you aren't tried of voting, the Alliance is now holding a viewer's choice voting. You can vote as a webviewer or in conjunction with a live exhibit like last week's show in Paducah. Quilt 117 is my entry.   Click here  for the link to vote. Or go directly to the ballot
Votes will be tallied and a Viewer's Choice award will be given for each exhibition venue and one additional award will be determined by web viewers.
The voting will close on Monday, October 24 at 9 pm Eastern.
    Thanks again for the votes and all the support and especially the wonderful comments.  And if you haven't seen the full quilt or the story of its making, scroll down to the 1/2 dozen or so prior posts about it or click on challenge in the label list.

I'm in the Final Four - Alliance for American Quilts contest

   I'm floating on air and absolutely thrilled to announce that my quilt "Virginia is for Lovers" is in the final round of voting for the Alliance for American Quilts contest.   A huge thank you to everyone who voted for me in the first round.  The voting is now down to 4 quilts and ballots went out Friday a.m. to Alliance members and voting end Monday night.
  It would be such an honor to win and the grand prize of a Handi Quilter quilting machine would be absolutely amazing.   So I'm again asking Alliance members to please vote for my quilt.
  Thank you for your support.
And if you are new to my blog please scroll down and read all about the making of this quilt and its antique inspiration.
 Off to float some more - WOO HOO.

Alliance for American Quilts Voting Now Open



detail, Virginia is for Lovers



Virginia is for Lovers, 16" x 16", 2011

 The voting for the 2011 Alliance for American Quilts is now open -- through April 20th. My entry is quilt #117, Virginia is for Lovers. It is hand appliqued and hand quilted and based on a circa 1845 crib quilt in my collection (see below).
I would love to win the Handi Quilter quilting machine and hope that you will consider voting for me. You must be a member to vote but it is not too late to join the Alliance; an excellent organization that does so much to preserve the history of American Quilts. I especially enjoy the Quilt Index. If you join by April 19th, Amy will email you a ballot. You can join on the Alliance website and pay by credit card or paypal, it is only $25.00 (tax deductible) and again it goes to a great group.

I thought you might like to see my challenge quilt along with the antique inspiration, a circa 1845 crib quilt from the Shenandoah valley of Virginia. Thanks for visiting and for considering my quilt.

Red and White Quilt Festival

Applique Peony or Lily Quilt, 96 x 100" Circa 1850

Due to the major Red and White Quilt exhibit: Infinite Variety: Three Centuries of Red and White Quilts that is about to open in New York City sponsored by the American Folk Art Museum, there is a heightened interest in all things Red and White. "The largest exhibition of quilts ever to be held in New York City, the installation will include 650 American red and white quilts from the private collection of Joanna S. Rose."  What an amazing collection, unrivaled in focused breadth, I daresay.

Volume, volume, volume and yet incredible unique quilts.

Taryn has organized an online exhibit and the 1st photo shows my contribution.  A graphic red & green peony quilt that is hand pieced, hand appliqued, and hand quilted, with early fabrics dating from 1830-1850.   This quilt is from the pre- civil war era.

 

The quilting is wonderful, with quilting around the piecework and in elaborate straight line, feathered, maple leaf, and sunflower designs in the background.   And it almost goes without saying the turkey reds are absolutely amazing.  I'm only showing the ones with blue right now but there are several with yellow motifs.

Don't forget to stop by Taryn's blog and see all the quilts (mainly antiques or inspired by antiques) on the online exhibit.



1845 Crib Quilt Finished- Alliance for American Quilts

Virginia is For Lovers  2011 
16 x 16"

   I am very pleased to share the 3rd quilt I have made for the Alliance for American Quilts Challenge Contest.  It is a reproduction of a very romantic antique crib quilt circa 1845 from Virginia with lots of hearts and cupid's arrows -hence the title "Virginia is for Lovers".  Don't forget to look at my prior posts to see lots of photos of the quilt's progress.  You can click on 2011 on the blog archive to see/read all about it.  It was quite hard to part with it on Monday and I think my Mom even thought about hiding it so she could keep it.

  

   In April, Alliance members will vote to determine contest winners - so join now to vote for my quilt (subtle hint).  And  on April 27-30 the 2011 contest quilts will debut at the American Quilter's Society's 27th annual show in Paducah, Kentucky. So please stop by and see my quilt if you are lucky enough to be in KY.

Here is the my new quilt on the section of antique original that I reproduced:

Old and New (click on photo to enlarge)

   But seriously, I hope all of you already know about and have joined the Alliance.  It is such a great organization "whose mission is to document, preserve, and share our American quilt heritage by collecting the rich stories that historic and contemporary quilts, and their makers, tell about our nation's diverse peoples and their communities."  What an inspiring mission and it is such a great resource.

Here is a before and after photo to remind us all that quilting really does 'make the quilt'!   Enjoy!

Antique Valentine Hearts (Signature Quilt, Crib Quilt)

Here is a special Valentine's Day preview of my new quilt- with 2 very valentiney blocks. Don't you love the hand throwing the arrow at the heart? There are several blocks with hearts and other wonderful little drawings. It is a dated 1850 Quaker friendship album quilt from Chester County Pennsylvania. From the Worrall, Hoopes, Davis, Windle, Umstead, Hicklen, families.

 
Here is a full look at the Umsted block to further whet your appetite.

And here is another valentine to my readers: the 4th block in my reproduction of the 1845 crib quilt along with the original antique block. I'm reproducing it for the Alliance for American Quilts 2011 Challenge. Scroll down to my previous entries to see the other 3 blocks and the original blocks and also the full quilt.  Now onto  the hand quilting.

Antique Crib Quilt - Ring Around the Roses

Here is the 3rd block in my reproduction quilt for the Alliance for American Quilts challenge.  This little wreath was quite annoying (one of those blocks that has you looking longingly at the fusible or the shredder).  Very fussy applique, the old fashioned way.  I've already posted the original block, so you'll need to scroll down or click here to see it.
Several people have asked about the light blocks that are hard to see, they are done in a faded tiny yellow print.  Here is the first block of the quilt, enjoy.

Antique Crib Quilt - A Little Birdie

Here is the second block in my reproduction quilt for the Alliance for American Quilts 2011 challenge. Don't you just love how the bird is about to get shot by the giant cupid's arrow?  Very quirky.  And the formal floral urn squished in the corner- what was she thinking?  Don't forget to click on the photos to enlarge and see detail ... especially the fabric with birds on it that I used for the bird applique. 
 Please see the previous 2 posts to see my first block and the full picture of the original c. 1845 crib quilt from Virginia.  The original blocks are about 9" and the repros are bit under 7".  The little fussy needleturn applique is tricky but also kind of fun.  Here is the original block, it is very fragile, not sure why it is so much weaker than the other blocks. 

It has been interesting to reproduce the blocks in a similar but fresher look.  I had fun picking out and fussy cutting the bird fabric.  I generally try to do as exact as possible repros and would have used solid 'stained' muslin, etc.  Not sure which look I like better.  What do y'all think?  Thanks for visiting.

Antique 1845 crib quilt- updated

 Reproduction block 2011  7"square



 I am working on my quilt for the Alliance for American Quilts 2011 Challenge and I'm reproducing 4 blocks from a c. 1845 crib quilt shown.  The little flower baskets are ONLY 1.5 inches which is pretty fussy for needle-turn applique but I got it done.  1 down and only 3 more to go.
 I hope this will be a subliminal advertising for the contest voting, hint, hint.
I wrote about the antique quilt in my last post (click on link) or scroll down to read more about it or click on the blog title (top of page) to see it and more posts.  Here is the original block, sort of a before and after/make-over and another block to whet your appetite.



original block from 1845 crib quilt 9" square



Circle wreath, note the tiny cross stitch initials

Antique Crib Quilt -- Hearts and Flowers

Flower basket CE Huff?



c. 1845 Virginia Crib Quilt 37" x 49"

This is an utterly charming album crib quilt from the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, purchased from a VA auction.  It has 12 blocks (9" blocks), each featuring a different design including hearts, wreaths, potted flowers, tulips, a bird on branch, and cut-out chintz flowers, eight blocks with stitched name or initials in the teeniest cross stitch.
Provenance: Descended in the Smith family of Waynesboro, Augusta Co., VA.

I'm thinking of reproducing it in a smaller scale and trying to decide on close fabrics or crazy wild?

I haven't seen any other album quilts with so many heart motifs.  I find the block with the bird in the tree getting shot with an arrow a bit strange yet kind of cute.  And who can resist a bit of chintz, broderie perse applique:

Please comment if you want to see more photos.

Patriotic Quilt pattern #2 Donkey named Giddap

Just a few days after posting my Ararat elephant (previous post) from the Kansas City Star, I found a very affordable donkey quilt on eBay.  So in the interest of equal time for both parties and also because of several requests to see the donkey pattern, I am posting Giddap the Donkey, Brackman #226.77 which was first published in 1931.  I opened the box up and was very surprised to find, not only it is my first donkey quilt . . . but it is my first double knit polyester quilt - yikes.  Scary to think it will probably outlast the rest of my collection.  The white background is cotton and I didn't notice or think to ask about the rest of the quilt.  Based on the fabrics, I'll say it is circa 1970's. In doing some more research I found that the Star reprinted this pattern in 1977 which helps confirm the dating (probably more patriotic overflow from the bicentennial). I think I need to stick with my beloved 1800's cottons but it is a good reminder to ask lots of questions before purchasing.   The blocks are large 23" x 26".

Hope you enjoy (I think that pink donkey is smirking at me).  This is not a very common pattern but they are out there, if you keep looking.  I found another one on eBay last week, a 1950's gingham 4 block that was also very affordable and a lot less goofy (or creepy) looking and made of natural fibers but I already had one so I let it go (well I captured a bit of it).  Guess I should have waited a bit longer for this one or one from a dealer.

  Speaking of which, they are also a few available from antique quilt dealers  including my friend Cindy Rennels  who has a delightful 4 block pink example for sale on her site.

Vote heads or tails vintage block

Tails
Heads

This is reminder to my US readers to get out and vote today. Many of you quilt historians will recognize this block, even in two parts as 'Ararat'- Brackman #226.76. Published in the Kansas City Star, June 6, 1931. There was a companion/opposition block Giddap (donkey) that was published in July of 1931. These are the go to pieced blocks for republican and democrat as far as I know. Haven't seen any others-have you.

I don't want to appear partisan but I only have Ararat.

Two scans of vintage pillowcased quilt block in my collection.  Block is 14.5" high x 19" wide.  I haven't looked at the actual patterns but it seems like the elephant block is significantly smaller than the donkey.