Good Morning, Quilters!
Last year I rescued a quilt from a painter.
He was using a hand-made quilt as a drop cloth.
My heart sank as I watched him unfurl it under his ladder and prepared to paint.
“Excuse me….I’ll trade you a real drop cloth for that quilt?”
He looked at me like I was a little strange….(Quilters—we’re used to that.)
The quilt had a few holes (but fortunately no paint– yet) So I repaired it and gave it to one of my daughters.
My friend said she rescued a quilt at a tailgate-a young couple was using it to wrap their grill.
Oh dear….
What about YOU?
Have you ever rescued a quilt?
We’d LOVE to HATE to hear!
Lori
PS…All tutorials, images and information are the property of Lori Kennedy at The Inbox Jaunt and are intended for personal use only. Feel free to re-blog, pin or share with attribution to The Inbox Jaunt. For all other purposes, please contact me at lckennedy@hotmail.com. Thanks!
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105 comments
lilquilter
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lilquilter
(Hugs of thanks in reply to Marta’s compliment! And hugs to all our fellow quilters! Quilt on!)
Marta
OH, watching TV the other night… Flea Market Flip.The camera quickly panned by the flea market booths. There was a 5 foot tall pile of quilts with a hand written sign : Quilts $5. I hollered STOP. My SpouseMan said, “They can’t hear you!” That flea market was someplace in NE, I think in outer Boston area. If I lived there, I would take a fistful of dollars and go shopping !
Lori Kennedy
OH NOOOO!!!
Marta
For lilquilter : wow, you have done what I aspire to now do ! What great ideas you have had with making your records/notebook of quilts. Thank you so much for sharing it all !
Robin Wright
My husband is so well trained I made a quilter out of him! it’s our running joke he spends more money then I do. He also is on constant look out for quilts. He was at the gentleman’s home he caregiver for and looked over to greet the lady next door. We live in Tucson and when the temperatures dip the plants all get covered. She was using sheets to cover with. Then he saw her toss a pretty quilts with cats on it over a cactus. He told her it was to pretty to use for that. She chuckled and ask if he wanted it. Of course he said yes. There are a few issues with it that are easy to take care of. It’s a beauty!
Lori Kennedy
Nice save!!
Lin
I made a completely handmade and hand quilted quilt for my boyfriend and gave it to him for Christmas . I found him the next day using it to cushion his back as he lay under his car changing his oil.
I learned that for some people a tore bought gift is of more value than a hand made one.
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Definitely!!!
Ruth D Bertaccini
Well I didn’t save a quilt, but rather by MY interest in my mother’s 98-year-old friend’s mother’s quilts, they now have a new appreciation by family members! I wanted to display these quilts at our guild’s quilt show, and the children responded with “they wanted to keep these quilt close to home”. Well, now these quilts that were not valued at all will be appreciated (at last) and better yet a grandson wants to have one of his great-grandmother’s quilts–at last!
Ruth from Grass Valley, CA
Lynn
One dissenting comment. I certainly wouldn’t like to see a good quilt used as a drop cloth, but nothing lasts for ever and I would much rather see a quilt go on picnics, camping, and used for a child’s tent than to see it packed away in acid- free paper where no one enjoys it.
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I agree! I love to see my quilts used and loved. That is a way to respect a quilt.
Marta
Hey Lynn,,, just another point of view… I have inherited many quilts from both grandmothers as well as mother-in-law. We only have 2 bedrooms..2 twin beds in guest room and a double bed. My husband prefers the quilt I made for him. The house we bought has numerous windows to view the lake with almost no wall space left to display anything much less lovely quilts. If walls were strong enough to hold rods, I would use some quilts folded as valances. I rotate displaying quilts on guest room beds depending on seasons. While the others are “resting”, I do need to protect them. I gave some to the one daughter who loves them. She displays them on a ladder in her foyer large doorway next to living room. They use them at times as table cloths inside and on patio. She took them all to a show in Gatlinburg one year.
They were analyzed from the stage by professionals. We don’t use quilts or blankets on the ground here in our area because of fire ants, etc. Some family are allergic. Well, I guess there are as many different conditions as there are folks!! Thanks for your commentary ! Sew on !
Marta
PS I wish we had booklets publishing these posts where we all tell stories and adventures and experiences with quilting.
Marta
RE Andrea’s rescue quilt… Is it just me or has anyone else noticed that when there is a quilt with pastel colors and white showing them off, it receives compliments and gasps ? ! I also notice the same with jewel colors and black showing them off. Sigh, probably just me.. !
Sandy R.
Oh my, that quilt is gorgeous! and that angled binding, that had to take a day or two!!
Pam Hotle
While helping my in laws move, they had a pile of old blankets to wrap around furniture to protect it. One of the “blankets” was an old quilt top made by my MIL’s grandmother. I wrapped it around an antique clock we were supposed to take home. I was hoping to be able re quilt it but it is in terrible shape. There are huge holes and some of the fabric is so thin you can see through it. I imagine someone unquilted it to reuse the batting and possibly the backing fabric. It is sitting in a closet waiting for me to figure out some way to save it.
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Maybe you could just fold it and put it somewhere to be seen–a shelf or something?
Nancy
While visiting my parents in Texas many years ago, I discovered my mother was using (& unceremoniously regularly washing) two handmade circa 1930/40s quilts a good friend (who also didn’t hold quilts in high regard) had given her. I was horrified and explained why I would like to have them and she gave them to me. I also discovered in my Mom’s cedar chest two quilt tops and a large number of quilt blocks which I believe we’re made by my maternal great grandmother. My mother is deceased so I cannot confirm so I’d like to add, get these stories while you can.
Andrea_R
I did! This past fall! Well, I wasn’t the one who did the actual rescue, I was asked if I was interested in quilting. it.
A lady at my guild had a Dear Friend in another city, and her aunt had died. When cleaning out the attic, they found a grandmother’s flower garden hand pieced top stuffed in a corner!!! They were ready to toss it out with other junk but DF grabbed it with the hope that someday someone would quilt it.
Well it got passed around and my friend kept showing it to people at our guild and I had a peek over someone’s shoulder… and that was it. I didn’t really WANT to do it but the quilt spoke to me, like it knew how it wanted to be quilted.
I nervously brought it home and gave it a gentle soak in my large tub. Oh my, the water color. It didn’t smell so good either… but it was mostly okay with a couple spots needing repair on only one tiny hex a little worn. The hand stitches holding it all together were very sturdy and even and TINY, oh my.
And oh this quilt fought me, like it wanted to be challenged. I did it though, and I hand stitched the binding down, because that’s what it said it needed. I usually machine piece.
Despite the mistakes, when I brought it back to the guild to show it finished, the room gasped loudly. But even better, after it got returned to the DF in another province, she wrote me a thank you note that now hangs in my sewing room. THAT made it worth it.
pic here – https://www.instagram.com/p/BNQBkBRh4N2/
Karen Williams
Andrea, wow! You did such a wonderful job. Without even knowing the original piecer, you gave that quilt back it’s soul!! It reminds me of a quilt top (same colors) that a member of our hand quilters group got from an antique shop /estate sale. She had several & was tackling them one by one. Unfortunately she passed away a few years ago, but I believe her daughter now has it & plans to do it justice. I’ll have to show her the picture of yours. Thanks for sharing!
Amanda
You did a beautiful job! It is gorgeous! I love that it spoke to you. I am waiting for that blessing of ‘knowing’ how to quilt my quilt tops. I am proud of your work! Thank you for sharing.
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Its gorgeous!!! I echo other readers reaction to the binding!!!
lilquilter
GIANT GASP!! No wonder, after seeing the photo! Great job with the quilting and binding! I can’t imagine how anyone could consider discarding such a wonderful piece.
Marta
It is gorgeous! Your work really saved a beauty. Lou
Cathy
I have 3 rescues. When my paternal grandmother passed away my uncle & his family came to her house with a U-Haul truck, basically took everything that wasn’t nailed to the floor including quite a bit of antique furniture then left the clean up for my mother & me. As my mother was dusting the top shelf in a closet she bumped into something soft in the very back corner of the shelf. It was a red & white quilt that had to be made my her mother, my great grandmother. It was in perfect shape & it was given to me. I have to admit I felt a bit snarky that they overlooked the quilt as I knew it would have been taken. When I visited my uncle’s house (in another state) I did not see one piece of furniture they had taken & I am sure they sold it so the quilt would most likely have been sold as well. I also found some antique Dresden plate blocks that were also made by my great grandmother. She had embroidered each of her children’s names in some of the blocks (there were 8 children). Those had also been left behind. I still need to put them together but I am so thankful to have them. The third item I rescued was a yo-yo quilt that my grandmother had made for my daughter. It contained many pieces of fabric from items she had made for me when I was little, scraps from items she had made for my daughter & even from doll clothes; my dolls & my daughters. My daughter put it over the railing on her covered porch & just left it there. She lived next door to me so when it was obvious she had no intention of taking the quilt inside I waited until no one was home & took the quilt. To this day she has never mentioned that quilt being missing! I don’t know if she thought someone stole it & she was afraid to say anything to me, but I put it away for safe keeping. I guess when I pass she’ll find it. It would be wonderful to know what she would be thinking when she does!
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You should attach a loving note to the quilt and tell the stories of all the doll clothes and baby clothes of yours that were in the quilt–then it will be a reminder of you!
lilquilter
In reply to Marta’s comment (there is no ‘reply’ link at the end of it): I have a binder with a page for each quilt I have made and some pages of quilts I own but made by others. I typed up a “quilt log” form and made copies and every time I start a quilt project I start to fill out the form. I number them consecutively and keep them in the binder. I have a numbered list at the front of the binder for a table of contents which includes the date completed so I can see the UFOs at a glance and find the corresponding page quickly. The log pages contain name of quilt, maker, dates started and completed, design source, construction details (pieced, appliquéd, FMQ, hand-quilted, etc.), batting type, what and/or whom the quilt was made for, shows entered and ribbons awarded (if applicable) and any other pertinent info. Before I got a digital camera, I attached full and detail photos of the quilt. (Someday I’ll get around to printing the digital photos…) But I never thought to make a copy of the quilt log to include with a quilt I give away – duh! I label all my quilts but do not include all of that information. So many great stories and ideas have been shared in this discussion – thank you all! This might be one of the best Open Line Fridays yet!
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Thank you for the great tips!
Marta
Eureka ! Ideas plague me sometime… Don’t they know my time is limited? !! I am going to make color photos of all my quilts: the inherited ones and the ones I sew. I am going to type an information page for each one under the photos with all info I know about it. The pages can be put in plastic sheet covers and then into a binder. I can copy the pages and put each with its quilt so there will be two places for the info to be recorded.
Jean
I was visiting our small local museum and saw an album quilt folded up in a case. When I asked about it the curator took it out and showed me. It was made in 1893 with 34 names written on it. “Who are they?” I asked. She said they didn’t know. So over the next 2 years I researched who they were and ended up writing a small book for them about the Native American Women from the Presbyterian Mission at Yankton Agency, SD whose names are on the quilt. Then I stabilized and mounted the quilt. It is now on display at the museum. In a way I feel I rescued it from obscurity and told it’s story. I also made a modern reproduction that can be shown outside the museum.
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Wow! Amazing story. Do you have a link for that on your blog?
Karyl McClellan
In 1977, my first husband’s grandmother hand pieced and hand quilted a Grandmother’s Flower Garden quilt as our wedding gift. So beautiful! I loved that quilt and took such good care of it, especially after she passed away. Fast forward a few decades and life changes and I asked him to give it to our daughter on her wedding. He sheepishly said I would need to “fix it in a couple.places” as he had used it for dog and cat beds for years. When he gave it to me I cried. It was in shreds in places. Most places. It would have been the work of a life time to repair and patch. I took it to 2 quilt shops for advice on repair but the overwhelming consensus was not to bother…I will salvage and repair a few blocks from it to frame and give to our daughter and son for gifts. In a gesture of good will I will give him one too but I’m keeping one for me in memory of the dear lady that thought enough of me to make it.
Karen
I have been rescuing quilts, quilt tops and orphan blocks for many years. Everytime I go back home to Michigan I love to scour antique shops. I have found many discarded quilts during my travels and hunts! At the moment I have vintage fan pieces Im trying to put together. I cant help but wonder how they came to be in a plastic baggie marked $8.00!!!!
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I can only imagine…
LEANN MCCLAIN
My daughter’s mother-in-law picked up a 101″ x 111″ quilt top at a yard sale and decided she did not like it enough to keep after a few years. She told my daughter to give it to me to practice quilting on it. I did and added appliqué + lace to it. It was published in Machine Quilters Unlimited Magazine after I finished it. Now it resides on my bed.
catkiz
Back in the 1980’s, we moved my MIL out to Idaho where were were living at the time. My brother-in-law drove her car and pulled a U-Haul trailer full of her stuff. Everything was unpacked, then I noticed our outdoor trashcans were full – of quilts! He had used 3 vintage quilts as furniture pads. They had been handmade by my MIL’s mother in the early twentieth century. I rescued them. One quilt we donated to a museum here in Utah, one I cut up (too far gone) and repurposed, and the other one was used for awhile on our guest bed, but is now stored safely for passing down. It is a surprisingly modern-looking design of peachy tulips and pale blue foliage (was probably once orange tulips and green foliage) on a white background. I would love to re-create it.
Lee Young
In some of these rescue situations (ex: where a mover used a quilt as padding), I can’t help but wonder if it was originally a “lost quilt”. Has anyone considered checking the Lost Quilt (dot) com site? I know there are many folks out there who are heart-broken over the loss of a beloved treasure that may have ended up in yard sales or thrift shops. I haven’t rescued any quilts, but do have some old ones that are treasures.
Karen H.
I am working on a hand embroidered cross stitch quilt my MIL made. When she died my husband got it. We have used it some, however she used cheap broadcloth for the setting, sashing and backing. Plus cheap poly batting, so I have taken the quilt apart and will do some small applique in the negative spaces on the top to reinforce the fabric and then layer with nice backing and cotton batting and quilt it on machine. She also only hand quilted all her quilts. The batting in it had fallen apart. She loved to hand piece and hand quilt, but could not afford to spent much for the materials.
Linda Davidson
Years ago my mother-in-law made a cross-stitched summer quilt. (That’s what I call it. There is no batting.) She put the quilt on her guest room bed, and said the quilt would eventually become my son’s. She eventually showed signs of Alzhimers and had to move to a nursing home. When my husband and I packed up her belongings, I asked her about the quilt. She had given it to a neighbor! Because of her Alzhimers, she had been taken advantage of. My husband and another neighbor went to the neighbor and asked for the quilt. Fortunately, the neighbor gave it to them. My son told me to keep it for the time being. It is a lovely quilt, and I enjoy having it on my bed in the summer.
Liz Blois
What fun hearing about all these rescued quilts, I hope if my quilts find their way to a charity shop when I’m gone then someone will rescue them. Its better they are bought by someone who loves them than kept by people who don’t really want them but feel they should. When I first saw my grandchildren’s quilts being used as rugs on the floor or spread out on the ground in the garden something in me jarred but then I realised that the quilts were being used by the people I love, they are dragged around, made into tents and dens, provide comfortable seating at picnics, get a bit muddy at firework parties, keep watching siblings warm at football matches, in fact they are part of family life. They get thrown in the washing machine and they might be a bit faded but they are used and loved, what more could I ask for. That’s much better than being hidden away in a drawer wrapped in tissue paper. I’m proud that my family prefer my quilts to the mass produced blankets they could be using. The frst encounter I had with this sort of quilt was on a holiday to the States where we were watching a Rodeo in Tucson, it had turned cold and a lady sitting near us went to her car and returned with an armfull of wonderful quilts to wrap us all up in. I thought that was such fantastic hospitality and it inspired me to take up quilting and have my quilts used in this way. I might draw the line at providing a bed for the dog though.
Nancy
I have rescued 2 quilts. One I found on the road, (must have been used to wrap some furniture I suspect) while I was bike riding. I did my ride, as I couldn’t carry it with me, and jumped in the car and raced to see if it was still there. Of course it was, I took it home and washed it up…it was definitely a funky 60’s quilt, made with wild colors and some polyester fabrics even, but it became our picnic quilt. Another was given to a friend from our older neighbor, and was a lovely grandmother’s flower garden quilt top. My friend who is an art quilter didn’t want it, as it had some holes and worn fabrics. I had another friend who graciously repaired the holes, and I found a church group that I paid to hand quilt it…it is still one of my favorite quilts.
Aleeda
I am frequently rescuing quilts from trunks and attics. My partner’s grandmother left a number of tops, as did the mother of my aunt’s best friend. Fortunately, when these were found, they knew EXACTLY who to contact! 🙂 More UFOs for me unfortunately…but also more quilting practice!
Susan Therrien
My mother had 4 quilt tops my great grandmother pieced. As a teenager I thought they were ugly. But, as the family keepsake keeper, I took the tops after my mother died. About 4 years ago I had a neighbor who has won awards for her quilts. She showed me how to prepare the tops for quilting and introduced me to a long arm quilter. As I ironed the tops I could see that one was probably a beginners quilt. It was half hand pieced and half machine pieced. Two of the quilts were all machine pieced. The last was all hand pieced. I had them quilted for each of my sisters. Sadly, one of the quilts was part of a theft from a moving company just last summer. We suspect it wound up in the dump, but hope someday it will reappear. I did label each quilt. So, maybe someone will try to contact the family or the long arm quilter.
Paula
Such wonderful stories! I love old quilts and have several in my closet from deceased family members. My regret is that I don’t know who made which quilt. I vaguely remember making a trip to East Texas with my mom and aunt to visit relatives during which time they bought one of the quilts their aunt had made. I was so young I don’t remember the aunt. Sad isn’t it? I really need to make the effort to label the quilts I make. By the way, I make dog and cat size quilts for my friends with cherished pets. They have places of honor on couches and chairs. Some are even generously shared by the pets with their doting “owners”.?
Scrappy Chris
I found and rescued a quilt top from an antique store in Bisbee, AZ. Cost about $35. It is smallish fan blocks with lots of white. Slowly working on some of the blades as they need replacing and then plan to quilt it. It lays flat and in good condition other than a few of the blades. It looks to be from the 1930’s . I call it a tribute to my paternal grandmother as I found out she quilted in the 1930’s. when she died none of her quilts survived. I looked up Quilt Alliance as mentioned in a previous post. I teach quilting and always emphasize the importance of labeling quilts. The last class I taught I gave out to all the students a pre- printed quilt label so they would start to labeling their quilts!
Steffani McChesney
I went to an antique shop with a friend many years ago. There was a beautiful silk and velvet crazy quit. The shop owner said she was going to cut it up and make a jacket. I offered to buy it. She sold it to me for $90.00. It lives in my cedar chest and will be donated to the textile museum at the Colorado State University. Shame on people, especially an antique shop owner. She should have known better.
Betty Shaw
I found an unfinished quilt at a yard sale in North Dakota while traveling. Bought it for $ 5.00.
doni boyd
30 years ago I was a girl scout leader and my troop was chosen to help carry the banners in the Nebraska Star City December parade. It was cold and slushy. Walking the parade route with the girls was like an antique quilt show. I couldn’t even count the number of people sitting on the curb wrapped in well loved quilts. When I was complaining about that use later, someone told me, “We love to use grandma’s quilt. We think of her every time we’re on a picnic!” At least they’re thinking of her!?!? doni @ Oregon coast
lilquilter
Lori, your timing is ironic – yesterday’s (1/5/17) Dear Abby column included a letter from someone who suffered “gift abuse” – a family member’s dog was sleeping on a pillow she had made. Knowing how unknowledgeable many non-quilters are about the use and care of special hand-sewn gifts, when I gave my brother and sister-in-law their wedding present, a hand-quilted queen-sized double wedding ring quilt I’d made using many of my mother’s fabrics, I asked them to use it with care and noted same on the back of the quilt where I signed it. My suggestion to anyone giving such a gift to a friend or family member is to provide storage and care instructions and gently let them know how much love was stitched into it, and if they are ever thinking of using it for a furniture blanket, to please consider finding it a new loving home instead so as not to hurt the poor quilt’s feelings. 😉
Amy
I give a quilt documentation form with every quilt I give as a gift. It includes the name of the recipient, my name, why the quilt was made/given, quilt name, pattern it’s based on, fabrics used (in particular any specific lines used), type of fabric, type of quilt (pieced, paper-pieced, etc), whether it was machine or hand quilted, type of thread, and location of the label. I include pictures of the quilt, including close-ups of the quilting and the label. On the back, besides pictures, are care instructions. All of my quilts are washed before given away to remove any soil picked up while I was making it AND to ensure that there won’t be any surprises when the recipient eventually launders it.
lilquilter
Amy, those are great ideas! Thank you for sharing!
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This is great advice!
Barbara J Hauck
Great post, Lori. I rescued a quilt–from myself! Years ago, my MIL gave me a hand appliqued quilt top she’d found in her mother’s house. The top was beautifully stitched, but was missing 2 of the borders. I took a look at it and decided it was nice but not to my taste. I kept the top for 10 or 15 years, taking it out occasionally to have a look, and I never liked it. but for some reason, I didn’t toss it out. After I began making quilts myself, I was able to fully appreciate the beauty of that quilt top, and I had it professionally finished and quilted. I learned from family members that it had been made by my husband’s great grandmother who died very suddenly in the early 1940’s. The fabrics in the appliqued top are from the 20’s and 30’s and include some silks. I think Great Grandmother was working on it when she died, and that’s why it was never finished. Now, it has a place of honor on display in my home. And I added a label that tells the entire story of the quilt. I can’t say how glad I am that I didn’t throw out that old top!
lilquilter
I bought a baby blocks UFO from the bazaar room at a local quilt guild show several years back. It was hand-pieced, likely by more than one person, and was grossly misshapen (giant bulge in the middle) to the point that it would not ever lie flat, no matter how heavily quilted it could be. I eventually trimmed it square and made it into a “Hoito” bag to use to transport the “Scrap Bag” to my quilt guild meetings. The bulge is unnoticeable! Yay – another successful rescue!
Pat
I love everyone’s stories – thank you for sharing!
Many years ago I took my first quilting class. My grandmother told me that she had an unfinished quilt and that she had a dream (nightmare) that someone discarded the quilt into the alley after she was gone. I suggested that we pull it out and work on it together. So my mom, grandmother and I got together once a week – I was home from work with my newborn- so that counts as 4 generations “working” on it! I know why she stopped working on it – the top and bottom had gotten distorted as she hand quilted it. So we unsewed some of the quilting, put it on a frame, and completed the quilting of a beautiful “Trip Around the World” where each piece as 1″. My grandmother passed away about a year later so it is a wonderful memory for me. The quilt has been stored away – to protect it. I am now making a resolution to get that quilt onto a bed this weekend!
Pat
Marta
An artist friend spotted a quilt top in a thrift shop while he was on vacation in north Georgia. He got it for $14 and gave it to me to rescue. The pattern was appliqued small print baskets with bright red handles on beige backgrounds. The quilt was square and would cover half a twin bed. It was woefully puckered and would not lay flat. I took all the handles off and soaked them,,, yep, red dye galore! I treated them to not bleed. I had to take the blocks apart to sew a smooth top. It is resting now for awhile… LOL. I need to find some red to match the handles as one didn’t have a handle.. yet. It seems to me the fabrics are from the 30’s or 40’s. A red binding would be the crowning glory I think.
Norma Hamilton
My BIL took two quilts from MIL’s house, was going to use them as moving quilts around the furniture he was taking to his home. I rescued both thankfully. Still have and cherish them. His Great Grandmother had made them!
BJ
When my paternal grandmother died in the 70’s, the relatives cleaning out the house discovered a cedar chest full of quilt tops. They assumed the tops were made from children’s clothing, as there were a few piles of slightly cut up shirts, pajamas, and dresses in with the tops. I happened to see them on what looked like a pile of rubbish, and, even then – before I started quilting – just knew that they should be salvaged. I showed them to my father, one of 8 children, 6 still living at the time, and asked if he recognized any of the fabric in the quilts. He immediately pointed out a Christmas print from a pair of his pj’s and was able to do the same for 3 other tops. It seems Nana tried to use the clothing worn by each child in “their” quilt. What a shame that she didn’t finish them! I kept his and handed the identified tops to their rightful owners, along with the unknowns. My cousins promised to try to match tops to siblings, but I’m not sure how successful they were. I found some appropriate repro fabric for the backing, had it professionally quilted, and gave it to him for Christmas one year. When he died, it was left to me, but I gave it to my sister instead, as she has children and grandchildren who knew “Pappy” and will cherish it for years to come. Thinking of this history lesson now, I’m inspired to start quilting my massive pile of tops, lest someone think of them as rubbish when I pass!
Margaret
I have seen too many quilts used for dog beds or to wrap an old engine block or thrown in the back of a pickup. I think that the quilts of valor movement is well meant, but I’m afraid that many of those quilts get rough treatment. Most people have no idea of the work it takes to make a quilt. They see the cheap ones in Walmart and other stores and think that’s what all of them are worth. Sad but true!
Karla J Barry
I found a Dresden quilt that had embroidered crazy quilt stitching around each plate in my mother-in-law’s cupboard after she passed away. It was very dirty and rolled up in a plastic bag……I almost threw it away not knowing what it was!! I restored all the blocks and re-stitched them onto new backgrounds. We figured it was made by my husband’s Great grandmother because of the embroidery……..it was truly a labor of love to restore and I too thought about the person who spent so much time making this piece of art!
Della
Wishing, one day, I’ll be so lucky to find an old quilt!!!!
Sharon Scott
We purchased an old house to remodel and the previous tenant had left their garbage behind when they left. The home had sat empty for over 6 years. We knew it would be in bad shape and need to be gutted after the debris was removed. In the debris was an old cottage roses quilt. I took it home and laundered it and now snuggle under it every evening as I work on my quilts. I just love it…
Sara Rose-Pegan
Wow, thinking about it, I have rescued quite a few… there was a hand sewn Drunkards Path Quilt from the 20’s that just needed repair in the binding. I found it really cheap at an antique mall. At that same antique mall I found 2 sets of beautiful antique blocks that I plan to put into a quilt soon. Also I found a real treasure of a king size Ohio Star summer quilt that was expertly hand quilted with the most perfect stitches sold in a resale shop for $40! It now resides on my bed and is one of my most treasured quilts. The amount of hard work that had gone into making it is unfathomable. I also have five other tops rescued from various sources in line to be finished. Does anyone else feel like if it’s an antique it needs to be hand quilted? Perhaps the most surprising rescue I made was at a quilt guild meeting! There was a Grandmother’s Flower Garden hexagon top in an argyle type pattern from the 40’s that no one wanted. It was all crumpled up into a paper bag and marked “scraps” .Once I opened it up and laid everything out I realized it had been cut into and was probably at one point a twin sized top. I assume it was cut up to make a stuffed animal or something, and I took it apart and re pieced it to make a baby sized quilt using all the original fabric. So cool. I definitely have a soft spot for orphan quilts and feel the need to see if I can help them reach their potential or fulfill their original purpose.
Maureen B. in B.C.
I’ve never rescued a quilt, but some of the comments by other bloggers (blog-adders … not sure what we are considered, us who comment on your blog Lori) have given me pause to reflect on quilts I’ve given to friends. No matter if it were a quick pattern or one that took weeks, I’d still be horrified to find it in someone’s dog bed or balled up for a pillow. The world is full of Philistines!
Karen Flanigan
I rescued a quilt from the “dog blanket box” at a thrift store – hand pieced and quilted. It now is displayed in my home and at Christmas is under the tree. I have also rescued tops. The first is a blue and white pineapple that was lumpy and out of square. It became a big learning journey as I flattened and squared it up and added a border. I had it machine quilted and it’s gorgeous. My latest is a Dresden plate (flat and square!) that has a most unusual setting from a 1930’s newspaper pattern. I, too, think about that long ago woman who patiently stitched with love.
Nicole F. Benallick
I just was at the Martingale site and saw your book. How exciting! I put it on my wish list.
WordPress.com Support
Hurray! Comes out sometime in March!
Louann
My mother-in-law had just passed away, and my husband was helping his dad clean out a few of her things. I had driven into my garage, and the lights from my car hit something in the give away pile that looked like a quilt! I got out of my car and picked up this item and it was a filthy, but a gorgeous red and white quilt! My husband said it was so dirty that he didn’t think it was any good—I told him never to do that again!! I washed it several times in the utility sink, praying that the red wouldn’t bleed into the white, but it had to be washed. No bleeding!! I had it looked at by a textile expert and it was from the 1860s and quite valuable! It now lives in my guest bedroom so everyone can enjoy it!
quiltedpixel
I rescued “gramma’s old quilt” that was being used as a table cover at a garage sale. It was machine pieced and quilted from the 30’s…it is draped over the wall to the lower level, out of the light, and i love it. On the other hand, i made a flannel quilt for my daughter when she went to college, and everytime i go to her house, it’s smooshed in the corner of the couch because her husband uses it as a pillow. I made her a wedding quilt, but won’t make anymore quilts for her. My son, on the other hand, takes care of his quilts, so it’s a joy to make them for him.
Marta
Sew son-in-law a pillow? his choice of fabrics? Sounds like he likes flannel. 2017 – Year of making peace…Bless your son…
Floy
Yes, I rescued a quilt from a thrift store (2 actually). The first one was so dirty; the dirt seemed to be embedded and I thought at first maybe it was the only thing holding it together. What drew me to the quilt was the pattern and the fabrics. I recognized the fabrics possibly being from the late 1800’s and the pattern was Kings Crown. I purchased it for $45 and took it home hoping I hadn’t made a mistake.
For three days it soaked in my bathtub as I continually drained the water and added new. After letting it air dry on some sheets on my floor, I am happy to say it all held together. I have had a quilt historian/appraiser look at it and confirm I was correct in the dating of the quilt and the pattern. It is from the Queen Victoria era and has several “mourning” fabrics in it. This is around the time her husband passed away, so I am guessing the Kings Crown pattern was done to honor him.
Sharon Scott
Wow! Just Wow!
Kathy
I rescued a baby quilt from a moving company about 25 years ago. They were using it to pad furniture in their vans. It has 9 rows of 6 hand appliqued butterflies in bright scraps. No idea how old it it is. It’s tied with yarn and has cotton batting. I washed it but was unable to get out the stains but I still treasure it. .Embroidered on one of the butterflies is ” Go to sleep my darling”. Can’t help but wonder about the young mother that so lovingly made it for her baby girl.
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