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The Plain Needlewoman

~ Quilt Study, Sewing, Vintage Textiles, Collecting quilts and other old odds and ends.

The  Plain Needlewoman

Category Archives: Postage Stamp Quilts

Busy Days in Winter

24 Friday Jun 2016

Posted by mcinnesjanette in antique fabric, antique quilts, Double Pinks, hand quilting, old fabrics, Postage Stamp Quilts, Quilt Collections, Quilt Restoration, quilting projects, Scrap quilts, stitching, Trip Around the World, Uncategorized, vintage quilts

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Detail of Album Quilt

Detail of Album Quilt

The Winter months are the best time to catch up on quilting projects. The cold days and longer nights provide the perfect opportunity to stay indoors and stitch. To make a start I made a list of jobs to be done, then set to work.

First up I put the old Album quilt into a gentle bath for a soak in Retrowash.

The Album Quilt having a gentle soak.

The Album Quilt having a gentle soak.

I had been working on blocks for a new quilt and having completed 25 blocks I have started to stitch the blocks together. This gorgeous fabric that I found at my local op shop ties the blocks together beautifully.IMG_4225

Windfarm Quilt - work in progress

Windfarm Quilt – work in progress

I made up cushion fillers for these lovely vintage cushion covers and added satin ribbon bows for ties.

Vintage cushion covers

Vintage cushion covers

After it’s bath the Album quilt was ready for a gentle machine wash and some fresh air. With a good wind blowing the quilt dried quickly. It is now fresh and beautiful.

Album Quilt circa 1870

Album Quilt circa 1870

Cold nights are perfect for hand quilting and I have started quilting an old Trip Around the World top from my collection. It is a large quilt, so I expect to be working on it for quite a few months.

Hand quilting Trip Around the World. Circa 1930s.

Hand quilting Trip Around the World. Circa 1930s.

Centre of Trip Around the World.

Centre of Trip Around the World.

I hope you are finding time for Stitching, Happy Quilting, Janette – The Plain Needlewoman

Nanna Good’s Ocean Waves Quilt.

18 Wednesday May 2016

Posted by mcinnesjanette in antique fabric, Feed Sack, hand quilting, old fabrics, old quilt tops, Old Quilts, Postage Stamp Quilts, Quilt Collections, Quilt Stories, Scrap quilts, Uncategorized, vintage quilts

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IMG_4073

This Ocean Waves Quilt was made by Nanna Good in Orrick, Missouri, USA. It was passed down to her daughter Kathryn Sue Bogart McAfee. Kathryn was born on the 21 December 1922 and died in 1982. The quilt was then passed onto her only ancestor – a grand daughter. Her grand daughter decided to sell this quilt as she has a number of quilts made by her mother and grand mother that were made specifically for her. This one was not one of them.

Detail of fabrics

Detail of fabrics

This lovely, scrappy version of the Ocean Waves pattern epitomises a Thirties quilt. The fabrics include florals, solids, stripes, juvenile prints and a couple of pieces from an earlier era. The placement of the solid red creates the effect of pinwheels across sections of the quilt.

Red Pinwheel

Red Pinwheel

The backing is a wonderful Thirties green and the binding a pretty pink. The quilt is quilted by the piece with a simple design in the plain areas. The batting is an uncarded cotton. The seeds are clearly visible when the quilt is wet.

Quilt backing and binding

Quilt backing and binding

Ruby Short McKim published a pattern for an Ocean Waves Quilt in 1931, although we see many earlier examples. It is a very effective design in a two colour combination as well as a great scrap quilt.

I have been busy with hand quilting and have just completed my Courthouse Steps quilt.

Courthouse Steps made with mid 19th century fabrics.

Courthouse Steps made with mid 19th century fabrics.

I am now settling in for the Winter months and have commenced the quilting of another of my old quilt tops. This one is a Trip Around The World – a very large quilt made of very tiny squares.

Trip Around the World.

Trip Around the World.

I hope your quilting is bringing you much pleasure. Thank you for stopping by, Warmly Janette

A Stitch In Time

09 Friday Oct 2015

Posted by mcinnesjanette in Postage Stamp Quilts, Quilt Restoration, vintage quilts

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

1930s, Crib Quilts, Fabric Study, feed sacks, hand quilting, old quilts, Postage Stamp quilts, Quilt Restoration

Two new Postage Stamp quilts have recently been added to my collection.

Pretty Nine Patch Crib quilt

Pretty Nine Patch Crib quilt

Steps in the Flower Garden

Steps in the Flower Garden

Postage Stamp Quilts are quilts made with very small scraps of fabric. One inch squares are common but sometimes the quilter cut her squares even smaller. At this time in quilting the seam allowance was smaller than the standard quarter inch seam that we use today. The designs vary from a one patch layout to more elaborate settings. Solid fabrics in complimentary colours were often used to set off myriad pieces selected from the scrap bag. The tiny squares may have been cut from worn clothing, household linens and the scraps left over from other quilt making projects. Postage Stamp quilts offer a wonderful opportunity for fabric study and sometimes older fabrics from other eras can be identified.

Pretty Little Crib Quilt

With its hot pink border this pretty little crib quilt remains bright, clean and colourful. The solid pink and white fabrics are in excellent condition. However, some of the squares were completely worn away. IMG_3220
The quilt is beautifully quilted in half inch cross hatching.

To repair the worn squares I cut a square of paper to size and tacked fabric onto the paper square, as you would for paper piecing. I pressed the patch well and removed the tacking and the paper. The patch was applied to the damaged area and neatly stitched into place. I then quilted over the newly patched area.

Patch ready to be stitched into place

Patch ready to be stitched into place

Repaired square

Repaired square

This dear little quilt measures 42 x 52 inches with the nine patch blocks measuring 3 inches square. It appears to have been made in the 1930s and may well have been used by many babies. I am sure it was much used and loved.

Steps In The Flower Garden circa 1930s.

This vibrant and colourful quilt had not been washed or used when I received it. The quilt had a rather bad stain (possibly from storage) on the back and about 10 squares had disintegrated. These appeared to be the same fugitive brown fabric

Fugitive fabrics

Fugitive fabrics

Using the same method as for the Crib quilt, I repaired this wonderful example of a Postage Stamp Quilt.

Detail of repaired area.

Detail of repaired area.

I soaked the quilt in Retro Wash for a day with a colour catcher added in case of colour run. After a good old soak it was into the washing machine and onto the line for some fresh air and sunshine.

A lovely bath!

A lovely bath!

This quilt has a very light wool batting. The quilting is simple diagonal and horizontal line quilting. The quilt is large, measuring 76 x 88 inches.

I am very happy to report that the quilt washed extremely well. The quilt is fresh and clean with the stain removed.

Stain prior to washing.

Stain prior to washing.

Lovely clean backing.

Lovely clean backing.


I love this quilt with the vibrant black and orange solid fabrics unifying the many patterns and colours of the scrap pieces used by its maker.Detail of quilt. Detail of quilt.

I hope my Stitches in Time will save these quilts for many more years and they can be studied and enjoyed by all those who see them.

Thank you for visiting, Janette The Plain Needlewoman.

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  • Cathedral Window Quilt circa 1930s
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  • Australian Crazy Quilt
  • Clarence Valley Coverlet No. 2

Recent Comments

mcinnesjanette on Marjie”s Star Quilt
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Categories

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  • Christmas
  • Crazy Quilts
  • Cumbria
  • d'oyleys
  • Doll Quilts
  • Double Pinks
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