Tag Archives: original designs

Australian Crazy Quilt

20 Friday Jul 2018

Posted by in Australian Quilts, Crazy Quilts, hand piecing, old fabrics, old quilt tops, Old Quilts, Quilt Collections, Quilt Stories, quilting projects, Repairing old quilts, Scrap quilts, Sewing machines, stitching, Uncategorized, vintage quilts, Waggas

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There is no provenance on this crazy style patchwork coverlet, but it was found in Melbourne. The fabrics suggest it was made in the post war era, probably 1950s. This style of quilt making is documented in Margaret Rolfe’s books on the traditions and history of Australian quilt making.

The coverlet contains a time capsule of dressmaking and home furnishing fabrics from an era when most women stitched clothing for themselves and their families. The fabrics used include ginghams, barkcloth, stripes, checks, double knits, woven houndstooth and many bright floral and geometric designs. The border is a sunny yellow Cesarine. Cesarine was used extensively in the 1950s and 1960s.

The maker of this quilt carefully turned under the raw edges of her patches and hand tacked narrow hems before overlapping the irregular pieces which she stitched directly onto the one piece of calico backing.

Working on such a large piece must have been difficult at times. The coverlet measures 170 cm x 202 cm

The seams are finished with featherstitching. The border was stitched by machine to the right side of the coverlet, neatly folded over and hand sewn to cover the raw edge at the back.

Small opening shows the construction method used

It is interesting to study the back of the coverlet which is as neat as the front.

Front border detail

Detail of fabrics

Gingham, florals and geometrics

The quilt appears to have never been used or washed.

I am very happy to have another wonderful example of an Australian quilt in my collection. It is much valued. I am glad this quilt maker saved her sewing scraps and made this quilt. It provides a great opportunity to study the fabrics and designs of this era. Happy stiching, Janette – The Plain Needlewoman

Clarence Valley Coverlet No. 2

23 Saturday Jun 2018

Posted by in antique quilts, appliqué, Australian Quilts, hand piecing, hexagons, old fabrics, old quilt tops, Old Quilts, Paper Piecing, Quilt Collections, Quilt Stories, quilting projects, Scrap quilts, Uncategorized, vintage quilts, Waggas

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This  coverlet from Clarence Valley,  New South Wales may possibly have been made by the needlewoman who made the coverlet that I documented in the previous post. I purchased this from the same Ebay seller who had bought both of them.  Unfortunately, no other information is known. But what we do know is that the coverlet was designed and stitched by an experienced seamstress who had a good array of fabric scraps available to her. Most likely the fabrics were saved from dressmaking.

The coverlet is double sided.

Reverse side of coverlet

The coverlet measures 178 x 105 cms. The hexagons measure 7 cm through the centre and 4 cm on the outside edge. The fabrics used in the coverlet include cotton, silk, furnishing fabric, taffeta, sateen and figured satin. The cotton fabrics include many textured weaves and floral prints. One print in particular resembles a Liberty design. The background fabric used on the reverse side may be a wool/rayon mix. It is a heavier weight fabric with a sheen to it.

Fabric detail – side 1

Fabric detail – side 2

The quilt maker had a flair for colour and design. The colours are very typical of mid 20th century styles and decorating colours. The golds, greens, yellows and browns are artistically used throughout to define the lay-out of the designs on both sides of the coverlet. Side one is pieced with hexagons stitched to form diamond and rosette shapes. The second side uses hexagons stitched to form a large rosette which is stitched to the centre of the brown stripe background fabric. Side one includes the use of brown toned prints to create a border and side 2 makes use of green and orange prints to create the border. The edges of the quilt are neatly whip stitched together to finish the coverlet. There is no batting. The coverlet appears to have never been washed or used.

Detail of side 2.

Without further information I can only speculate about the maker of these two exquisite Australian coverlets. They are much treasured by me and I feel very lucky to have them in my collection. Australian quilts are  rare and the two Clarence Valley Coverlets demonstrate fine needlework skills and a great flair for design and style. I wish there was more to tell you about the coverlets but sadly their story has been lost.

Thank you for stopping by,  Janette, The Plain Needlewoman

Clarence Valley Coverlet No. 1

25 Friday May 2018

Posted by in antique fabric, antique quilts, hand piecing, hexagons, old fabrics, old quilt tops, Old Quilts, Paper Piecing, Quilt Collections, Quilt Stories, Scrap quilts, vintage quilts, Waggas

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The maker of this coverlet clearly had a vision of her finished design. The hexagons which measure 2 cm on the outside edge were cut with a 2 cm seam allowance. The seams were neatly stitched into place so there was no wrong side of fabric showing.

The rosettes consist of 6 hexagons stitched around a solid colour hexagon.The hexagons measure 2 cm on the outside edge. The rosettes measure 10.5 cm. The maker stitched 340 rosettes and set them together in rows of 20 x 17. Two rows – row No. 7 and 14 consist of hexagons stitched in solid colours. These two rows add definition to the design of this lovely scrappy and colourful quilt. The rosettes are joined together with a whip stitch similar to the construction of a yo-yo coverlet. The finished coverlet measures 178 cm x 198 cm.

The coverlet appears to have never been used. It is beautifully constructed and a work or art. It is one of my absolute favourites and a cherished example of an Australian quilt. I purchased another coverlet from the same seller which I will write about in my next post. I can only speculate on the maker of this quilt but one thing that stands out to me is her great collection of scraps and her fine needlework skills.

Happy stitching, Janette The Plain Needlewoman