Like a Rolling Stone

Family history tells us that this Rolling Stone quilt may have been made by the owner's great -grandmother.

I'd date most of the quilt top fabrics to the 19-teens to 1920s, with some c. 1900 and possibly some early 1930s fabrics included. 

 

This quilt holds a couple of surprises.  The back and binding fabrics and strips added to the long sides, however, are c. 1940.  This suggests that the top was enlarged a bit and then quilted a while after the top was made.

   

Another fun tidbit is some older patching.  I always enjoy seeing a quilt that has been mended sometime in the past.  To me, that says that the quilt has always been valued and cared for.  And that seems even sweeter when, like this one, it's still the family of the quilter who made it. 

I generally like to keep the old repairs intact.  But I patched over the old repair, shown below, because it was in such bad shape and the repair stitching was not really helping keep the quilt sturdy.  

 

I found this old patch very amusing!  I patched over the grey-green, leaving the black patch in place.  I chuckled all the while I was sewing it.  It makes me think of entering a tunnel on a drive through the mountains.

 

 

This same block gave me some difficulty deciding on a green fabric for the patching.  Nothing was quite right, and as sometimes happens, I had different top choices in daylight vs. lamplight.  I did eventually decide on which would blend in best with the look and feel of the quilt.  

 

  

At the other end of the spectrum of finding patching fabrics, matching this blue fabric was a breeze.  There are both old and new patches in this block. 

Here are some of the other fabrics for your enjoyment. 

 

Red, White, and Sweet

I'm showing this quilt because it's simple and sweet.  The owner wrote:

"The quilt measures 60 x 78.   It is on the smaller size.  I picked it up at a quilt show a number of years ago.  I love it!  As you can see, it is white with red quilting."  

      

The pattern name is Sawtooth Star.

There is concentric circle quilting in the alternate blocks.  I do love circles!  

 

There were a few places with small tears and holes, and some worn spots just about to break open, which I was able to mend.  A few years ago, I bought two, or maybe it was even three, yards of this great-looking version of the red of the era (known as Turkey red), and I still have plenty!     

 

 

This block shows stitching from an earlier repair.

These two triangles are quite worn and fragile.

 

Here's a photo with completed repairs.  You may be able to identify the newer fabric since it is just a touch darker.

I am intrigued by this little quilt since the edges are finished with a narrow facing on the back.  I haven't seen many quilts finished this way, but it's how I like to finish my art quilts.  An edge without a binding is often called a "knife edge", but is more usually done by turning the edges of both the top and back fabrics under, towards each other.  The facing, instead is an added strip of fabric which was turned to the back and stitched down.

 

The owner sent a fun bird's eye photo of the quilt on her antique wrought iron bed.  

And Every Now and Then, I'm My Own Customer

 

I made this quilt, actually a tied comforter, back around 1980.  I had been quilting just a few years.  I stepped out of the initial "pillows and place mats" stage, and made my first bed quilt.

Past blogs detail both the story of the quilt and the stories of the fabrics I used.   

The fabrics in the quilt are all mementos of past sewing projects, sewn both by my mom and childhood self.  And my husband and I have slept with it, as did our kids when young and in our family bed.  So, by 2020, it was showing signs of wear.  I think that was actually a good long time!

As I started repairing, I learned how satisfying it is to have an old friend with cozy memories get fixed up again, once again smooth and safe and protecting those memories.  I was sort of surprised at how wonderful it felt!

Past Glory

Sometimes a really, really damaged quilt is still incredibly beautiful.  This is one of those times. 

The quilt was sent to me for assessment and my thoughts about what to do with it.  It has much fabric damage, both faded colors and lots of tattered, dangling, and missing fabric.

A Joyful Dresden Plate

 

I love this quilt!  This is especially notable because the era and colors are not among my favorites.  What pleases me so much is the full-out exuberance of the fabric choices.  The wild (for a background) print makes the whole design dance.  This quilt makes me smile!

At some point in its history this Dresden Plate quilt was probably thrown in the washing machine. The wool batting (which may have come from the family's sheep) ended up with lumpy and uneven shrinking.  Also, that wild background fabric is unsuitable for the washing because it was very, very lightweight, almost as light as a voile.  Apparently, two borders had already been cut back.  The remaining two borders were very badly torn, as were 3 large areas in the body of the quilt.  

After a Long Absence....I'm Coming Back!

It's been a loooooong while since any activity here on my blog....  Here's what's coming up:

 

To do right now: 
I've started a newsletter.  Sign up here.
I'll be posting twice a month, with fun little tidbits about antique/vintage quilts, quilt repair, art quilts, and newsy items.   The second post will be up in a day or two.  Sign up now to get it hot off the presses!

To read the first post, you can access the archive here.  
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In a couple of days:
I'll be posting a new quilt repair story here on the blog.  This one will be about a fun Dresden Plate with a tale of matching fabric and learning a new technique.
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In hopefully a short while:
I'm nearly done making a video demonstrating fabric identification with burn testing.  Two former workshop students and I have encountered something that appears to be new to quilt history study.
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Start planning now:
My annual quilt repair and care workshop is coming up in January 2026.  
Email me to be added to the interest list.  
Full description is on my website.
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Other news:
I am finishing up an unusual repair.  It's a contemporary, artist designed wall quilt.  I learned some new techniques for this one, too.

I'm also working on another major art quilt.  

Summer, my favorite season is coming to an end.  I'll miss sitting in my outdoor office, for sure.  But for now, I'm spending every moment outside that I can!  

 

Quilt Repair Tales - Saving History One Quilt at a Time

 

On May 3 and 4, I’m participating in the Global Quilt Connection’s Sampler Platter program.  I’ll be joining 17 other quilt teachers, who’ll be presenting short programs demonstrating the topics we teach about virtually.  Both guilds and individuals can register, and the presentations will be recorded and available for a few days after the weekend.  I did this last fall, and it was super fun - a wide variety of topics to learn about!

Here’s where to learn more and register:
https://www.globalquiltconnection.com/samplerplatters

This time, I’ll be presenting “Quilt Repair Tales - Saving History One Quilt at a Time”.  This spotlights a name-inscribed quilt made in the 1890s that I researched to learn more about its history.  I have lots of tales to tell - interesting stories about the people named on the quilt, the repairs I made to the quilt, and the journey the quilt and I have had from having it gifted to me to being part of a weekend gala bringing the quilt back to its home.

This block has the names of Rev. John D. Pickles, his wife Elizabeth, and daughter Helen.  I was lucky enough to contact a descendant who provided this photo of the family!

 

 

 

 

There are many other blog posts that share information on the research I did.  Start here and then follow links to many aspects of what I learned.  Enjoy!