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 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 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!