Pre-cut wool strips from the 40s
#21
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Location: Minnesota, USA
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Wonderful input! Thanks everyone. I will keep you posted. Today I've been finishing up some UFOs that needed binding. I'm amazed I can get ALMOST done and not finish completely. Lots of binding to do.
#22
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[ATTACH=CONFIG]359125[/ATTACH]They seem really bright in this picture, but don't seem so bright when I'm working with them. I'm not trimming them or re-cutting, just using them as they come off the roll. I 'll square them up when I'm done. I have 15 done so far...I guess I really should figure out how many I want. I started with 15 red squares and am string piecing...it's amazing how much faster than the one at a time method I used on my first log cabin quilt.
#23
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Location: Sonoma County, CA
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I love wool quilts! My grandmother made tons of them, I still have several of them, and I toss them into the washer as needed and machine dry on low with no problems. They're tied, with cotton batting and flannel backing - one of the ones I have even went to Viet Nam with my uncle! Very warm, very heavy, very cozy. I treasure all of them! I think your quilt will be wonderful!
#25
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I think I'll go as big as I can. It might end up bed sized. I had one roll of red, lots of blues and tans and browns, some kelly green that I decided to skip, and some mauvy pink. My grandmother made a lot of wool quilts too. She cut the blocks, stitched around the edges with a straight stitch to stabilize and the crocheted around all of them before she stitched them together. All of the wool was from old coats, pants, etc. I have a few of them that she made and I really love them...more of an afghan than a quilt, no batting or backing, but cozy and pretty. I think she made one for each of her children and all of her grandchildren, she was always working on one project or another. I loved watching her work.
#26
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As I think about it, I don't remember her ever BUYING fabric. Well, there was no big fabric store like JoAnn, no Walmart. I remember her going to the "next-to-new" as she called it. I think that's where she got most of her material for her projects. Feed sacks, old clothes...she was Up-cycling!
#27
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[ATTACH=CONFIG]359467[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]359468[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]359469[/ATTACH]So, I made myself a mini-sandwich. Wool strips, cotton batting and musling backing. Washed and dried. I like the way it turned out, but there was a bit of bleed through with the red and the brown. I don't think it's enough to make me not want to quilt it, I just think I might use a darker backing fabic or something with more of a pattern, so if it does bleed, it won't matter as much. I like the feel of it. It's softer than I expected. It didn't shrink as much as I thought either, about a half inch both ways, but I think it fluffed up more than it shrank. It was pressed pretty well as I stitched each row, so It's more like it just fluffed up the fibers after they'd been flattened for so many years on their rolls. I'm gonna love this quilt. Do you ever feel like they're your babies? I don't think I could ever give this one away. Maybe I should only make things I DON'T like.
#28
hook rugs..I love making them...wool strips are the best and hard to find.
I am sure that you could use them in a quilt - but it would have to be dry cleaned. My MIL showed me how to use burlap as a base and use old wool clothing cut into strips and pull them through the burlap (using a frame) and she made some magnificant rugs. They wear really well, too.
#29
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Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Small town in Northeast Oregon close to Washington and Idaho
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Please don't give up on making a quilt with the strips. I think you will be very happy if you make one. It might be a little hassle cleaning it, but it probably won't need to be cleaned very often. Go for it.
#30
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Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Minnesota, USA
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I washed and dried my little sample and it turned out really well...full speed ahead!
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