Originally Posted by JCquilts
Like most quilt blocks, this one has many names. I have seen it most commonly called Oak Leaf and Reel. However, this one has a small variation, that being the two little leaves on each real. Nice addition.
The first "published" version that I have found was Ladies Art Company who called it California Oak Leaf, again without the extra leaves. This version was published in 1922.
Yours, as were many others, were made earlier than even the first published patterns. This is one of those old standards that were popular and shared often. It would be so interesting to know where your grandmother learned her craft.
Thank you for your help, you were dead on. I googled Oak Leaf and Reel and a site by Terry Clothier Thompson popped up with a picture of the design, also with two little extra leaves. She says it dates back to c. 1830.
I don't know where gggrandmother learned. As mentioned before she grew up in Georgia, went to Alabama for a few years after marrying, and then on to N. Louisiana. I sure wish she had finished this one.
Are applique' stitches generally so tiny? I can't count them without a magnifying glass.
Also, I want to say that this is the nicest, most helpful board of any type I've run across.