The quilt police come calling- 80 years on!
 

I shouldn't even dare post this without photos, because lots of you asked me to post pics if/when I got my grandmother's quilt. I am beyond thrilled to say that it came to me yesterday, and I am having such fun wandering around in it. I will post photos, as soon as I get my head on right. I have to say though that it is not a quilt, it is a patchwork coverlet- i.e. a top with a back attached only by the binding- no quilting (a bit disappointing, but hey) and no tying either!!! Its a miracle it stayed together at all. I wonder if she finished in a hurry (no borders, so the binding goes right over some of the logs). Maybe she planned to tie it later, and didn't get time, or got tired of working on it when she had a family.[HR][/HR] What is funny is what you learn about a person from looking at their work! I never met my grandmother so I am surprised to note that she was the kind of girl who took shortcuts in her work (didn't double her binding, and it is pretty much in tatters all around :-( ), but who made work for her self too! The logs in her log cabin are only an inch wide but I have found three so far that are pieced, one of them made from three pieces (I guess she really wanted to use that fabric in that spot, or maybe she had nothing else with her at the time and just wanted to be done.) [HR][/HR] Most of her 90 cabin blocks have turkey red centres but several don't, and a number of these have a red square appliqued over the other colour she had used. (Did she change her mind, or was she told she hadn't done it "right"?) She has a great selection of fabrics in there (I am counting, but I am nowhere near done yet- I am guessing maybe 150 different fabrics). I am hoping to learn more about those too- I don't have photos of her parents but maybe some cousins will have a photo of someone wearing a dress made from one of the pretty fabrics she used- wouldn't that be so wonderful?! [HR][/HR] The most surprising thing about it so far is that it is foundation pieced, which I had never thought to do for a log cabin. I am guessing that she brought a little muslin square around with her and added logs to it until it was done and then got another square out. Some of the blocks have four rounds of logs, some five, and some don't have the same number on all sides. Anyone else know about foundation piecing for log cabins? She was probably still in school when she started making it, so maybe that was just easier. Due to some tearing to the top, I can see that not all the foundation blocks are plain fabric either. She made strips with ten blocks and then sewed the strips together- her corners are waaaay off, which is something that has not changed through the generations :-) [HR][/HR]The back is plain. My mother thought it might have been flour sacks but it looks like fabric off the bolt to me as it is regular and runs the whole width of the coverlet. (Then again, I don't know how big their flour sacks were) Because of the tearing, I can get a sneak peek at how some of the fabrics have faded over the years- quite interesting. Lots of purple in it now but I guess that might have been blue? [HR][/HR] Once I have catalogued it I have to think about how to stop it deterioriating further. I'll try to find a textile person in a local museum to advise me. Thankfully there is no mould on it and it hasn't been eaten by mice but it is stained and a bit smelly- would be nice to be able to have a professional clean it, but it is not strong enough for much handling at the moment. My family would like me to repair it. I'm too chicken at present!

What a treasure ! The only way I can keep a log cabin block from getting wonky is to do either foundation piecing or paper piecing. Maybe that was her thinking too!!!

Fascinating! I sometimes wonder which of my quilts will be examined years from now. In your Grandmother's case, it may not be her best but a utility quilt. I dread that my polyester double knit will be my sole surviving quilt. I am tempted to burn it before I die.:D

LOl! Thanks, Tartan, that laugh felt good! You are too funny!

Nooooo Tartan. Those double knits are too warm. We cover every night while watching tv with a cover made by my 91yr. old sister,[who is now in a nursing home]. She made dozens of them. We love them.

There are many sites on the internet. Try YouTube. Maybe something there will show you how to care for the quilt/coverlet. I would applique some areas that may have come apart. If I were going to clean it. I would use some Woolite or Delicate wash laundry detergent with some Arm & Hammer booster to help rid the smell. I would do this in the bathtub and let it soak for about 20 minutes, then swish or pat it and soak some more. I would repeat this a couple times. Then rinse. I would then let it air dry. Just take your time and it will work out!

In trying to use up my scraps, I have pieced some fabrics in order to get another square or two for a block. I am using waste triangles sewn together to use as a square. Scraps are scraps and I'm trying to use them up.
You were lucky to get that coverlet. I don't have any ideas as to what to do with it.

Oh how exciting!!! Sounds like a wonderful quilt.

I can just hear the excitement in your written words, about this coverlet. You love it already don't you? I am so glad you were able to get it, I know you will give it all the love and attention it needs. Can't wait to see pictures!!

Thanks folks- I have taken a zillion pics but haven't uploaded any yet- sorry! I have decided to start by noting in an exercise book how each block is made and where each fabric is placed. I am surprised that that is what I felt like doing first, but there you go. It's like making a pattern, I guess, although I have no intention of remaking it. (I make have to remake some parts as a few of the finer dress making fabrics pop up torn in block after block- maybe I could find something similar and get them in there somehow. It is 9 x 10 log cabin blocks and after working much of yesterday and much of today I am on number 14!!! It will go faster from here as I recognise the fabrics (I have only had one block so far that didn't have a new fabric in it- I am up to 68 fabrics total in those 14 blocks) I am laughing at some of her tricks as fabrics which appeared to be different turn out to be small pieces cut from a fabric with a bigger pattern. My jigsaw puzzle skills were never more useful than they are for this project! So far the most poignant bit was looking inside (another!) split in her binding and seeing something brown in there. I feared the worst- insect- bit it was a knot in a length of brown thread. There was something very poignant for me about looking at that knot and knowing that my grandmother's hand made it, without the least idea that I would ever be looking at it. I'm sure she never thought of my future existence, but you never know- maybe that's why her own mother made her redo those centres- "your grandchildren may be looking at this 100 years from now" Roll eyes from teenage seamstress "mo- THER!!!"