Sunbonnet Sue & Overall Sam Quilt Blocks
 

I just recently joined this Board to try and find some information. My mother was an awesome quilter in her day but not is not able to quilt due to dementia. I recently found a bag from her home which contained completed quilt blocks of Sunbonnet Sue & Overall Sam enough for what looks like a full or queen size quilt. She even had the backing material that she was going to use in the bag. Any suggestions as to what to do or where to take these to have someone complete this wonderful quilt?

Check with your local quilt shop or a quilt guild. There may be someone listed at one of those organizations who will finish the quilt for you. Good luck. Sounds like it would be a real treasure to have finished!

Welcome from Texas and what a treasure you found. Good luck with it and don't forget to post pics

How do I post pics of the blocks? I would love for everyone to see my Mom's work!

I just went through the blocks and there are 36 and they are from the Sunbonnet Sue Visits Quilt in a Day by Eleanor Burns quilting book which was in the bag. Each block is 13" X 13" all with batting attached. It looks like it would be for a twin size quilt.

That is just wonderful you found those. What a treasure. Welcome to the board from Arizona.

i do not know where you live , but if you are close to an Amish or conservative Mennonite area often the young girls will do this kind of work. I was at an old order Amish store a few days ago and was reading the bulletin boards , there were at least two ads I recall that were offering sewing for hire . Worth a shot if you are in the country . hope to see pics of the blocks soon :)

Welcome to the board. Don't rule out finishing these yourself! Imagine how much more meaningful the quilt will be if you AND your mom worked on it. Check with a local quilt shop (LQS) or guild in your area and take a class or two. I wouldn't make this my first project since you want to do your mom's work justice, but after you have made a quilt or two (or a dozen) you can finish it for her and enjoy it. Since the blocks are made a lot of the work has already been done.

If you go to the QB help center (bottom of main page) you should find a tutorial for posting pictures. It will be a sticky at the top of the page. Your pics may have to be reduced to post them here; there is a thread for that too. I'm looking forward to seeing your mom's work.

Darren

Thanks all for the info! Unfortunately Mom has four daughters and not one of us does any kind of sewing! I have just inherited all of her quilting and cross stitching supplies that she had. I have binders full of patterns and lots of thing I just don't know what to do with. I just cannot depart with anything just yet. I have a few unfinished other quilts not as far along as the Sunbonnet.....I live in Hartford Connecticut area so if anyone is close by please let me know and you are welcome to come by and "peruse" at my stash.....would love have things go to a "good home"!

New England is full of wonderfully productive quilters, I'm sure you can find a quilting guild close by and they can direct you.

And just because you've never quilted *yet* doesn't mean you need never learn! Making quilts generally requires only a straight stitch - nothing fancy - and the ability to cut a straight line with a ruler and a rotary cutter (looks exactly like a pizza cutter:)). Every quilt shop has beginning classes and most guilds have someone who will take a complete beginner under their wing. Wish I were closer, I'd love to mentor you so you could finish your mom's quilt yourself. What a lovely memory. :)

Jan in VA

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She sure did a beautiful job and aren't you lucky to be the recipient of them. What a robber dementia is.

They are beautiful blocks! I hope you can find someone to finish them into a quilt for you! Good luck!

The hard part is done. What you have may finish to a twin size right now but with some sashing you may be able to stretch it enough to get something suitable for a double or queen size bed out of them. If you have no interest in learning to sew there are people who would finish it for you as others have already said.
If you are interested in sewing, the basics aren't hard to learn (the rest can take a lifetime). Practice on other projects and tackle this one when you feel ready. Either way I think your mother would be pleased that it was finished.
Rodney

Unfortunately I have no interest in learning to sew or quilt at this stage of my life :-( so I will be looking to either have someone complete the quilt or possibly find someone interested in purchasing the blocks. As I stated previously, I have a lot of other quilting & sewing items that I am looking to give to a good home including other partially completed quilts. Anyone in the Hartford Connecticut area is welcome to come by and take a look. Thanks to you all for your input and kind words.

Another option is to make several pillows from these blocks. That would be a simple project, and your mother's work could be shared with other members of your family, including children.

In fact, it could become a family project where each person picked out their block(s), someone sewed, and then the person who gets to keep the pillow could stuff it. Hands on projects with a group of family members can become a tribute to a loved one and help in the healing.

Samantha, I don't have much more to add. You are getting such wonderful advise. Your mom will be pleased that you treasure her work. I made my first quilt from fabric I found in her stash after her death. You will always feel her close to you when you wrap up in her quilt. Blessings

Thanks to all of you for your kinds words and wonderful suggestions! I will keep you posted. Sam

I like the idea of pillows or maybe some type of wall hangings that you and your sisters could have. I have a crewel embroidery and a counted cross stitch from my two deceased sisters and treasure them. The thought of the hours they spent working on these projects for me always warms my heart when I see them. Even if a wallhanging of some of these blocks is not to you or your sisters preference, it's always nice to have something like this to pull out and look at and touch once in a while.

I think having the blocks framed would be a great idea. Put the details of the maker on the back. Maybe a bit of a family tree. This would give you several to pass down to future generations.

I think the blocks are beautiful! I wish you well in having them finished. I personally love the pillow idea.

under reply, you will see blue boxes, click on Go Advanced. then go down to Manage Attachments. click there and then on Browse. find photo, click on it, then on Upload. then close window. and Submit Reply. it should show up. there is a size limit but not sure what it is. (here is my snow this morning).
welcome to the forum and ck Senior Centers too for help. Well rats, you got photos posted anyway. Great Blocks!

One of my most treasured quilts is the Sun Bonnet Sue my mother and I did together in 1976 in celebration of the bicentennial. I know you will treasure yours when it is completed. If you are certain you cannot do it yourself, find a real professional to do the work. Local quilt shops and quilt guilds will know someone. And welcome to the board from N. Texas. froggyintexas

You can buy beginning quilting books to tell you how to make quilts. A cheap sewing machine will get you started. It isn't rocket science, very easy to do.
Welcome to this wonderful board, lots of people willing to help.

the two "on point" ones could be made into pillows to go with the quilt. Lovely. Good luck.

These are just BEAUTIFUL………..I would - for the present - hold onto these - and check in with a couple of local quilt shops……..and see about taking a beginning quilting class…………You could find that you had no interest in going further with doing this on your own after the class…………BUT - once you take that beginning class (very little in the way of supplies needed)….you might find that you were interested in finishing these yourself…….(don't sell yourself short and hand this over to someone else until you have truly ruled out that you just have NO INTEREST in doing this yourself…..)….. Your mother was very talented………..and you certainly have enough blocks here for a nice quilt…….

GOOD LUCK with whatever you decide…..and keep us all posted on how things go………..

If you have items that you are parting with for FREE there is a section called Free Offers & Donations that you could probably list them on, you might want to check the rules first. I know you can't post items for sale as a new member. Many members only look at a small portion of the site daily, so hopefully you can find someone in your area that is interested in your treasures.

I agree. I didn't start quilting until I was in my twenties. Eleanor Burns books are a real good beginning. I have made about 3 quilts from that book. Hopefully, someone close to you will help. I live on the other side of the US otherwise I would be glad to help.

Please show us pictures. Sunbonnet Sue is absolutely my favorite!!

Google quilt guilds in your state. You may find one that is close by and you can see if there is someone willing to quilt these for you. You could even break these down into lap quilts so you and our siblings could each have one.

If you sew at all you should be able to get those blocks together with the Quilt In A Day instructions. They are usually very good and clear. Perhaps you can become a quilter and continue her legacy.

Pictures were posted so go back and you will find them. Beautiful work and they should be finished in one way or another.

I don't have anything to add to the wonderful comments already posted.

I also inherited my mom's Sunbonnet Sue pieces. She had the pieces cut out and was never able to finish the quilt. I look at the pieces and am reminded of all the sewing she did for us girls when we were at home. I recognize much of the material as being scraps from our dresses.

Hopefully you can find someone in your area to use these to make a quilt, or a couple of lap quilts. I encourage you to frame a Sue and a Sam. Wonderful keepsakes that you will enjoy later in life.

God Bless.

You could check your local quilt shop or Your local Senior Center. When I was trying to downsize my stash, I gave bags of fabric, books, yarns etc. to a local Senior Center. They use a lot of it for their Xmas Craft show, and also I would check you High School, they might have economic classes, or a Boys and Girls Club, might be interested also.
I think the Sunbonnet blocks are beautiful.

Your blocks are absolutely precious and being made by Mom all the more so. My mom quilted (somewhat) and she, too, has dementia. I finished one of her quilts and cherish it.

Check out the Greater Hartford Quilt Guild: http://www.ghqg.org They can probably point you in the right direction. Also, check out the local quilt stores (usually under "Fabric" in the yellow pages, or Google Hartford CT quilt stores).

Welcome to the Board. I hope you decide to hang onto the blocks (even if you never make them into a quilt) as they are a piece of your mom. Please, don't sell/give them away - one day you may regret not having this link to your mom.

Let us know what you do with the blocks. Take care...

I would put both blocks in the same quilt to make it larger ,boy and girl and repeat, repeat etc.I have seen the older ones made like that and they are really cute.cmaras PS>. I am a SBS nut and have made several and given most away to Family. good luck.cmaras1234