Surprise on a quilt
 

I was visiting on Sunday and got to see a quilt. Badly neglected, stuffed in a box in a barn. Mouse visited. you know the story. But the owners were pleased to tell me what they knew of it. Decorations, family Initials and names. It was really pretty sad. But then I saw a date stitched into it. Feb. 29, 1896. Wow, my grandmother's birthday. Nice reminder of a long gone lady.

quilts talk to people, no matter what condition they are in. Sounds like you had an unforgettable Sunday.

It saddens me to see these works of art so neglected. :( I go to a local Goodwill store and I can't tell you the number of quilts (feed sacks, 30's fabric, crazy quilts and new ones -I recognize some of the fabrics in them) that people give away. Same with hand knit and crocheted afghans. I try to "rescue" those quilts which can still be repaired. I am a firm believer in that every quilt tells a story and I always wonder what stories these quilts have to tell. At least they are now in a "loving" home.

It's amazing what textiles can tell us from the past. Your grandma was a leap year baby! What a cool find.

Anita - I agree with you. I've found such beautiful knitted and crochet afgahns at Goodwill and other thrift stores.

I know why some beautiful crochet items end up at a thrift store. My aunt crochet a baby blanket every week of her last years on earth. She sent dozens to my DDs for the babies even after the babies were in school. They brought them to me, they had more then enough, their friends had enough, the church nursery had enough, everyone we knew had enough. LOL

Too bad this quilt with such a beautiful history has not been taken care of. Sometimes the best suggestion is to cut up the quilt and frame the sections that are still in good condition so that many descendants have a piece of this lovely quilt. This is one of the selction that the author Camille Dalphond Cognac suggestion in her brilliant book Quilt Restoration, A Practical Guide.

That story is very sad to me. How wonderful that the date is the birthday of your grandmother. I guess she was talking to you and asking you to save the quilt!

Leap year baby indeed. And she didn't get her first birthday till she was 8. They adjusted the calendar in 1900.
The owner was considering saving the best bits and redoing it. I was just there to buy a Wilson by White. Good day for Whites on Sunday. That Grandma did quilting with her friends at the church on what appeared to be a HUGE frame for an 8 year old.

I don't think of quilts at the Goodwill store as being abandoned or unloved. They are simply being given a second chance! Why keep something you will not use when others may treasure these items? Many people do not have quilters or crafty people in the family or the money to purchase an item at full value. Better goodwill than the trash.

When I am gone. I have told my Daughter and Granddaughter to not give them to thrift stores of any kind.
I want them to go to the needy. Lots of charities that help the needy out.