I was given tubs of my aunt's quilting stuff when she passed away. My uncle gave me one and just said he hoped I finished what was in it. Because, it was the last quilt she worked on. It was for my daughter who at that time was in her first year teaching. My aunt had bone cancer and could only use one shaky arm at the time. The quilt is wonky. She intended it to be that way, but it is really wonky. I just can't pull out those stitches. I know how hard they must have been for her. Do you think it will turn out ok if I square it up and put a border on? Or should I just put it back away or do you have any other ideas?

By the way, she was a wonderful quilter.

Put a wider border on it, and then square up the whole top... that way you can leave her portion as is, and still have a square up top :D:D:D

I would square them up, add fabric if necessary and finish it. It was a gift of love in the process. It would also please and comfort your uncle. It will be beautiful :)

I think it would be fine to square it up and put borders on it. Another option since it's wonky anyway, make it more wonky with the borders, or cut between the blocks and add another wonky border to each block all in one color (like a sashing, but wonky), then put it back together.

To me it is the thought that counts. I would make a nice border around the outside, and tie the quilt to stabilize and give it to your daughter. That way the majority of the work was done by her great aunt and you can honestly say that.

This. Put a border on first, then square. That way none of her work gets removed.

You know - I found a quilt top that my mom "pieced" in her rough, zig zag stitch method. I am going to do nothing more that add borders, backing & bind it as is. It was handled & touched by her in her own way. I can't & shouldn't change that. It is a part of her; the history she left behind.

I think your Aunt's quilt top will be just fine finished as is. Like you say - every stitch was an effort for her, but I'm betting that it was an effort made with love & determination during a rough time in her life. It deserves to be finished, cherished and loved in memory of your Aunt.

I'm so sorry about the loss of your aunt.

I think you should do whatever makes you feel best.

If it were me, I would think like you: every stitch she put into that top, she put there with love and with personal sacrifice (in terms of energy and pain). Removing them would feel like I was not honouring the sacrifice she made to put them there.

I also think that perfectly squared up, flat quilts are sometimes over-rated. In this day and age, precision and symmetry are easily attained with the use of machines. I'm a novice quilter but I've been looking at quilts for many years and have seen many vintage/antique quilts that were crooked, not square, wonky, wavy and far from perfect. Those "imperfections" were, in my eyes, part of their beauty. They were the physical evidence of the makers who were humans rather than machines.

As an example, check out the thread on the friendship quilt top from Paris TX. The name blocks on that quilt are in different handwriting and none of them is perfect calligraphy. They slant, the names start out in letters of one size and then get larger or smaller, some of them are difficult to read, etc. And all those things add to the value of those blocks, made by those loving hands in 1932.

Strictly in my personal opinion, I love your aunt's top and would do the minimum squaring/truing needed to put a border on it and quilt it. Put a label on the back with your aunt's name, the notation it was the last quilt top she ever made and it was for your daughter.

Your daughter and whoever treasures that quilt after her will love it for its authenticity.

I would just add borders and then square it up. I wouldn't want to change anything that your aunt had done. Be sure to put a label on stating that it was the last quilt she made and had been making it for your daughter.

I would think that tying it, rather than quilting it, would help keep it as original as possible.