Donated Dresden Plates in progress

Ann is a "new to me" customer and I am so happy that she reached out to me!  During our initial conversation, she asked if I knew of anyone who would take quilt tops to complete and then donate them to a charity.  I told her my store of police quilts, and when we met to discuss her quilt, she gifted this one to me.  Ann's story is that she received the top from her neighbor when she lived at the coast, and that her neighbor's mother may have pieced it, or inherited it.  Regardless, I'm thrilled!

The fabrics appear to be vintage 1930's, and it is all hand pieced,  Consequently, there is some "friendly-ness" in the piecing, meaning that it doesn't lay quite flat, but has some extra puff.  I am quilting it by SID around each petal, and the following the quilting design that was already marked on it.

There is a petal design in the center of each plate, and a spider web design drawn on the background.  I'm quilting it by following those lines and using wool batt for extra loft. 

 Final photos to come after completion of the binding.

Pat's 2 year BOM

I think that it took Pat 2 years to complete this quilt top. but will need to confirm that with her.  She showed it to me when it was in progress and said she wasn't that happy with it.

Once she had completed the top, and brought it to me for quilting, I drew a quick sketch on the back of her check in sheet in regards to how to quilt it.  Difficult to see because the thread matches the green background flowers so well, but I'm very pleased.  I hope she will be as well!

 

2nd Vintage Fan quilt from Sandra.

This is another stunner from Sandra's relative.  I honestly asked her if she was sure that she wanted it back.  Ever hopeful, but yes, she did.

Both of these quilts were beautifully pieced, the fans and green background hand pieced together.  Although Sandra had asked that I finish the binding by machine, I kept getting a voice from the piecer of this that "I put all that work into those tops, piecing them by hand, don't you dare finish the binding by machine!"  So, although I don't think I've ever done that before, sometimes you just have to do what the quilt, or in this case, the piecer, needs.

 After I contacted Sandra to let her know that her quilt was ready, she sent me the following background on the piecer.

The background of the quilt is my Mother-in-law's Grandmother, Marian Degman Balsiger, born in Kentucky in 1901, made these and was working on them when she passed away in 1981 in Washington. We don't know how old the fabric is though. They were put into cedar chest and passed through a few family members before getting to us. 

My m-i-l shared, "Marian did a lot of sewing, quilting, baking, canning, and all things Farm. And she wore 3-inch heels to Grange meetings! A fiery curly redhead with brains and brawn."

 

I think the "fiery, curly redhead was speaking to me from the grave, and I was honored to help complete her heirlooms.

 

Vintage Dresden Fans

This quilt is amazing, and there's another one coming!  I'm not completely sure of the full history of this quilt, but I do know that it was discovered in a cedar chest of Sandra's.   I believe that it was pieced by a relative of her husband, but she may need to correct for about that.

Probably 1930's, but having no knowledge of fabric history, that's a mere guess.

The fans were pieced by machine, but each fan was stitched to the background by hand.  Each block was stitched in the ditch along each seam, no quilting in the green "base" of the fans, then feathers in the background of each block and in the borders

 

"Sunbonnet Sue" from Janet with help from her grandmother

Janet inherited these blocks from her grandmother who probably pieced them in the 1930's  All of the girls are outlines in black thread, done by hand, and then each bonnet has hand embroidered flowers and ribbons

Janet set them all with reproduction prints in the sashing and borders and then turned me loose for quilting.  I did a simple feather in the outer border, SID around all of the girls and then a meander in the background, just something to hold them down, and let the girls shine.

 

Vintage fan from Janet

This is the
last of the most recent 3 vintage fans quilt from Janet.  This one has a slight stain on the block, but then if I'd been "born" in the 1930's or so, I'd probably have a few age spots as well.

 These were all quilted with wool batt, feathered wreaths in the blocks and and arc of feathers over each fan.

The last 2 fan quilts from Janet

I love these quilts where the blocks were hand pieced, and are vintage, so some are worn through, or a bit misshapen, but all obviously much loved.  These will go to decendants of the original piecer and Janet.  Such lovely gifts!