Small Quilts from Antique Inspirations Exhibit

Maine Quilts is over for another year!  Wendy and I enjoyed talking with lots of folks who enjoyed our exhibit!  

This is quilt is loaned by Jeannanne Wright.......the brightest quilt in the show for sure!  Corner pinned back to reveal the linen backing.

Isn't this indigo with chrome orange gorgeous!!

And this is Dawn's Cook-Ronningen's copy....she found the Most Beautiful indigo print for it!  The quilt on the right is by Jeannanne showing the linen backing which was hand-dyed with walnut dye to imitate the original backing.

This is Sue Rivers' tiny copy of a c.1845 scrappy Irish Chain with swag border.

Sue's Irish Chain Inspiration ................

Top:  Red and white applique quilt by Ann Reed, based on a quilt at the Henry Ford Museum in MI. in the photo to the right of the quilt.  Bottom;  Red and white pieced Bear Paw by Bonnie Dwyer based on a quilt in her collection as seen in the photo to the right of the quilt.

The oldest quilt in the show, a circa 1800 wool Medallion with cut corners for a 4 poster bed.  Owned by the Maine State Museum in Augusta, ME.

Quilting in the center panel (color better in photo above).

Upper left, copy of the wool quilt by Laurie Labar.....her first quilt ever!  She did a great job!
Upper right, Amish quilt owned by Judy Roche with copy below made by Pat Burns.
On quilt rack is a Very Heavy wool utilitarian quilt with its copy nearby made by Emma Morin.

Crazy Quilt owned by Suzanne Bruno.

Crazy Quilt Tea cozy made by Suzanne Bruno......unique inspiration!

Striped Medallion circa 1850 owned by Wendy Reed.

Wendy's small copy of her quilt with superb handapplique and quilting!

The quilt on the rack is an antique owned by Sherry Shockley.  The small copy to the left of it was made by Karen Keeler.

"Carolina Lily" c.1880 owned by Florence McConnell along with her small inspiration quilt.

Red/Green applique quilt owned by Judy Roche with small version by Mary Reynolds.

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Medallion from the late 19th century owned by Wendy Reed with small version made by Nena Cunningham.

Original 1840 potholder quilt from Bristol, Maine.  Owned by the Maine State Museum in Augusta, ME.  Blocks are approximately 12" but hardly any measure that.....how the quilt lies so flat is a mystery!!

My copy of the 1840 Potholder quilt.  Finished 60 hours before hanging it in the show!

Hope you enjoyed our show!!

DONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here is the final row of the Potholder Quilt for the Maine Quilt show that has been keeping me more occupied than I thought it would!  Finished it with 2 days to spare!  Plan to attach the sleeve this evening and then it is on to Other Things I have been missing and neglecting for a few months!!  It has been enjoyable to draft, search for fabrics and then construct these blocks, but I have So Many other things on my list that I want to make!

This is a photo of a photo of the circa 1840 Bristol, Maine quilt that was my inspiration.  Will try to take more photos at the show!  I have been amazed at the complexity of some of these early blocks!  This quilt is in the collection of the State of Maine Museum, Augusta, Maine.

Restocked Linda Collins' Panama Pyramid templates!  This is one of the quilts on my List of Want to Make!  My friend Bonnie, whose pyramid blocks are in a previous post, called me this evening to say her quilt is done!  Can't wait to show it to you!

I don't have much of a garden anymore but these hydrangeas were especially plentiful this year..........would be blue if I treated them properly!  

Mostly I just let stuff come up where it wants to!  BeeBalm this year is also prolific!  Have a rogue sunflower coming up from dropped birdseed I suppose.  Also have mallow and Queen Anne's lace that I let grow hoping it is replacing some weeds!

Final shot is of Sally, our Maine coon cat on the picnic table surveying her kingdom.  She used one of her lives a couple weeks ago when my husband rescued her from the clutches of a red fox!  Sorry the photo is grainy but it was taken through a window screen........if she sees me point a camera in her direction, she takes off!  She will be 16 this fall.....someone dropped her off to fend for herself when she was too young to leave her mother, but she knew what to do!  My husband found her in the barn lying on a cow's back for warmth on a cold fall morning!

New Quiltmania book and Thimble!

Received this new book yesterday, "Meanderings of a Quilt Collector" by Jane Lury.  A picture-filled hardcover book from Quiltmania.  And all I've had time for so far is to look at the pictures!  Can't wait to actually Read it!!   And when not being read, it is a beautiful coffee table book!

An example of the fabulous close-ups!

This one reminds me of one Sue Rivers showed at the Old Sturbridge Village AQSG meeting at OSV in April of this year.

End papers!

Gorgeous quilt from only two fabrics!

Have seen advertising recently for the "Roxette" thimble, a version of the "Roxanne" thimble that I've been using for many years.  Loved the thimble...... once I finally got the correct size and correct metal.......the only allergy I have is to cheap metals (and some plastics).......even silver.......gold one is the only one I could wear without breaking out.  Tried the newer Roxette and I love it......it is lighter weight and stays on my finger nicely.  Only XS-S-M-L and XLsizes (different color for each size).  My old gold and new red thimble!  And oh, the price is about half of the old Roxannes!

"Morris Earthly Paradise" by Barbara Brackman arrived last week......gorgeous, rich colors!

Lots of new fabrics....(boltgoods, layer cakes and charms) start arriving August-November!  Jo Morton's new Moda line, "Gratitude", "Preservation" Collection for a Cause, "Pumpkin Pie by Laundry Basket Quilts (Edyta Sitar), "Baltimore Blues" by Barbara Brackman, "Hope's Journey" by Betsy Chutchian,   "Country Road" panel from Holly Taylor.

See a tiny light at the end of the tunnel....................

Have been working exclusively on the potholder quilt and am thinking I really will have it done for the quilt show!  This evening I will either sew row #3 to the first two rows or handquilt a simple Ohio Star block (one of 2 in the quilt).  And.............have made a major design decision......one block I don't like (hate!) because it just does not look nice when miniaturized!  So I am going to experiment with making a block I have wanted to hand-piece for a while............

I don't have a photo of the entire block in the antique quilt but it is the partial star you see at the top of this photo  (the orange peel or robbing peter to pay paul  was the first block I did and it turned out to be easy Because I had already done a small one in a Jo Morton Club that was Appliqued, not pieced!)  The star block is a Simple Lemoyne Star made complicated with added triangles between the points..........thought it looked easy but spent too much time fiddling with it and have decided a 3" Lemoyne with those added elements is too awkward-looking.  Have to admire those 1840's ladies for their ingenuity tho!  

When my granddaughters and their families left after a lovely visit , I was feeling a little down so cheered myself up with making a miniaturized Panama Pyramid from Linda Collins' Facebook sew-along.  So far, I have made only one but will begin making more Triangle blocks after the  quilt show is over.   I just cut apart a diagram of the block from the machine-piecing template package into 4 sections and added seam allowance when I trimmed.  Block finishes at 3.25".  The diagram on the hand-piecing template set is a bit larger.

Here are some Panama Pyramid sew-along rows and blocks made by my friend, Bonnie......she has a wonderful sense of color and excellent machine-piecing skills!!  

And very organized too!!

Linda's Panama Pyramid Facebook sew-along can be found here

Today is the Day.................

I am going to write a post!  Have been telling myself that each day a week or so and other things seem to get in the way!  Been diligently working away on my Potholder Quilt for the Maine Quilt Show the last weekend in July.........This Old Italian (Snowflake, album, whatever name you want to call it!) was one of the easy ones as I already had made a quilt with 3" blocks from a paper-piecing pattern that I had drawn.

These are the Colors used in the original.....turkey red and orange......can't call it "cheddar"!  Whoops....I see this block is not really finished......8 triangles have been appliqued  on the points of N-S-E-W!

This was a funny little design.....purely someone's original fantasy!

This should have been easy but I made units that turned out to be slightly too small......made new ones and then picked up the wrong ones when I put it together the second time.....third time was right!!

Love this little 4.5" sawtooth star which is the center of a block surrounded with half-square triangles.

When I was at my friend, Judy's, home in Belfast last week for our monthly antique quilt study, she laid the blocks I had in various stages of completion on her rug so I took the opportunity to take a photo.  You can see the bright red/orange star that now has the red triangles in place.  These are actually enjoyable to draft and make .....just don't like feeling pressured.....no one's fault but my own.....should have been piecing more last winter!!

First row is sewn together!  Takes me 20-3- minutes to whipstitch one seam........need to get sewing faster!!!

 Have you heard of Linda Collins' Sew-Along making these Pyramid blocks?  She has developed templates for both Hand-Piecing and Machine-Piecing (rotary cutting) and I have them in my shop.  This is a photo of the antique quilt in her collection.  Her Facebook page about the quilt can be found here.

My first practice block......just Had to take the Time to make One, but I will refrain until the Potholder is DONE!

Had not planned to use yellow for the alternating triangles, but when I ran across this old Smithsonian fabric "The Rising Sun" in the shop attic, I think I may try it......long way off tho!

Now a mish-mash of photos I took just because............

Love Canadian Geese and several pairs have visited as they always do during the migrations north/south but none ever stay for more than a day or two!    Love seeing them paddling gracefully around in the farm pond and I would LOVE for them to have babies to watch!  Next best thing is webcams!

The cows are very happy to be out in the pastures eating green grass and laying around all day!

Sally, our Maine coon who was dropped off here in the fall of 2001,  spends her days laying in the sun, tho she is still a good hunter......but I've thoroughly discouraged her from stalking my birdies!!  Plenty of rodents around here to keep her happy!

My Mother's and now mine, favorite flower............lilacs that fade too soon!!  Enjoy them while I can!

Potholder Quilt Update

Last block finished yesterday.  Just counted them and it is #19 ......Almost Halfway there!  Feeling the anxiety of approaching deadline!!!  Consoled by the fact that the hard ones are all done and the easy ones can be made in a sitting!    But I have to stay focused when I itch to start a couple new things And start handquilting my Colonial Medallion!!   Ended up making this block differently than I originally planned.  In the first photo, see the 4 hourglass blocks surrounded by triangles?  That's easy enough.........keep going...... 

But, I happened to glance at the picture at an angle and another idea came...........It is diagonal rows of half square triangles!  One of my Favorites!   Went together like a dream after making a drawing to figure sizes.  Just noticed that now it looks like a Pinwheel surrounded by 2 rows of triangles!

Someone asked to see my Colonial Medallion so here it is.......half of it anyway while it was still a top.  The center is the John Hewson panel reproduced by Andover of a printed panel he did in the 1790's in Philadelphia.

Until next time..........should have the first row assembled........I'm slow at whipstitching!