This quilt was purchased from an estate sale in Hendersonville, Tennessee, in 2016. There is a lot of wear, but still a stunning, original design in which the princess feather is predominant.
Densely Tied Wool Patchwork, c. 1900
One of the earliest quilts in my collection, this beauty is made of men’s suiting and some cotton blends. It’s heavy, with a muslin back dyed dark blue and long, dense ties.
Grandma Davis, 1978
Merry Christmas, Elizabeth. Grandma Davis. 1978
Silky thin, it’s made from stretchy, lightweight polyester blends and has a pink back.
Swirling baskets, c. 1940
From an estate in Flanders, New York, it was attributed to an African American quilt maker. Large and heavy, it’s been very well cared for. Some of the prints and the quilting style place it in the first half of the 20th century, c. 1940.
Cross, c. 1950
This is a 2017 addition to the collection. Beautiful rich colors, incredible graphic appeal. Soft cotton blends, a piece of plaid, and framed in rich red. It’s hard to date this one, but the plaid, the ties, and simply how it feels in hand strikes me as mid 20th century.
Modern log cabin, c. 1900
This log cabin quilt was one of five tucked away in a chest in a southern Colorado estate. All five were sold online around 2005. The others were all a lot more complex in design. But I liked the clean lines, strong color and simplicity of this one. Men’s wool suiting, with a flannel back.
Blocks, c. 1930
Simplicity and color give this quilt strong graphic appeal. It’s one of the first I ever purchased, and a favorite still today. The back is dyed a deep blue, and it’s quite heavy. Perhaps there’s another quilt or a blanket inside. I’m dating it between 1920 and 1940, but would welcome other’s thoughts.
Pieced triangles, c. 1960
Pieced cotton prints with a few poly blends, and a camp blanket on the back. This is an African American quilt from central Florida.
East Texas denim farm quilt, c. 1950
Tied denim and khaki farm quilt, with a flannel back. My mother found this at a north East Texas estate sale out in the country, for $5.
1975 Equality Quilt Top
This quilt top was acquired from one of the women who made it, Karen Smith. She explained that it was the project of a 1975 quilting class taught by Pam Hammond in Chatsworth, California. Smith won the quilt in a class raffle, and had tucked it away undisturbed for almost 40 years. Continue reading “1975 Equality Quilt Top”