Quilters Spirit

Our love affair with sewing machines

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 20 Aug 2019 17:27:00 +0000

Hi friends!

Today school began in Los Angeles, and last week in the county where I live north of LA. This made me think about the school girl darning and practice samplers, piecework and books I've been collecting and will continue to save. I adore them. I have school books of samples from grade school to college classes.

There was a time following the invention and perfection of the sewing machine, think post Civil War, when women who could afford to have a sewing machine wanted to show it off, in a lady-like way, to their patchwork and quilting friends. I think this was gleaned from period diary entries.

So you might think they made patchwork blocks with their machine. Yes, of course, they did that. But machine stitching blocks together only shows on the underside, tucked away from view. It was machine stitching appliques down onto a block that gave their secret away.

They turned the edges of the handles under and sewed a straight stitch along the outer edge of both sides. That curve is tricky even today without practice.

What is extra interesting to me about these blocks, and others I've seen, including quilt tops, is that they did all the piecing by hand! Maybe they couldn't match their corners as well? Maybe it is because they couldn't machine sew while in a friendship or quilt group, or while sitting with their family? Eventually, some women did sew all of their block by machine, while others preferred to handpiece everything.

It seems to me that using sewing machines is all the rage again, and for all kinds of things. Recently, my facialist asked me what kind of sewing machine she might get because she'd like to get one now. I asked her what she plans to make. Her response came as a surprise. She said : I don't know, but I think it might be fun to make things for my farmhouse, (not her primary residence but she's a modern farmer growing food, herbs and caring for hens so they lay good eggs) curtains, place mats, little bags for gifts kind of things. I just want to have one on hand. I think it would be fun."

So there you have it. The cycle of life through the lens of a sewing machine. Its now been placed into the category of a tool to have on hand! I have five machines and I use one. I have a Wilcox & Gibbs that was the first soundless sewing machine, a gun metal, war era, Singer in a beautiful curved wood carry case, a 221-K Centennial Featherweight, which is for sale and includes 3 quilting feet made for it, a Bernina, and a Project Runway Brother. It's from the first series, not the current one. Have you seen their current PR machines? A M A Z I N G ! I have no idea how well they work, but they offer everything there is to offer for a clothes maker or quilter.

Here are some more pictures of the 24 1880s basket blocks for your viewing pleasure. They are currently available in my FB store. To my blog readers only I will offer a 10% discount. Mention the title of the blog in your comment to purchase from my FB page and I'll adjust the price on the invoice. It'll be our secret. xo

Have a wonderful week. Remember to stop and smell the roses,

Kimberly

A link to my FB sales page is in the top right of this page. Like the page and you'll get the new stuff when I post it.

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noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 15:30:00 +0000

Hello!

The summer is zooming by, isn't it? I hope you are enjoying it, and that you have power and a/c when you need it. Its been a scorcher off and on for many of us around the globe. And there have been earthquakes in California this summer, but also in states that don't usually get them.

For most of July I was on the hunt for personal documents stored somewhere in my house. After coming up empty handed, I was lead to old boxes in my garage and what do you think I found? Fabric galore!

Some of the fabric I had forgotten about and some I had wondered about from time to time. I was thrilled. I also enjoyed looking through quilt show and guild paraphernalia, as well as materials from the talks and classes I used to present. It was a wonderful walk back in time through many phases of my life. It was really fun. Afterward, I tossed much of it out which was fun too!

Have you cleared out any clutter packed away in your boxes any time lately? I have many more to go through myself. If you find yourself stuck, I recommend the book "Clearing Clutter is a Sacred Act."

The other unexpected event that occurred since I last blogged concerns my phone, a Galazy Note 5. I dropped it in water and it died. I lost everything on it. Fortunately I downloaded photos to my computer from time to time so some were saved. I will have to take photos of my sample fabric book again before I can share more of it with you.

In the meantime, I think you might enjoy seeing these tiny star blocks from the 1860s.

They are 3.5" squares, all hand pieced. I bought them from a Massachusetts' quilt dealer many many moons ago. I love them, they are sweet, and made from a variety of printed cottons.

I wonder, might they have been made by young school girls as practice blocks? Or by women in waiting? Or, come to think of it, maybe by boys, as there are no pink fabrics. What comes to your mind?

All I know is that they would make an adorable doll quilt or wall hanging if stitched together.

SOLD (the first day ) I'm selling them for $45 today on my FB page Quilts for Sale Antique and Vintage. ( or use the link at top right of this page)

May August be creative and inspiring in all the ways that bring you joy. Happy creating my friends!

Namaste.

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My Fabric Swatchbook

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Sat, 13 Jul 2019 20:21:00 +0000

Hello! I recently came across my swatch book I started in the early 1990s. I thought you might enjoy some pictures of it.

I will begin at the beginning and show the first three pages here.

I wanted to make a reference for myself as I was learning about dating fabrics. But let's be honest, I also loved the fabrics and this was another way I could enjoy them.

I bought a gorgeous mustard yellow leather binder that is stored in it's own fabric covered box to begin. The pages are oversized rectangles and required special plastic pages that were archival.

Do you have a swatch book you've made? It wouldn't have to be dedicated to reproduction fabrics, it could any fabrics. Some people save the selvedges. I have...... somewhere.

What is yours like? What made you start it? What do you use it for?

I'll share more pages soon. Maybe you'd like to share yours here if you can post pics in the comments.

On my Quilts for Sale Antique & Vintage FaceBook page I put up 6 BAQ and Red & Green applique books this morning, as well as a rare early-mid 1800s quilt top. Here's a sneak peek

The entire top is made of tiny parallelograms forming railroad tracks!

I'd love to hear about your swatch book, or that this has inspired you to start one. Feel free to ask any questions you might have and I'll get back to you through the comments or my FB page.

May your summer be warm and lazy, filled with time to quilt and craft!

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noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Wed, 19 Jun 2019 18:51:00 +0000

Hello!

Its another cloudy cool morning in southern California. In the coastal regions we call it June Gloom, a name that fits it perfectly. But I'm about 10 minutes inland in a mountain valley, and we never got June Gloom or May Gray. We arose to sunshine and warm temperatures nearly everyday of the year in years past. This season, the sun has not come out from behind clouds and mist until the afternoon. I miss the sunny warm mornings so much.

As usual, so much is going on with my work, I haven't posted any new pictures on my blog or FB selling page, but I have had time to read a blog post with great pictures of quilts through time.

Its from the Textile Arts Center in the UK, titled Quilting in America - A Brief History

It's an older piece, by Vanessa Parsons and briefly walks you through a path from palampores to Africa-American quiltmaking. Enjoy!

I am so enjoying reconnecting with quilt friends I haven't been in touch with for years. Please say hello if you want to on my FB page kimberly.wulfert. Seldom did I view it or post and I declined friend requests because of my work. But now I am using FB for other things and thought "why not" make the most of my page. So if I know you or of you, I won't decline your friend request, in fact, I invite it!

I send you blessings on your day, in your sewing room, and for your health.

Namaste,
Kimberly

My quilts, tops, new and old fabrics and all things quilt history are available now. Or PM me through FB.

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Revised:Tennessee Quilt 1840-1900s fabrics

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Wed, 22 May 2019 22:00:00 +0000

My first quilt posted for sale is from Tennessee, 1850-70s with some fabric dating from 1840-50s yet they look new and unused! It is the railroad block, tied with a machine stitched binding turned over from a pink and white back fabric. This quilt is in very good condition. I would have dated it circa 1880s due to the plaids and backing, but the appraiser gave the earlier dates as accurate. (Since I posted this I've looked at it some more and now I definitely think 1880s circa is the right date. I took more pictures to show the range of fabrics that effect the date. Circa means 20 years on either side of a date, give or take. Some of these fabrics are most like earlier. Price revised accordingly)

CLICK ON THIS PICTURE TO SEE ENLARGED IMAGES OF ALL PICTURES

The gray looking in this photo fabric, is an early purple, beautiful color.

The plaid and textured shirting on the right are some of the latest fabrics

The top left is an early printed plaid and top right is an early ombrea stripe

and 1880s c. printed green and white plaid

An early purple print in lower right block and a later plaid top middle

In the last photo you'll see some discoloration in the tips of some of the orange blocks. Dye migration maybe.

In the binding picture above it you'll see a tiny area of the plaid that didn't get caught in the sewing machine binding stitch and also see some hand soil on the binding edge which doesn't look permanent at all but I personally wouldn't wash it becausemost of the fabrics look so new and pristine. But I wanted to show you the not perfect areas too.

More pictures are on my FB Quilts for Sale, Antique and Vintage page

Given the revised date, I've revised the price. It's now $275+ shipping. I pay the insurance. Will ship to US only, and use Paypal.

Please use message me on the FB page and like my page while you're there so you'll get updates.

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One Lady's account: Bed and Bath in the 1920's and 1930's

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Thu, 16 May 2019 17:00:00 +0000

Wow- what a find- this is an oral history blog post. Ruth is 80+ years old. She writes about her experiences as a child at home during the 1920s and 1930s. Her blog post includes a few paragraphs on the bedding they used, including matresses, feather beds and quilts. She talks about the frame on the ceiling and quilting bees. This part is at the end of the post, but her entire post is of interest if you like history.

Ruthlace: Bed and Bath in the 1920's and 1930's

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Hello Quilters Spirit, it has been awhile....

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Sun, 12 May 2019 20:29:00 +0000

“So when we write and begin with an empty page
and a heart unsure, a famine of thoughts, a fear of no feeling —
just begin from there, from that electricity.”
— Natalie Goldberg, Engendering Compassion

Hello my friends,

I found the quote above in my drafts section of blogger from 2013. Somehow it seemed fitting as I blog to you today.

It has been quite a few years since I've posted on my blog. That's because I returned to my career and let quilts and their history fall alseep in my closests, bookselves, and storage areas scattered throughout my home.

Over the recent months I've begun selling some of my collections, fabrics, patterns and tools. We've had two major fires, horrifically major damaging fires in southern California since the first one nearest me in December 2017. Both were close to my home. I've always said I have a museum packed away in my house, so the fear of all of it going up in smoke was/is real.

I have been selling items in person and through facebook groups so far. I started a FB for this page purpose, but have yet to use it. It's time and yet I don't have much time to do it.

If there is a reproduction fabric line, antique or vintage quilt or top, antique faric swatch or yardage, woven coverlets, or other related handmade textile items, that you need or want, let me know about it specifically and I may have it to sell.

What are your thoughts on my posting some pictures on here? I think if I can break it down like that I might have chance of getting this going. I have a lot to sell.

My prices are fair market value. I had all the quilts appraised by a cetified appraiser awhile back in preparation. Some reproduction fabric lines are in great demand and will be sold at that value.

It's been a true joy collecting and learning about textiles and their history, but the time has come to begin to help them find a new home to love them and take care of them.

My stats show there are hundreds of visitors each month, and I have not posted for many years. That tells me there's a healthy interest out there. I look forward to hearing what you have to say.

Namaste,
Kim

Early 19th Century Tree of Life Quilt from a Welsh Family

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 22:30:00 +0000

Tree of Life Quilt in the collection of Jen Jones, Wales, UK

The palampore fabric was painted in India and later made into a quilt. It comes from the Court Estate, Llanllawer in the Gwaun Valley, Pembrokeshire. It was wadded and quilted in 1810.

It is an exceptionally large quilt, 322cmx 225cm, filled with lambswool. This cotton fabric was made and painted on the Coromandel Coast prior to 1800.

Photo of the Court Estate

It was sold to Jen Jones by Liz White, daughter of Mrs Mary Lettice Mortimer Ehlers (nee Thomas) of Bristol.
Mrs. Mary Lettice Mortimer Ehlers had wanted the quilt to remain in Wales after her death. It has come to the right home.

A wide variety of wonderful Welsh stitching patterns were quilted on the palampore once it arrived in the UK, including hearts which indicate it was possibly worked for a family marriage.

The four daughters of the Thomas family were married over a period of ten years and as it has never been used, it is difficult to say for whom it was intended.

photo of Anne Thomas and her family (left)

Photo of Anne Mortimer Thomas (right)

In 1851 it was sent to The Great Exhibition in London. It was last exhibited in London in the 1990's, prior to being on exhibit in Wales at the Jen Jones Welsh Quilt Centre in 2010. Here you can view the exhibit. Watch for the palampore on a far wall!

Technorati Tags: Jen Jones Quilt Centre,Welsh quilts,19th century quilts,antique quilts,quilt exhibit

The Jen Jones Welsh Quilts Centre graciously sent me the following info and pictures to share on my blog. I do apologize for the delay in getting them posted. This quilt unfortunately is not on display at this time, but other quilts are in their summer exhibit, "Oh that Summer would Last Forever," showing from now to October in Wales. A stunning exhibition catalogue is available for purchase.

Jen Jones sells quilts, shawls, paisleys, blankets, books and more at her shop and on line, check it out!

Pictures from the Red & White Quilts Extravaganza Exhibit

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 00:49:00 +0000

Wow- the exhibit is as amazing as the promotional material said it would be! With many thanks to my girlfriend Tracy Jamar, we have pictures from her visit. Laura G. sent some links to other slide shows and newspaper articles. Thank you Laura.

Congratulations to the AFAM, Thinc, the exhibition company and Mrs. Rose , the collector of the 651 different ed and white quilts, for a one-of-a-kind quilt experience.

From Laura G.-
I saw the show today. You can see each of the quilts up close.
It was an incredible, phenomenal, stupendous show. Something tells me we are going to see many red and white quilts in the near future. Better buy your red broadcloth before it's all gone!!!

Martha Stewart's blog = http://www.themarthablog.com/2011/03/infinite-variety-three-centuries-of-red-and-white-quilts.html

Alex Anderson's website = http://www.thequiltshow.com/ - on the main screen, look for the tab that says "Red and Whilte Quilts" it will send you to a slide show.

http://www.quiltingboard.com/t-110701-1.htm

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/american-folk-art-museum-presents/id427267140?mt=8 - this is a lind to the apple website, where, if you have a mobile device (e.g. iphone, ipad, or android phone), you can download the app.

http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/24/finally-mrs-rose-and-the-public-can-see-all-her-rugs/?hpw NYTimes article shows the staff of Thinc setting up the exhibit plus a few photos of whole quilts

Red and White Quilts for Sale

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 03:43:00 +0000

SEEING RED - NYC ABLAZE WITH COLOR AT THE ARMORY & AT FISHER HERITAGE
Quilt Photos and post courtesy of Laura Fisher

Fired up by the forthcoming exhibition from the American Folk Art Museum of one collector’s red and white quilts called INFINITE VARIETY, in further celebration of the color red and of quilt art, NYC American antiques dealer Laura Fisher offers a diverse collection of red and white quilts at her gallery throughout the Spring.

The color red in quilts is expressive, historic, even biblical in content. Among red and white quilts there are iterations of the two colors that can give clues to age. Earlier 19th century examples feature printed red fabrics with white, and some later 19th century quilts feature printed reds with printed white shirting cottons, as well as solid red.

Interest in antique red and white quilts runs the gamut from the bold graphic clarity of the solid red and white examples to the softer appearance of printed reds that many designers select when the small scaled prints work with fabrics based on historic printed cottons.

At the 67th Street (Park Avenue) Armory from March 25 -30 will be 650 (yup, amazing!) quilts in solid red and white literally hanging from the rafters like nothing ever seen before! Up for only a week, and FREE to the public, lovers of graphic design and of quilts are coming to town to see it and the other ongoing quilt shows at the AFAM.

The collector concentrates on solid red with solid white. Fisher is regarded in the design trade as the queen of two-color antique quilts, offering every shade with white.

Also available are antique textiles including coverlets and ticking in the same palette.

Gallery hours are Monday through Friday, from 11:00 – 4:00 or by appointment.

Red and white used alone was a mostly 19th century phenomenon, later supplanted by the solid pastels and the pastel printed cottons of the 1930s Depression era. For Fisher, when red appears in a 1930s quilt of colorful feedsack prints, it immediately catches the eye (see her current column in The Quilt Life Magazine called Feedsacks in Motion.

You can reach Laura Fisher at:
FISHER HERITAGE
305 East 61st Street,5th floor
New York, NY 10065
212/838-2596
http://www.laurafisherquilts.com/
fisherheritage@yahoo.com

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Love is in the air...

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 19:54:00 +0000

Hi everyone!
Do you know that without a doubt, when you comment it makes my day! It's so much fun to hear your thoughts (and know you are getting something out of my ramblings) that it keeps me going. So let's enjoy each other in this way when the topic is one you are moved to share your thoughts on; it's your unique perspective or experience we want to hear (I know, it's read, but I'm an audio learner more than visual after all these years of being a shrink).

You can post anonymously or not, but comment and share. I get comments on old posts all the time, which then bring that topic up to date or add to the knowledge being sought. No comment is out of date!
Spam and off topic comments are deleted so you won't be stuck having to read them either. If the comments section is not automatically showing up at the end of each post when you land on any page than simply click the "comments" box and voila!

Do you feel fear or resistance when you want to actually begin a new project? I know I do. I feel it as I continue to work on an ongoing and important project too. It's easier to begin if I'm in a classroom setting. I think that's because I can tell myself that this project doesn't really matter...it's just for practice. When I tell myself this in my studio it works too... if I believe it.

Last month I delivered two public installation pieces that I had begun in the spring of 2010. They could have been completed in a few months but nagging fear of not being good enough to make what my mind's eye could see plagued me to the point of procrastination. I could sew, collage, write and make other things no problem, but these two quilts, flailed in the background looming very large on my conscience without touching ground. They were received with such joy and love, it was all worth it, but I would like to proceed in the future minus the fear and resulting guilt.

For those of you who might relate to what I'm talking about, there is a wonderful article on overcoming what might be stopping you. It's written by Lisa Sonora Beam. She's a San Francisco based mixed media artist, workshop leader, and author on doing business as a predominantly right brained creative type or entrepreneur.

"Why doing something new is scary - and how to begin" is the article. Take 2 minutes to read it then share your fear stories and tips on how you deal with it in the comment box below.

Are you wondering why I titled this post "Love is in the air...?" Most of you probably know there is a royal wedding coming up the end of April. I am excited about it. I can remember watching Princess Di getting married and feeling thrilled and envious of her, then. What a dress! What an entourage.. what a life. Needlesstosay it became a sobering situation as time went on. Both parties were forced into the wrong marriage. So very sad and a tragic outcome prevailed for her and her sons.

I want to support William at this time. Focusing my loving light filled energy on the couple and all involved in giving the wedding is how I will support them. It's the only way that I can. My imagination can do this and meditation. Would you like to support them too? Here's my suggestion. Leave a comment below describing the most beautiful wedding dress you can imagine and see Kate wearing it as she walks down the isle. Tell us about your vision in detail, the fabric, lines, shoes, jewelery, whatever it is that makes your heart fill with light and love as you think of her and the couple getting married.

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Ever dream about careers in quilt history, then wonder what are they?

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Sat, 22 Jan 2011 19:37:00 +0000

Have you ever wondered what people do who call themselves "Quilt Historians". Have you ever dreamt about making a career in the ever widening fields of quilt history, costumes, or quilts? I wondered how women went about becoming quilt historians when this field didn't even exist until the last quarter of the 20th century? Who were their mentors and role models?

I invite you to look into the lives of said women (and one man so far, another on the way,) on my Getting to Know Today's Quilt Historian pages. Many new women have been added this month, while others have updated their interview and more are working on theirs now. There is great joy for me to bring their history to my readers. Please let others know about this and share the joy!

What motivated me to interview women who have helped make the field what it has become today was my curiosity about what motivated them to get involved as they did. Who were their mentors, what peaked their interest, what was their favorite job or research project and what do they still want to do. What I learned is that their imagination and dreams grew as they did. With each step they took a leap of faith driven by a love of quilts, fabrics, or history which kept them going. At the end of each profile is a comprehensive bibliography of their publications, lectures, exhibits, and so forth. Use it also as a reference guide should you need it for your research.

Today we follow their tracks to a certain extent. These women and men can be your mentors, Read their interview online. One thing led to another and their dreams became larger and wider, and so can yours. My interviews show creativity in action as well as educate us about the broad field of quilt history.

While you're on the page, take a look at the second photograph. I took a picture of the entrance to the International Garden of Peace. It is the Peace Portal at Meditation Mount in Ojai California. Then I played around with the digital photograph to make it look like a stream is running through an Asian doorway on a hot day. In reality, there is no water, it's a path through a garden under a blue sky on a typical day. It's fun to play this way.

I hope your new year is wonderful so far. I started my mixed media collage class again. This semester we are focusing on line and we'll learn to use gesso in various ways. I am surrounded by accomplished artists in this class and learn so much from them as well as the teacher. We make collages in class and share them for her critique at the end. Mostly we make abstract collage with papers, fabric sometimes, and other flat embellishment. We use a great deal of clothing pattern paper. The printing on the tissue paper are examples of line to be used in creating action, interest and leading the eye along.
Tell us about what creative adventures you are up to this new year?

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It's the Year of the Quilt! Are You Planning your 2011 Vacation?

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Sat, 01 Jan 2011 21:13:00 +0000

HAPPY NEW YEAR to each and every one of you! Thank you for being here, for commenting, for bringing your Quilter's Spirit to my little nook of the planet. I wish you many blessings and prosperity and joy-fulled friendships and experiences in 2011.

2011 brings an extravaganza of quilts into the fold from the American Folk Art Museum collection and a private collection, which will will be on display at various locations in the city throughout the year.

Infinite Variety, Three Centuries of Red and White Quilts will cap the American Folk Art Museum's "Year of the Quilt." It is the largest exhibit with over 650 red and white American quilts displayed at one time! They are hung four and five high, as if floating in space, in a circular fashion at the Park Avenue Armory from March 25-30, 2011. Entrance to the this special show is free. What a gift for those who can attend.

This will be the largest quilt exhibit ever seen in the city. All of the quilts are on loan from one New York City private collection. Fifty quilts will be chosen by and donated to AFAM's collection after the exhibition. Wow! What a memory to have. I've seen pictures of the installation and it's not something you can describe, you've got to see it to believe it. A café, gift and book store are also in the armory which is located at 643 Park Avenue between 66th and 67th Streets.

Read much more about the Infinite Variety exhibit and three more major quilt exhibits from the museum's collection being offered this year including the curator's thoughts and historic perspective.

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Making Vintage Quilts

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Thu, 30 Dec 2010 05:45:00 +0000

There is no doubting that winter is here, from coast to coast. And with that comes staying in doors if you can and enjoying the cozy feel. I love the sound of rain drops falling on the skylights. Listening to the rain fall is so rare, I sit or work in silence while it is happening to take the sound and sensation it in when I can. But after a week of fairly non-stop raining and dreary skies I want color back, not to mention the sun and warm temperatures.

I don't know about you, but I think 1930s when I think about colorful happy quilts so I went to my bookshelf for some quick relief, and pulled down Link to the '30s, making the quilts we didn't inherit written by two sisters living in Texas, Kay Connors and Karen Earlywine.

The sisters are vintage style quilt and pattern makers. They design their quilts using period newspaper quilt columns that offered mail order patterns and old quilts. Small photos of the original newspaper column pattern or quilt adorn each of the 9 quilt patterns featured in this book.

The patterns are from the columns Nancy Page Quilt Club and Household Arts by Alice Brooks, and one is a McCall's wedding ring pattern., as seen on the book's cover. Two signature quilt patterns are reproduced. One is from a 1931 quilt with embroidered names, and the other one is made into a contemporary quilt minus signatures.

The quilts chosen are familiar but I seldom see them reproduced at shows or on exhibit, which is nice. The patterns range in difficulty from beginner to experienced quilter. Most of them are mid range to advanced. The more difficult quilts contain curves, applique, and bias edges.

A variety of border treatments were made popular in the Colonial Revival period between the World Wars and are reflected in these patterns. Borders include the ice cream cone, prairie points, scallops, tiny half square triangles and the curved vine of petals (think of one Dresden plate petal).

Kay and Karen wrote a quilt stitch pattern book recently, Fancy to Frugal, authentic quilt patterns of the '30s. Here they are describing quilting from the same time period, although Link to the '30s shows suggested quilting patterns for the borders and white or plain fabric blocks in the quilt.

These two books give you access to excellent patterns and ideas to pull from to make your own combinations of borders and blocks or to reproduce your own favorites. The templates are arranged on pages without overlapping each other for easy tracing, and illustrations are easy to see and understand. Their strip or rotary piecing directions are also easy to follow.

Please post your comments by clicking here http://www.quiltersspirit.blogspot.com/ if you are receiving this as a subscriber. Scroll down to "comments" below the post, click, and a comment box will appear. If you haven't read the great comments about Remembering Adelia, take a peek, even the author wrote in! Links top other

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Remembering Adelia was more than a book to me

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 05:13:00 +0000

Oh it is a busy time of year! I hope you too are enjoying the myriad delights of the holiday season. I do more and more each year. I think it's because I value my family and my friendships, new and old, more deeply than I did when I was younger. I love giving gifts, cards, and coming together for parties and meditations for the new year.

I was drawn to Kathleen Tracy's book "Remembering Adelia" the first time I saw it. In glancing over it I saw that it was a book of small quilts with patterns and diary entries written by a young woman named Adelia, set in mid-19th century. I set it aside to read nearly a year ago. During a recent rain storm
I read the book. It's an easy cozy read in one sitting. The diary narrative of Adelia Thomas is real. She was a young woman living in the year 1861 in northern Illinois.

My eyes lit up and my jaw dropped by what I discovered!! I grew up and still have dear friends in the same towns Adelia writes about in her diary. There are also original photographs of the countryside, houses and people living there in the later part of that century.

It's unique for this to happen when I'm reading a quilt history book. These are not historically important places today or then. I was born in Minneapolis and raised in the northwestern suburbs of Chicago until I left for collage after high school and to live out west.

Adelia lived in the town of Woodstock, IL, which I have only visited a few times, but it is the other towns that she and her family visited frequently that were my stomping grounds and may be yours too: Des Plaines, Algonquin, Elgin, St. Charles, Chicago's Michigan Avenue and State Street, and Park Ridge, where she raised her own family years later. Oh the memories! Dear friends and family are still there and new memories are made there because of their children growing up in the same towns.

Although the year of diary entires is during the start of the Civil War as Adelia's male friends and family were leaving for military duty and there was change and sadness in her life, the book was a joy to read for me and I think you would also enjoy it if you like diaries of 19th century women who quilt!!

The quilts Kathleen shows are scrappy style made from reproduction fabrics. She picked patterns with significance to the time period. The quilts are adorable ranging from doll to lap size with fourteen patchwork and two applique quilt patterns and housewif and journal cover patterns.

This is a pattern and story book of historical relevance a beginner would enjoy as much as the more advanced quilt history enthusiast. I think it would be a lovely gift for a friend, daughter, or yourself, OR for someone who lives in Illinois.

I know there are other diary inspired quilt books with patterns, including Kathleen's first book on Prairie children quilts. If you have a favorite, please tell us about it, the title, author and what you liked about it, or what made it stand out for you. I'd like to have a list handy and I'm thinking some of you would too.

Please post your comment on the blog by clicking here http://www.quiltersspirit.blogspot.com/ and scrolling down to the comments box, or clicking on the word comments. You can read about others favorite diary books there too.

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Thankful for my Dog and you!

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Thu, 25 Nov 2010 05:53:00 +0000

I wish you all could smell the banana bread baking in my oven. It's my special recipe. Baking is one of the creative endeavors I have really played with this year. I like tweaking recipes, not following them. I've baked so much, for so many people, I have acquired a reputation. They hint for more as a show of support....yeah right. Luckily I can give away most of the results because I find it relaxing to prepare baked goods and a delightful challenge to try out new ideas through food. Waiting for the goodie to bake is tough, so I read a good book and whiff in the smells. I bake allot this time of year, as I'm sure many of you do too.

Tonight my husband and I along with many special friends are having a Gathering of Giving Thanks and Gratitude at the spiritual center we attend. Afterward, we meet for a dessert pot luck and my bread has a place reserved for it there.

This summer we held a Pet Blessing Ceremony in the same room where I am seen holding my dog, Faith, who is hard to see because she is all black except for her gray eyebrows and snout. It was quite a scene with about 45 dogs and cats (in their carriers) coming together to be individually blessed and honored. Aren't pet people the best people- or is that quilt people? Often they are one in the same, aren't they.

Faith nearly transitioned a year ago this month. She was very sick for many months. Using Reiki, prayer, crystals, change of food, lots of sleep and supplements, I and friends were able to pull her back from the edge. Today she is a young 12 going on 3. I kid you not! She is better than before. In retrospect, and a blood test, we think she had Lyme Disease. I wouldn't take her to a veterinarian when she was sick because I believed based on the experience with my dear cat Sage, that they would have strongly suggested I put her down; saying with authority that her chances of pulling through were slim. I didn't want this in my consciousness. And they would have done a bunch of tests had I said let's try, and I didn't want to see my dog go through that.

Faith told me with her eyes, as she couldn't move or walk hardly at all, to stay with her and give her my energy and love. So I did, night and day for a long while. I sent her energy through my hands and my mind in meditation. Friends joined me in both forms of treatment. She was all I paid attention to throughout the holidays and into 2010. In time I got her to walk, if only a partial block. My husband lifted her everywhere else. We have lots of stairs in our home. We built ramps for her where we could and put her food up higher when she could finally stand up to eat. I fed her from my hands for months.

In late March I met a family practice veterinarian, at a training conference on non-violent communication. She was wearing a sweater that looked like a giraffe's skin. A giraffe is a character in the training, but neither she nor I knew about that when we signed up. The point in telling you this, is that it was the pattern kitted into her sweater that drew me to speak to her out of many people there. She was an answer to my prayers for medical expertise. She is now a close friend and my dog is completely healthy.

She practices a new vein of veterinary medicine, referred to as Family Practice Veterinary Services. Dr. KaLee Pasek is now teaching this approach to Vet. med students at University of California at Davis. It's wholistic and includes the family and environment. It reminds me of my work as a psychologist, in using a systems approach to diagnosis and treatment planning.

If you haven't read the comments posted to "Do you own your first sewing machine?" click here to warm your heart or post your own experience. I loved the responses that were shared. Thank you all- your love for your first machine came through your creative heart and mind. It's amazing to me how close we hold the memory. I do of my first machine too. It was the one I bought on time payments when I was in college. It was a Viking, made in Germany. Heavy metal and all that, but it was in a case and portable. And yes, I still have it.

It is wonderful to be sharing with you through the blog and emails. Thanksgiving is the time of year to say thank you, but I am grateful every day for all the blessings in my life. Those blessings I hold closest are the relationships I have will all beings on the planet. Yep- all beings around the globe. We are all one. Namaste and Happy Thanksgiving to each of you and yours.

Love,
Kim

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Do You Own Your First Sewing Machine?

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 18:57:00 +0000

Who needs fiction when life is so amazing! I was visiting a girlfriend's studio recently, admiring the art quilts she makes hung on the walls and stacked antique quilts stored in a tall cabinet. Along one wall were shelves and shelves of small old sewing machines. Some were made as toys, but I was amazed to hear that most of the 30 or more on view were not. They were made small with hand cranks in the days before electricity. The miniature machines were a smorgasbord for my eyes and heart as I envisioned a woman using one.

Next I landed upon a metal machine that looked like the outside of an Art Deco building, made with variegated green metal. In fact, it looked completely different from all the others. I wasn't familiar with the name stamped in the metal along the front edge.

My friend pointed toward the ground to a smallish square red sewing machine case. Oh, was it heavy to lift. I unlocked the sides, removed the top and voila, there was another one just like it, only this one was stamped Betsy Ross on the front. It wasn't a toy machine, but small for a child to use and it was electric.

She explained that when she found the machine displayed on the shelf, she was called by it looked until one day it dawned on her that it was like the machine she learned to sew on as a child in the 1950s. Excited about the memory she searched the Internet until she located what was her machine and discovered that yes, they were exactly the same machine!

She bought the Betsy Ross machine on eBay, in perfect condition, case and all. As we looked at it, we wondered if this might actually BE her childhood machine. Stranger things have happened, right?

Then I heard a couple on the Today show this morning, who married in the 1950s and couldn't afford to buy their wedding photos. Recently the wife was searching through a 55 gallon barrel of scrap at a scrap/junk yard. Digging through photographers scrap, when she was near the bottom she came upon THE negatives of her marriage ceremony. Apparently the photographer had held on to them for years before tossing them and others out.

I think I'll make a mental list of what I've lost or tossed and would love to have back. Let's see, there was a beautiful necklace from my Grandmother who wore it as a child herself that was taken by a house cleaning in the 1980s. It's funny what jumps to mind when I hear these stories. How about you?

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American Folk Art Museum's Super Star Quilts Opened Yesterday

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Wed, 17 Nov 2010 19:39:00 +0000

Stars, some of the most important elements of the natural world, are also a beloved and enduring motif in American quilts. Stars appeared in pieced bedcovers as early as the eighteenth century and remain popular with quilt artists today. The "Super Stars" exhibit illuminates one theme in the textile masterpieces from the American Folk Art Museum's collection that is on display in the NYC 2 Lincoln Square location from November 16 to September 25, 2011.

Stars do not make a major appearance in American quilts until the last quarter of the eighteenth century, when they were increasingly used as a pieced field motif. This was no doubt a response, at least in part, to the design of the flag of the newly formed United States. Conceived as a “new constellation,” the canton featured white five-pointed stars against a cobalt background, evoking once again the moral certitude of the heavenly canopy, as well as the strength of America’s victory. By this time, stars were also a strong element in the neoclassical lexicon. Their presence on quilts allowed the tenets of the classical world to resonate with the new republic in a highly fashionable manner.

It was not until the turn of the nineteenth century that a single eight-pointed star moved front and center in whole-cloth quilts, usually pieced in a solid-color glazed wool known as calimanco. But with the invention of the kaleidoscope in 1816, art and science took an unanticipated and dazzling turn. Quiltmakers, especially, embraced the refracted imagery produced by the kaleidoscope. Large single stars now blazed across cotton quilt tops, pieced from multitudes of diamonds that scintillated in rings from the center to the points. Staggered rows of repeated stars danced across the surfaces of bedcovers. By the Victorian era, the aspect of stars changed once again with the influence of exotic ideas from the Near East. Star motifs were interpreted for a new age in silk, velvet, and brocade show quilts.

"Super Stars" , curated by Stacy Hollander, highlights the dazzling diversity of this variable pattern as interpreted through more than one hundred years of quilt artistry. The museum has published a book of 200 of their most significant bedcovers in their collection to coincide with the exhibit. If you can't make the exhibit, get the book; Quilts, Masterworks from the American Folk Art Museum or give it as a gift.

I have long pointed to the the museum's first quilt book, Glorious American Quilts, as one of my most prized books on the subject of quilt history. Beautifully written and photographed, it gives so much information helping me learn about the periods and influences on American quilt making. I learned how to date quilts in part because of this book.

Given that the same author, Elizabeth V. Warren , and former curator of the museum, also authors their new book, it must be fabulous as we know more than we did in the early 1990s when Glorious was written (published in 1996). Also the museum has added about 100 bedcovers to its collection, including a late 18th century patchwork quilt made with the Hewson panel in the center. And yes, it will also be on display for a time during their Year of the Quilt, in the Masterworks Quilts exhibits. (more on that in another blog post.)

Quilts: Masterworks from the American Folk Art Museum By Elizabeth V. Warren, with a preface by Maria Ann Conelli, a foreword by Martha Stewart, and an introduction by Stacy C. Hollander. New York: Rizzoli International Publications in association with the American Folk Art Museum, 2010. 336 pages.

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Quilts Embellished with Poems, Words, Messages

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Fri, 12 Nov 2010 21:55:00 +0000

I find myself dating quilts for people today, some of which are filled with signatures, others with a single name. All tell a story. As I search through my library to gather more information for them, I see the beautiful synergy of words and fabric coming together. Here are a few links for your enjoyment too.

The Soldier Quilt and Poets
Where Dreams Wait quilt made for a quilt challenge with the theme "Indelible Spirit." It celebrated the indelible spirit shown in those who create art in spite of limitations
The Seldom-Ever Shady Glades
Imagine your favorite quilt while reading this Tennessee poet's poem
A thread of poems about quilting, dreaming and nature by Judy Anne. (check out the poem Judy posted in comments on the last post )
I saw this fabulous exhibit Talking Quilts at the American Folk Art Museum. scroll down the page to see 4 antique quilts in the show, click to a large view
A compilation of photos of text sewn onto textiles for art's sake

Funny thing happened when I was sitting on my studio floor flipping through the books. My eyes caught a glisten of color against the carpet. My eyes followed it until I realized it was a lone thread that had fallen from the sewing table. So I bent forward to picked it up only to see that the thread was still coming up as I settled back down in the Indian style posture. What?

Thread was actually strewn and tossed all across the floor! The kitty had knock it off the table and pushed it all over until finally it went too far under the couch for him to reach. I quickly scanned for more deconstruction, as there were at least 15 spools of thread and 5 bobbins by the machine. I was grateful to see that he had tired after chasing just this one!

Thank you to everyone who has written me since I posted this week and sent wonderful message and shared their sense of sisterhood with the poems Delaine and I wrote. You bring joy to my heart. And to you I write this itty bitty poetry-

Piece for Peace
Live to Love
Shine your Light
for all to see
The beauty in thee

Keep the poetry and comments coming. Soon I'll post a scrappy "landscape with stormy sky" I recently made.

Kim
http://quiltersspirit.blogspot.com/
http://livingtomakesenseofitall.com/

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Another Closet Poet Quilter

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 19:36:00 +0000

Delaine sent her poem "Into My Journal" in response to my post yesterday. She writes- "Kim, writing has opened my heart to myself, I did not start writing until I was very ill with Chronic Fatigue, I attended a writing for healing group and the doors opened and I feel it was the beginning of my returning to a normal life."

Into My Journal

As I open my journal, I step into a secluded windowless cabin.

I shut the door and the world falls away

Light from the outside shines through tiny cracks
This room can be very shadowy, sometimes it’s cold and damp

This is my inner place I have to light the fire

I carry the wood and bank the flames.

I am the keeper of the fire; I must illuminate the space.

If the room is to be warm I must do the work.

I kindle the warm glow of memories to light my way.

The hard emotional times are found deep within

I keep those memories concealed in the dark corners.

I enjoy the silence and feel sheltered in my cabin.

In my journal I find the freedom to explore my inner fears.

I can take the candle to the dark corners only if I choose.

Yes there are times I will do just that.

With pen in hand I start a fire that draws me in

I seek understanding as my memories warm the room

My journal is a private place where I go to warm my soul.

___________________________________________
I love your use of fire as an analogy for insight journaling. Bringing light to the darkness, within and without is so important. Thank you for sharing your poetry Delaine.

Delaine Gately also designed the cover of Changing times: Women's Stories and her winning story Mattie's Quilt was included inside along with another story she wrote titled The Little Box.

If you haven't tried to write poetry- the secret is to not try, but just free-flow write on a theme that you feel inspired by such as something said, felt or seen. Keep the sentences short, chunk them into stanzas afterward, and there is no need to rhythm. If it's possible, write when the inspiration hits, as fast and quickly as you can. Your creative neurochemicals' spark is on your side for a short time, so grab it while it's hot. You can go back over it later. Inspiration is everywhere. I'm often grabbed by what someone says or buy a celebration, happy or sad, big or private.

And, of course, keep your poems coming, or post them yourself. I have others I will share if you would like that. Let me know dear readers.

Here is a little reminder about how to post a comment so that others can be a part of a discussion. There doesn't seem to be a way to comment directly from the Feedburner post sent to subscribers. It seems you must be on the Blogger page itself. So if you click on the colored title of the emailed post you will be taken to the Blogger page it is on and you will find the comment section at the end of the post.

If someone knows how I can make it possible to comment from the subscriber post, please get in touch with me.

Piece,
Kim

kwulfert@earthlink.net

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The Women's Conference, in Long Beach CA

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Sun, 07 Nov 2010 00:39:00 +0000

Hello Dear Quilters!

It's been a long while since I posted to this blog. Only wonderful things have happened. I set an intention not quite 2 years ago to bring my right brain into power and creative action. What I wanted and envisioned was for my right abstract non-language, non-rational side to mingle balanced with the left or dominate at times over my left brain. I love my left brain but I wanted my right brain to contribute in an expanded way, all the time, always a part of my experience and my expression whatever that may be.

I stretched myself, climbed over boundaries and self-imposed hurdles. I studied and pondered creative processing from a neurochemical POV, a spiritual perspective and reason for being important, and I practiced dreaming bigger. Most important I believe, is that I mediated., regularly and will for the rest of my life. In a group, alone, in silence, in guided meditations, sitting, walking, writing, in service to humanity or for my personal growth.

My intention has become a daily truth and experience for me. I love it! It's natural now to use the right side of my brain, seeing creatively, acting creatively, flowing with it, and expressing it in a myriad of ways. Life is a creative expression when not resisted or twisted.

One of many unexpected creative expressions that has come forth from me is poetry. It just started flowing out during journaling sessions following silent meditation. The poem elow came forth, essentially as is, after attending the Women's Conference, which is put on annually by the wife of the current governor of California. Maria Shriver has produced and designed the conference for the last 7 years, and this was her last. We have term limits here so Arnold's term will be done in December.

Maria and her female team put on the most inspirational, loving, informative, joyful and exhilarating conference this year as her final good-bye. Lucky for everyone, it's available free in video on their website. http://www.womensconference.org/. I urge you to watch Eve's (from the Vagina Monologues) and Maria's if you only have time for two. Both are on the Main Event Day on the website. Michelle Obama, Jill Biden, Oprah Winfrey, and Minerva Award Winners are excellent inspiring presentations as well as educative.All of them presented during the Main Event and Minerva Awards ceremony.

Here is the poem I wrote: Minerva's:Architects of Change

BE the change you want to see
I listen as this phrase calls out to me
Again and again I hear the words
As I've not yet risen above the herds

Purpose, passion, fearless ambition,
Discipline, leadership, inspired vision
Invoking these qualities for me and others
All of humanity; my sisters and brothers

Hear their desires, their cries and whispers
See their need, sense their hopes and inner stirs
Dream as big as the moon, the stars and sun
For changes I make will affect everyone

Notice the dark hidden places
See the pain in their faces
Hear the silence and feel the spaciousness
Rise to my own uniqueness

It's time, Maria Shriver is saying
For women who are full-out playing
As architects of change
In communities across the range

The challenge is to find
Minerva within your mind
Then pass it on
Through many lives in time
Many faces and designs
Women pass it on in kind
Through their bodies, hands, hearts and minds,
As the architects of change

Written by Kimberly Wulfert, October 26, 2010 at the close of The Women's Conference held in Long Beach, CA
________________________

Are you a closet poet too? If want to share one of your poems in the comment box- please do. Tell us how you write poetry? What inspires you? Share your thoughts with me on anything I've said. We are all one afterall.

Piece, and blessings,
Kim
http://quiltersspirit.blogspot.com/ Spread the word

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Ruby McKim's State Flower Embroidery Blocks

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 15:52:00 +0000

In July 2008 I posted about some unique (to my eye) and beautiful embroidered state flower vintage blocks that were shown during a workshop I just taught, maker unknown. Soon after, as synchronicity would have it, I came across a quilt of them and found out it was Ruby McKim's state flower blocks. I asked for the readers input. and this post likely has more comments on it than any other. Ruby McKim was great and powerful ! Pigeon-holing her to any one look is a mistake.

The versatility of her designs is amazing and admirable. It is not automatic when I see unknown designs to think of her and it's a pleasure when I hear she was the designer. Wouldn't you have loved to spend time with Ruby in person, learn from her, be a student in her design classes?

Today I received more info as a comment worthy of posting here too and revisiting the other post. The original post about the quilt blocks is linked here and shows pictures, and the comment is from Juanita Moore. She writes:

Juanita Moore has left a new comment on your post "State Flower Embroidery Quilt Blocks Mystery Solve...": Ruby Short McKim was from Illinois and lived in Independence, Missouri most of her life after training at the New York City Parson School of Fine Arts.

McKim became known for her pieced quilt art-deco like designs, which she had prepared in simple lines for machine sewing, according to the History for the Heart Quilt Paths Across Illinois record of the Illinois Quilt Research Project, a book written by E. Duane Elbert and Rachel Kamm Elbert, and published in 1993 by Land of Lincoln Quilters Association.

The embroidered state flower designs were first published by the Illinois State Journal in Springfield, and released Sunday by Sunday to prepare for a contest at the end. There was both a local and a national contest. What a great way to sell newspapers!

Ruby also did newspaper columns on quilts, and ran a studio from which women ordered her patterns. You could get just a pattern for 20 cents and the whole Oriental Poppy pattern with cut-out fabric to piece for $4.50 God Bless!

Today you can find Ruby's patterns for sale here, but don't count on those same prices!
http://www.patchwork-quilt-patterns.com/ This site has the McKim 48 patterns available.

Thank you to all of the readers who submitted comments. it so much more fun when there is a dialogue on my blogs. I have returned to my professional life as a psychologist and I am loving it. I use meditation, mindfulness practices for stress reduction and pain relief and the new ways of talking and relating that help develop integration in the client's brain. These are well documented forms of therapy today that simply weren't known or known to be effective when I was practicing in the 1980s and 1990s. So it is my pleasure to be in the field again.

That said, my love of quilts and history, and talking with other quilters via my blog, is still alive and well, but a much smaller part of my life. When we do connect like this, it's pure pleasure, Thank you all for being there.

Namaste and many blessings, fabric and otherwise,

Kim

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Creativity Breeds Creativity

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 23:10:00 +0000

I'd like to share my pictures set to music montage with you! It starts to play as the window opens so scroll down quickly to see it! The cover picture is one I find compelling to look at, so take a moment now to look at it here. It fits the song.

There are two small quilts I made in the montage, my cat, and a Rose Parade float detail (bet you can't tell which one it is!)but most of it is photos I've taken of the nature surrounding my home here in Ojai. The song is by a young man who has written a meaningful and soothing song called "Life is Wonderful" and I credit him in the montage itself.

I liked the song so much when I heard it, it led me to build the montage, as I listened to it over and over again. The song inspired me. Creativity flows from one sense to another, from one expression to another, if you let it.

I've not made a montage before and this service gave us very limited choices, such as how long a picture stayed in view or shifted out was not my decision. This meant that where the photos landed in the song also wasn't my choice, just the order of their appearance was my decision.

This process reminded me to making a quilt in the stack and slash style - you don't know what you get until you're done. I could harp on how I wish it were different, but I am focusing instead on how many times a slide fit the music and how fun the whole thing was to make.

I also like the fact that it IS done. Finally a finished project in a few hours. Now that's creativity at it's finest!
________________________________

Next I am going to post some more quilts from the exhibit at the Jen Jones Welsh Quilt Center on Women On Quilts blog http://womenonquilts.blogspot.com
______________________________

Welsh Quilts on exhibit at the Jen Jones Welsh Quilt Center

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 05:05:00 +0000

THE JEN JONES ELSH QUILT CENTRE 2009 exhibit photos

The Welsh Flannel geometric patchworks were the focus of the inaugural exhibition at The Jen Jones welsh Quilt Centre. They are thrilled that, at last these wonderful artifacts have become universally recognized.

Opening March 6^th 2010

Their new exhibition, 'Unsung Heritage: The Quilts Of Wales' will be a further revelation in terms of the enormous spectrum within the Welsh quilting tradition.

They will feature the fiery reds including red paisleys and paisley shawl quilts.

Alongside these will hang the contrasting and diverse cotton patchworks and whole cloths that represent a major portion of the output during the 19^th and early 20^th century.

Early Cotton patchwork Merthyr Tydfil C1840

Email quilts@jen-jones.com

www.jen-jones.com

My thoughts:

There is joy in viewing Welsh quilts due to the simplicity of the patterns, the contrast of the fabrics and a WOW in the incredible stitched quilting patterns. Welsh quilter's seem to bring the art of quilting (stitches) to the forefront of their work and of the times.

They share quilt styles with the English, and wool contrasting concepts with the Amish, but the quilting, it stands alone, in an outstanding way from most quilts through time. Our American made whole cloth wool quilts, or are the closest quilts I know with ornate quilting. French made quilts have stuffed quilting with ornate designs, but they mostly favored channel quilting, or straight lines and angled quilting, not the swirls that are common on Welsh and fancy wool whole cloth quilts.

If any of you visit the exhibit, please let us know more about it. We'd love to hear. You can email me, or leave comments.

American Quilts in a British Museum, New Book Shows Them to US!

noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly ) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 16:42:00 +0000

Classic Quilts from The American Museum in Britain written by the curators of this wonderful museum in Bath England, Laura Beresford and Katherine Hebert.

It was Katherine who contacted me earlier this summer, 2009, about the eagle quilt kit pictured in an article about eagle quilts that she had come across on my Antique Quilt Dating Guides website. I introduced her 9by email) to Madge Zeigler owner of the kit, including the original packaging. The kit is by Paragon, titled American Eagle Quilt. It was first advertised in Woman's Day in the mid-1950s.

Katherine was about to put this book to bed when she saw this kit quilt and knew it looked like the one in Bath. The date- '63 -is embroidered on the museum's quilt and due to the Federal period symbolism of the eagle in America, and the thirteen stars, swags and pots with flowers situated around its central placement. So they estimated it was likely made in 1763 or 1863, but frustratingly they couldn't say for certain. (How many of us have felt that feeling when it comes quilts we later find out were kits?)

She was thrilled to be able to validate that her quilt was indeed made with a Paragon Kit too, thanks to Madge's help of many pictures and the instructions.

In the book on pages 70-1 you will see stunning photography of the kit quilt and that the one in their collection was made in 1963. They write that this quilt pattern was based on a chintz version made in 1795. How fun is that!

Now I'll tell you a bit about the rest of the Classic Quilts book, but I know you will want it on your self if you love antique quilts.

There are very large detail photographs, including full page detail photos, as well as full views of the quilts. Quilting pattern and fabric prints are easily seen.

Sheila Betterton, formerly the textile and needlework specialist for the museum and largely responsible for getting this collection going at the America Museum, wrote the preface in 2008. Sadly, she passed away that same year. She began as a volunteer at the Museum in 1963. The book is dedicated to her.

The book begins with the history of the Museum coming to be and who do you think influenced the founders Dr. Dallas Pratt and John Judkyn? None other than our own wonderwoman of quilts, Electra Havenmeyer Webb, who founded and filled The Shelburne Museum in Vermont. It's a small world. The chapter includes an overview of the development of textiles and quilts in America. From here to the end of the book, nearly every page has photographs.

The quilts shown include a wool whole cloth, wool applique, pieced chintz, appliqués of every type and era, Amish, BAQ (looks very much like on held in the Maryland Museum of Art's BAQ collection), signature quilts, presentation album quilt, a 1848 hexagon quilt with inked centers in the typical GFG rosette pattern, and many more truly gorgeous quilts totaling fifty-five.

Two of them may be expressing sentiments of the Temperance movement. One is a red and white Drunkard's Path which they titled as Robbing Peter to Pay Paul, made by a Congregational church in Oriskany Falls, NY. c. 1889. The other is the Tumbler pattern, appliqued in red on a white block on point set with alternate red blocks on point. It was made in Texas, c. 1860 at Mimosa Hall Plantation in Marshall. They refer to it as The Chalice Quilt. The back is machine quilted and the quilting hand pattern is the fan or elbow stitch. The size is 87"X75".

It is here that you may want to close your eyes as a brief rundown of the Underground Railroad quilt myth is described. They also mention the ongoing disagreement about the validity of the concept followed by this- "Although the decoration of this quilt does not conceal codes for the railroad's conductor's, it none the less contains a hidden message. The repeated motif of the chalice represents not only the bishop but also, more importantly, the freedom of a better world to come, after a life of blood and suffering." This was new to me. You?

The next page shows the Harrison log cabin and cider barrel toile that was used on the back of a chintz quilt. It is the biggest and best photograph of that monochrome I have ever seen in a book.

I highly recommend Classic Quilts from the American Museum in Britain The quilts chosen for the book clearly represent American styles and the true nature of our history of quilt making is evident. Many of the quilts are like those seen in our museums and books. It's really quite fun to read what they say. The pride they feel matches ours. It's all good.

Classic American Quilts will be on exhibit at the museum in Bath in 2010, 13 March – 31 October 2010

www.americanmuseum.org

The American Museum in Britain
Claverton Manor
Bath. BA2 7BD
Tel: 01225 460503 - Fax: 01225 469160

Reminder- this Thursday, Dec. 10, is my free telecasts on the Introduction to my workshop in January 2010 - 4 Ways to Access Your Guidance Within and the Bigger Vision for Your Life. Get call-in info here.
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