March 26 – 31, 2003
These restored messages come from the Quilt History List, an online forum where quilt historians, collectors, researchers, appraisers, and enthusiasts discussed antique quilts and related textiles. The archive dates from 1996 through approximately 2016 and is being restored gradually. Sign up in the form at the bottom of the page if you want to know when a new page is added. Original spelling, opinions, formatting, and inactive links may remain unchanged.
Primary topics of this QHL Digest:
- Fabric Dating Club Meeting and Antique Finds — Cinda Cawley reports on a Fabric Dating Club gathering in Annandale, VA, sparking envious descriptions of the antique fabrics on display. (see the article on dating quilts)
- Blue Star Service Banners, Continued — The ongoing thread on WWI/WWII blue-star and gold-star service banners continues, with members sharing family heirlooms and clarifying that gold stars marked the fallen.
- The “Intentional Mistake” Quiltmaking Myth — A member asks whether there’s any real documentation behind the popular belief that quilters deliberately sewed in a flaw. (see the article on quilt folklore)
- Dating the Earliest Red-and-Green Applique Quilts — Members discuss how early red-and-green applique quilts can be reliably dated, citing an unusually early 1818 example.
- 1933 Century of Progress Fabric on eBay — A linen fabric remnant tied to the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair surfaces in an eBay listing.
Date: Wed, 26 Mar 2003 20:58:04 -0500 | From: “Cinda Cawley”
The Fabric Dating Club sponsored by hazel Carter and Bunnie Jordan met in Annandale, VA on Sunday. The topic was “Your Oldest Quilt.” You all know how hard it is to find a pre-1850 quilt. Well, now you’ll know why. They’re all in the collections of Hazel Carter’s friends. What an afternoon we had! In no particular order we saw a baby quilt with paper-cut stars, chintz appliques and Flying Geese borders; a wholecloth pillar print in Prussian blue; a Reel in the same shade of blue, but this time a fondue fabric; 1830s blocks (hexagons, stars, curved shapes all whipped stitched) appliqued to a background with alternating blocks of chintz applique, the seams decorated with feather stitch and finished with a Victorian lace border!; Touching Stars with incredible stuffed work; an 1820s stenciled quilt and a lovely French quilt made from a fabric which appeared stamped rather than stenciled; a Tree of Life made from a palampore and chintz hexagons circa 1815; a chintz applique Tree of Life with a woven circle around the center medallion and the whole thing framed by Delectable Mountain blocks. It was a feast for fabric lovers. There was a delightful Evening Star quilt (7″ blocks with setting blocks in different colorways of the same fabric, circa 1830); a Lone Star with chintz appliques between the points of the star outlined by the “bird” fabric in blue with a border of large diamonds with Lemoyne Stars at the corners–did she leave anything out? I don’t think so. A simple (sic.) 9-Patch had alternating blocks of a peacock chintz and a border of Trenton tape which, of course, led to an unresolved discussion about the appropriateness of calling the tape Trenton. One of the most unusual quilts was a chintz applique of all kinds of birds, butterflies, monkeys and an Arab warrior on horseback, scattered around an oval medallion of flowers. A very dainty 1830s quilt of hexagon rosettes had a running border of single hexagons and a charming swag of a candy-pink stripe. At the opposite extreme was a stunning indigo calamanco quilt with an orange back (from Maine). Before I forget, we saw a teal and, brown Pineapple with Baptist Fan quilting and a cotton sack back from Gaffney, SC–much later than the rest, made by the owners g, g-mother in the late 19th century, but very interesting after the recent discussion. Color was the most exciting thing about an 1850 Delectable Mountains set as pinwheels–it was incredibly green, one wonderful fabric with a green background and purple flowers. A chintz baby quilt circa 1810, also from SC, had appliqued flowers and buds. There was 1820-30 wholecloth quilt pieced from one arborescent chintz; another whole cloth was from a block-print cheater cloth. From New England (Maine) was a strippy 9-Patch on point with cut-out corners (I know, the corners weren’t really cut out, it was planned that way, but you know what I mean). The oldest quilt of all (a top) may have been a hexagon strippy composed of a variety of fabrics all very early including some 1780s toiles. I’m sure I haven’t remembered everything, but it was another case of sensory overload. Cinda on the daffodil and forsythia-filled Eastern Shore
Date: Wed, 26 Mar 2003 18:16:47 -0800 | From: Judi Fibush <judi@>
Oh, WOW. All to see at one time. I guess they have cornered the market and certainly wish I would have been there to see them all. Thanks for descriptions.
Judi
Pam Weeks Worthen” <pamworthen@> To: qhl@ Subject:
Would someone please be so kind as to remind me of the website for the auction that’s happening this weekend in PA or NJ with all the fabulous textiles? I was sure I had bookmarked it, but can’t find it now.
thanks!
Pam in NH where the snow just keeps melting away. It might be gone by July….
_________________________________________________________________ Add
Date: Thu, 27 Mar 2003 16:47:46 +1100 | From: “Lorraine Olsson”
Dear Cinda, I read your letters and imagine………. I think though, that you will have to take a camera on your expiditions. You could have a very fascinating book after a very short time :o)))
Thanks for taking the time to share your adventures
Lorraine in Oz
Date: Thu, 27 Mar 2003 09:24:06 -0500 | From: mreich@
—– Original Message —– From: <mreich@> To: <QHL@> Sent: Thursday, March 27, 2003 9:07 AM Subject: QHL:a photographer for the Fabric Study Groups
> To Cinda, Hazel and all the quilt study groups without photographic > commentary; you are torturing the rest of us! > You need to invite someone who has a digital camera. This way your > tantalizing descriptive can be accompanied with pictures and the two can be > posted on Kris’s Study group site. I will humbly volunteer to fill your > needs until someone can purchase a digital camera. You can also use a 35mm > camera and have the shots developed onto a disc. If you send a shots to > Kris via email you have the same effect. I have been taking photos for the > New Jersey study group with a Sony Mavica, placing the images on Power Point > and sending the Power Point slide show to Kris and Judy. Power Point is so > much fun because you can caption the slides, insert neat transitions and > write more extensive notes. I am dying to see the pics from “Your Oldest > Quilt” day. sue reich, Connecticut where we are having our earliest > springtime ever! (Makes up for the mounds of snow we have moved since > November that have finally melted.) > >
Date: Thu, 27 Mar 2003 09:25:45 -0500 | From: Judy Roche <jrocheq@>
Thank you all for your kind words about ‘our’ fabrics—I live in Solebury,Bucks County- that is how we named the first line—although the spelling is now’in stone’ it has been spelled with berry and soul and my favorite ,Solesberry(on one of the signed and dated quilts that I have). Solebury is tiny and might not even be on many of your maps—we are on the Delaware River between New Hope and Doylestown–. If you read Fires of Spring by Michener you will learn about this area—
Please be aware that we have printed only fabrics that we own– we can show you the fabrics that the repros ‘come from’–so ‘lineage’ is assured–right now we are making the quilts to show off the next line- Colors of Friendship–and when placed on the originals (3-4 from un finished blocks that are basted on-part of a ‘set’ of 49 )the main difference is the newness of color and stiffness of unhandled fabric–needless to say, we are pleased—again, with Chanteclaire
Both Corienne and I are fortunate to live in eastern Pa where the old quilts are plentiful and we each have sizeable collections- and to add to our collections we are saving all the paper work and boards and all the ‘stuff ‘ that is accumulating from our foray into fabric production–so that some QHL member in years to come can refer back to the Solebury Collection et al. 🙂
Judy Roche
Date: Thu, 27 Mar 2003 07:24:37 -0800 | From: Judi Fibush <judi@>
I agree with Sue. I could almost “taste” those lovelies that Cindy described and would have been even more delighted to have see pics of them.
Judi
Date: Thu, 27 Mar 2003 10:42:05 EST | From: Cassquilt@
Since this really is the list that knows everything, I thought I’d try something that’s probably a long shot.
I’m looking to contact the owners of a specific quilt. The quilt is shown on the cover of a book from 1989, Country Quilts by Time-Life Books, ISBN 0-8094-6762-3. It’s the signature quilt in a hexagon pattern, and the quilt is listed as being in the collection of Ilisha Helfman and Joe Freedman.
My aunt owns (and I’m the current caretaker of) an almost identical quilt, also a signature quilt. Same pattern, same ‘cheddar’ print in the triangles, also with signatures. I’d like to find out more about the “twin” quilt.
If anyone is interested in looking, my aunt’s quilt was published in Robert Bishop’s New Discoveries in American Quilts, on page 50. For whatever its worth, the picture in that book doesn’t do it justice, and the caption is wrong. The quilt is from Vermont. It was bought at auction several decades ago.
Any help would be appreciated, either sent to me privately or to the list. I’m on digest, so if a message is sent to the list, I don’t get it right away.
Cassandra Thoreson cassquilt@
Date: Thu, 27 Mar 2003 16:39:55 -0500 | From: Judy Knorr <jknorr@>
Cinda, Your descriptions of all those quilts made my mouth water. Wish I could have seen them, but just imagining them was fun. Question… What is a “paper cut star”? Is the pattern cut from paper? Is it 5 pointed? Judy Knorr
Date: Fri, 28 Mar 2003 05:37:06 -0800 (PST) | From: Ark Quilts <quiltarkmv@>
There is an interesting item on Ebay right now : “1933 Century of Progress Linen Fabric piece Item # 3601168028”
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=4167&item=3601168028&rd=1
Thought the list might be interested in……….C. Ark
Date: Fri, 28 Mar 2003 06:16:12 -0800 | From: Judi Fibush <judi@>
Ark
Interesting and thank you for pointing it out. As usual the starting price is high with a reserve that is even higher. Be interesting to see if goes.
Judi
Ark Quilts wrote:
Date: Fri, 28 Mar 2003 18:34:20 EST | From: JBQUILTOK@
I just found a treasure in a thrift shop & would like some more information about it. I bought a bolt of 36″ wide 100% cotton fabric. It is white background with red gingham and golden yellow teddy bears with some blue strawberries thrown in. The brand name on the end of the bolt is Courtesy & it says Fine Cotton Guarenteed Fast To Wash Machine Wash Warm.
Does anyone have any information about this brand or know anything that would help me date it better?
Janet Bronston
Date: Fri, 28 Mar 2003 17:33:20 -0800 | From: Chris Flynn <lovechris@>
Hello, Chris here, in Boulder Creek, CA where it’s going to be 80 tomorrow!!
I just found a beautiful old applique quilt and can’t identify it. It has 16 inch squares with a sunflower type flower (16 petals) in the middle, four three-leaf green coming out of the sunflower and four curved embroidered stems leading to a three leaf bud. The color of the flowers, bud and sashing is a cheddar yellow. All the applique is button hole stitched in matching color. It has 1940 in ink on a small corner of one square, and the year 1958 embroidered on the back. I’ve checked my few pattern books and can’t find it.
Anyone have an idea?
Thanks so much, Hugs from CA
Date: Fri, 28 Mar 2003 17:44:27 -0800 | From: “jajb” <anne_j@>
Thanks again for the great feedback.
I took a careful look at my article and added “Making these banners as a miniquilt may be a more recent practice.” Then I go on to tell where a quilter can find instructions.
I am really interested in knowing if these banners were produced as paper posters in the past. Does anyone remember seeing a paper one especially during WWII? The other day I saw an ad on TV saying that Blue Star posters could be obtained from I think it was the American Legion. It was one of those times when I wasn’t paying attention to the TV and only got a glimpse of the ad. It seems that these banners could have been published as posters during other wars as well.
Anne
Date: Fri, 28 Mar 2003 21:21:53 -0800 | From: “Marilyn Maddalena” <quilting@
<QHL@ Subject: RE: QHL: Blue Star Revision Message-ID: <LPBBKIAFGFCKLFLOKDOOIEANCDAA.quilting@ Content-Type: text/plain; charset=”iso-8859-1″ Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
I was a child in Iowa during WWII, and my father and all my uncles were overseas in one branch of the service or another. My grandparents had these in their windows, and they were white satin with yellow fringe, as I recall. I don’t remember ever seeing paper ones or quilted ones, though.
Marilyn Maddalena Professional Quilt Appraiser, Quilt Judge, Historian and Speaker website: www.marilynquilts.com
—–Original Message—– From: Barb Garrett [bgarrett@] Sent: Friday, March 28, 2003 8:06 PM To: QHL@ Subject: Re: QHL: Blue Star Revision
Anne asked –
Does anyone remember seeing a paper one especially during WWII?
I visited with my mother today and asked her about the banners — she didn’t remember much about them, but said they weren’t paper, but fabric, probably not wool, but she didn’t know what. When I asked if she had one or just my dad’s mother she said no, just grandma — dad was in the Navy from 1939 to 1945. They were married in 1943 so she would have been a wife during part of the war but she indicated that they were for mothers/parents. This was in Philadelphia. I got the idea she saw them in windows, but didn’t have “up close” contact with them, but when I asked if they were made of paper she gave a firm “no, they were material” — which is the word I grew up using for what I now call fabric <grin.
Barb in beautiful southeastern PA where all the fabric shops are ready for next week <grin
Date: Fri, 28 Mar 2003 21:21:08 -0800 | From: “jajb” <anne_j@
I’ve just re-read the Mennonite information by Sara Reimer Farley in the book “Kansas Quilts and Quilters” but didn’t find mention of the humility block. I may have just missed it. The article I read did not have extensive interviews so it must be another book that you found it in Gaye. I was hoping it would be KQ&Q as I have it here at home. I’d really like to know if some Mennonites do or did carry out this practice. It would be best if I had a reference so I could send people to the book or paper. The KQ&Q article emphasized how varied the practices are among Mennonites. I know this is true of the Amish as well. So perhaps some communities did make humility blocks and other’s didn’t.
The idea of the purposeful mistake as a superstition really makes sense to me. In another topic in KQ&Q it was mentioned that there is no documentation of the idea that black slaves thought it to be bad luck to make a perfect quilt and that an imperfection would keep the devil away. Jennie Chinn who wrote the article suggests that most quilters got the idea from books rather than tradition.
So much is uncertain but I still think it fits into the myth topic but needs to be rewritten a bit.
Anne Johnson
Date: Sat, 29 Mar 2003 08:21:10 -0500 | From: Joan Kiplinger <jkip@
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Anne — As public services, I recall newspapers and magazines printed blue & gold star hangings suitable to be taped to windows; and cardstock versions, about 8×10 or so were available in some grocery and other stores, usually free and on the countertop by cash register, also banks and government buildings. Many service and fraternal organizations and local businesses made these available, their name in fine print on backside. I think my parent’s first gold star was the cardstock per above until a cloth one was presented to them by Gold Star Mothers or American Legion.
Does anyone remember seeing a paper one especially during WWII?
<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC “-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN” <html <head <title</title </head <body Anne — As public services, I recall newspapers and magazines printed blue & gold star hangings suitable to be taped to windows; and cardstock versions, about 8×10 or so were available in some grocery and other stores, usually free and on the countertop by cash register, also banks and government buildings. Many service and fraternal organizations and local businesses made these available, their name in fine print on backside. <br I think my parent’s first gold star was the cardstock per above until a cloth one was presented to them by Gold Star Mothers or American Legion.<br <br <blockquote type=”cite” cite=”midLPBBKIAFGFCKLFLOKDOOIEANCDAA.quilting@” <blockquote type=”cite” <pre wrap=””Does anyone remember seeing a paper one especially during WWII? </pre </blockquote <pre wrap=””<!—- </pre </blockquote <br </body </html
Date: Sat, 29 Mar 2003 07:45:22 -0600 | From: “Avalon” <malthaus@
While watching an interview with a family re: a son who was deployed in Iraq, I noticed one of these banners hanging on the wall behind the couch.
Mary
Date: Sat, 29 Mar 2003 08:01:21 -0800 | From: “Leah Zeiber” <leah.zieber@
Banners Message-ID: <001501c2f60c$72164de0$6501a8c0@ Content-Type: text/plain; charset=”iso-8859-1″ Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
Hi – If anyone has watched the news in LA recently, they have been talking about Blue Star Moms. The news mentions that mother’s of military service men are “Blue Star Moms” and they send care packages to the service men (even to those who are not their children).
There are many places on the web that talk about Blue Star Mothers and Banners. Just type in Blue Star Moms in your search engine and you will get a ton of links.
There are many of these links that mention “Blue Star Banners” and “Blue Star Quilts.” A good link was www.bluestarmothers.org but there were many links that provided histories and other information. Some sites even gave detailed directions for making your own Blue Star Quilt.
If any of this info is a repeat, sorry –
Praying for our service men and women….
Leah Zieber
Date: Sun, 30 Mar 2003 09:30:37 -0500 | From: “Lloyd E. Miller” <lemiller@
About the blue star. Sorry it took so long for me to find ours. We have one that is 8 1/4″ by 5 5/8″ printed on silk moire. There is a 2′ star in the middle. It is bordered with blue, natural with red on the edge, each about 5/16″ wide. The top border is just red and in each top corner has a 1 1/4″ x 1″ rectangle of red containing 13 stars. On the bottom above the border “OUR COUNTRY” is printed in red. It hangs from a dowel with fancy finials with a gold cord.
The note with it indicates it was displayed by my husband’s grandmother during WWI for her brother-in-law who was in the service while still a medical student and who perished of flu in the great flu epidemic while caring for flu victims. She again displayed it for her son, my hussband’s dad, during WWII although his service was all stateside with the veterinarian corp. She had hand printed his name and dates of service (1941-46) at the bottom. I am guessing from this information that it was not uncommon to display the blue star for a family member in service, not just a son, and not just for one who had made the ultimate sacrifice.
I am sure there were many different versions of the blue star. Hope this helps to add to the picture.
Linda Miller
Date: Sun, 30 Mar 2003 07:04:37 -0800 | From: Judi Fibush <judi@
The ones who paid the “ultimate sacrifice” had gold stars not blue stars. Thanks for sharing your family history
Judi
: Sun, 30 Mar 2003 21:13:21 -0600 From: Pat Kyser <patkyser@ To: QHL@ Subject: Looking for film Message-Id: <BA64C53B-6326-11D7-AF60-00306551237E@ Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; format=flowed Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
On behalf of the Huntsville (AL) Museum of Art, I am looking for a copy of a film about the Hardman crazy quilt owned by the Haggin Museum in Stockton, CA.
“The Hardman Quilt: Portrait of an Age.” 10 minutes, 16mm, video, 1975.
The Stockton folks don’t have a copy. ‘Way back then, we bought a copy of it for the Tennessee Valley Quilt Authority,and no one knows where it is now. Our local museum wants to show it in conjunction with a pristine, wonderful crazy quilt that was bequeathed to them that will go on display June 126.
If any of you own a copy or are in a group that does, or knows where I can find a copy, I’d really appreciate hearing from you. Am leaving town Thursday, back Sunday night, so won’t be able to reply to you until then.
Many thanks, Pat Flynn Kyser
Date: Sun, 30 Mar 2003 19:22:01 -0800 | From: “jajb” <anne_j@
Linda, Thanks for sharing your family’s experience. I can just imagine that silk banner with gold cord and all.
This has been so interesing hearing from all of you who have added to this discussion.
I knew nothing about these banners until someone wrote to me through my website asking about them. I’m so glad I started digging for information!
https://www-perscom.army.mil/tagd/tioh/FAQ/ServiceFlagFactSheet.htm gives exactly under what conditions the flag/banner can be used and regulations on color and star arrangement. I assume we should follow the same standards when making a Blue Flag quilt.
Anne
— Kathy Moore <KathyMoore@ wrote: Date: Sun, 30 Mar 2003 13:49:11 -0800 From: “Kathy Moore” <KathyMoore@ Digest V03 #80
Hi all. I’ve been lurking for some time learning from you all. I’m a grandmotherly graduate student at the Univ. of Neb., Lincoln in the Textiles department working on a master’s degree in Textile History and Quilt Studies. I’ve been doing some research for a paper and ran across a reference to something discussed in February on this list. On the 21st Teddy Pruett posted a comment about “toilet covers” and I seem to recall some discussion about what that meant. Well, I may have found the answer. Sally Garroutte’s paper “Marseilles Quilts and Their Woven Offspring” written for Uncoverings (sorry, I don’t know the date) notes that some variations of machine woven imitation Marseilles quilts from the 19th and 20th centuries had common names like “toileting or toilets”.
Date: Mon, 31 Mar 2003 01:02:42 -0800 | From: “jajb” <anne_j@
information by Sara Reimer Farley in the book “Kansas Quilts and Quilters” but didn’t find mention of the humility block. I may have just missed it. The article I read did not have extensive interviews so it must be another book that you found it in Gaye.
It was another member whose reference you saw, Anne. My evidence was strictly anecdotal, from my own practice and experience with an older generation of women whose practices were, I think, rooted both in a fear of hubris and acquired and mighty powerful superstitions. None were Mennonite. All were southern and most were of Scots-Irish descent—–Presbyterians, Baptists, Methodists.
Gaye
Date: Mon, 31 Mar 2003 10:13:49 +0100 | From: “Sally Ward” <sallytatters@
As an outlander I have been fascinated by the correspondence on the Blue Star banners. We have nothing comparable in the UK. I suppose the nearest would be the British Legion’s Poppy Campaign once a year, but wearing a poppy is a general mark of respect, not necessarily a personal one . But I was astonished this morning to read the website Anne suggested outlining the regimen under which these flags can be made and displayed. I thought you were talking about something spontaneous, like the yellow ribbons. I know these regulations are written for the benefit of licensed manufacturers (so, no running some up in the quilt shop then?)….do they apply equally to the common masses?
So who started it? Did some mothers think this up and then have it appropriated by the Army and its regulations, or did some suit think this up as a good idea for family morale?
And reading the regulations….are you actually allowed to make your own, or use it in a quilt, or display it when not ‘in a period of hostilities’. And if so, who are the Blue Star Police? I’m confused….
Sally W in UK
Date: Mon, 31 Mar 2003 07:38:45 -0500 | From: “Fawn Valentine” <fawn@
I am would like to hear about documentation regarding any traditional practice to include an “intentional mistake” in a quilt. My own experience here in West Virginia, directing an oral history project to interview older quiltmakers, is that no one was ever taught by their mother, grandmother, etc. to make a mistake in a quilt. On the contrary, they were taught to do the best they could. For the oral history project, we were trained by Jeannette Lasansky of Pennsylvania, and she told us that in Pennsylvania her group had not found anyone who was taught to put a mistake in their quilt. I don’t know when the theory/myth arose or why–but would be very interested to find out. To the best of my knowledge, Amish quiltmakers do not follow the “mistake” procedure, either. I inquired with a collector of handwoven Oriental carpets and was told the “intentional mistake” story arose (for carpets) when inferior products were marketed–it is not a practice in the Middle East to include a mistake in the weaving.
Fawn Valentine snow-covered Alderson, West Virginia
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documentation regarding any traditional practice to include an “intentional mistake” in a quilt. My own experience here in West Virginia, directing an oral history project to interview older quiltmakers, is that no one was ever taught by their mother, grandmother, etc. to make a mistake in a quilt. On the contrary, they were taught to do the best they could. For the oral history project, we were trained by Jeannette Lasansky of Pennsylvania, and she told us that in Pennsylvania her group had not found anyone who was taught to put a mistake in their quilt. I don’t know when the theory/myth arose or why–but would be very interested to find out. To the best of my knowledge, Amish
quiltmakers do not follow the “mistake” procedure, either. I inquired with a collector of handwoven Oriental carpets and was told the “intentional mistake” story arose (for carpets) when inferior products were marketed–it is not a practice in the Middle East to include a mistake in the weaving. </FONT</DIV <DIV<FONT face=3DArial size=3D2</FONT </DIV <DIV<FONT face=3DArial size=3D2Fawn Valentine</FONT</DIV <DIV<FONT face=3DArial size=3D2snow-covered Alderson, West Virginia</FONT</DIV</BODY</HTML
Date: Mon, 31 Mar 2003 08:52:22 EST | From: Midnitelaptop@
if you e mail webmaster@ they might have a copy of the film The Hardman Quilt jeanL
Date: Mon, 31 Mar 2003 10:36:57 -0800 | From: Gaye Ingram <gingram@
I located the posting which Fern probably had in mind. It follows:
“I agree with Gaye that the humility block is not a myth, although a lot of mistakes, of course, are not made intentional. But I have a couple of quilts where I don’t believe the one changed block could have been accidental. Also humility blocks are mentioned as an occasional practice in a book about Kansas Mennonite quilters, which includes interviews with several quilters. sorry I can’t remember the name of the book or the author! Tomlinson, maybe? Teri Klassen”
I hasten to add that the practice to which I referred was not limited to quilts. As I reflect, I think it was associated only with important or ceremonial sewing—-special occasions or projects of some magnitude, which would include quilts.In other words, it involved something that would involve pride, and the “error” would be an effort to affirm humility and, if truth be stated, ward off the possible rebuke of a God who had noted that the meek were blessed. It usually involved some “invisible” error—a stitch omitted in hem of wedding dress, e.g. The women I knew would never have reversed a block in a quilt. They might, however, altered quilting design in some small way in an inconspicuous place in the piece.
I have seen–and believe I own at least one—red and white geometric quilts in which one of one corner block reversed.
Gaye
Date: Mon, 31 Mar 2003 15:49:44 EST | From: Hazelmacc@
The following was written about possible myth. I have a 1830 Sunflower quilt that came from New York state and on only one flower block, one of the diamonds is a different print than the other diamonds. This would not be a Mennonite nor an Amish quilt as it is mainly of prints. In the Kentucky state search book, Jonathan Holstein found an applique quilt that he felt the maker had mdae an obvious mistake. Jonathan saw my quilt and felt the one diamond was most likely an obvious mistake.
This myth has various possible origins. One is from the Greek legend of Arachne the weaver. Another is found in Navajo weaving practices. Most likely the quilting version of this myth came from the belief that Amish and Mennonite women put a mistake in each quilt because only God is perfect therefore it would be prideful to make a perfect quilt. In reality all quilters make mistakes, it’s almost impossible to make a perfect quilt. In fact it would be prideful to think one could do so. One wonders if reference to this myth is more of an excuse for inevitable mistakes.
Hazel Carter in No. VA
Date: Mon, 31 Mar 2003 15:27:01 -0500 (EST) | From: Teri Klassen <teresak@
What is the earliest date for a red-and-green applique quilt? I was really surprised to see one dated 1818 I believe, in the new Connecticut quilts book (or was it Vermont? I think it was Connecticut). I had been thinking that they weren’t around much until ca. 1840. Does that mean they started in Connecticut? I had thought of them more as a Pennsylvania German thing. Teri Klassen
Date: Mon, 31 Mar 2003 18:25:02 EST | From: Laurajbr@
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Teri,
I have a red and green applique that has been appraised and dated circa 1835. It’s a variation of the princess feather, with four blocks and a leaf and vine border.
Laura
: Mon, 31 Mar 2003 20:56:21 -0800 From: “jajb” <anne_j@ To: <QHL@ Subject: Re: QHL: Blue Star Message-ID: <001601c2f80b$0ab29680$1287520c@computer Content-Type: text/plain; charset=”iso-8859-1″ Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
The Blue Star Banners were both home made and manufactured.
This fact sheet may explain the background of Blue Star Banners better. It gives the origin during WWI and all. http://www.legion.org/attack/docs/bluebannerfact.htm
There are also Blue Star Mothers http://www.bluestarmothers.org/history.html and Gold Star Mothers http://www.goldstarmoms.com/history.htm
It appears the rules and regs came later.
Anne
So who started it? Did some mothers think this up and then have it appropriated by the Army and its regulations, or did some suit think this up as a good idea for family morale?
And reading the regulations….are you actually allowed to make your own, or use it in a quilt, or display it when not ‘in a period of hostilities’. And if so, who are the Blue Star Police? I’m confused….<<
Date: Mon, 31 Mar 2003 22:40:10 -0600 | From: “Karan Flanscha” <SadieRose@
green applique Message-ID: <CIEPIKDFFFFPHFAFBEEKOEMFCAAA.SadieRose@ Content-Type: text/plain; charset=”iso-8859-1″ Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit
Teri and others interested, Here are some notes I have on red & green quilts/fabrics, taken from several well-known books. Title, author and page numbers are noted.
Red and Green “Also around 1840, another type of appliqué quilt emerged in the mid-Atlantic region. This style has been called red-and-green because of the predominance, if not exclusive use, of that color scheme with a white or pale muslin background. This seems to have been a more middle-class kind of quilt than the chintz-appliquéd style. Strangely, quilt scholars have found little or no evidence of quiltmaking in Germany at this time; however, the geometric designs on many red-and-green quilts resemble those found on other German folk arts and crafts. These appliquéd designs, although often derived from nature, are much less realistic than those found on chintz quilts. The red-and-green color scheme probably derived from the new availability of fabrics, which heretofore had been too expensive and too rare for middle-class housewives to rely on for their quilt designs. The red was dyed with madder according to the very involved and time-consuming Turkey red process. Plain or small figured green fabric still often required a multi-step dyeing process with blue and yellow colors dyed over each other to create green. True to the contrariness of human nature, red and green fabrics became fashionable for quilts in large part because they were costly and hard to dye. The appliqué patterns for red-and-green quilts were made by folding and cutting paper to create symmetrical shapes. These quilts were made from squares of the same pattern laid side by side, usually within a red-and-green appliqué border. … In comparing the luxurious Maryland chintz-appliquéd quilts of the 1830s and 1840s with Baltimore album quilts with elaborately layered floral appliqué squares and borders, it appears that the layered-appliqué technique was devised as a method to replicate the appearance of chintz by using less costly textiles. Today, the labor-intensive and practiced skill required to create these compositions is considered astonishing.” From: “Lavish Legacies” by Jennifer Faulds Goldsborough (Maryland Historical Society) pgs. 9-10
“Appliqué artists in the nineteenth century favored a limited palette of red and green cottons on a white background. Many used only those complementary colors, while others added accents of bright yellow or pink. Even those who used a variety of colors let the red and green fabrics dominate the design. The same colors were also used in the best pieced designs, like Feathered Stars and Rocky Mountain (now called New York Beauty). We can only speculate as to why the red, green and white color scheme dominated nineteenth-century appliqué quilts. Since appliqué is usually an imitation of nature, green leaves and red flowers are a natural choice. Mid-century conventional appliqué quilts grew from the cut-out chintz appliqué style of the late-eighteenth and early-nineteenth centuries. The printed palampores and chintzes from which the trees-of-life and the floral motifs were cut were commonly printed in naturalistic reds, pinks and greens on white backgrounds. Red and green calico on white was an extension of that traditional look. On a practical level, Elisabeth Daingerfield, writing around 1920, noted that Appalachian women commonly made their “patch quilts” (appliqué) in red, green, and a “certain rather violent yellow” because of the reliability of those dyes. Only trusted colors were good enough for quilts intended to be heirlooms. Whether the reason was function, fashion or a combination of the two, red, green and white quilts were popular from about 1830 through the end of the nineteenth century. The earliest date-inscribed examples are cut-out chintz and pieced chintz designs from the 1830s. In the 1840s when block style calico album quilts became the rage, the red, white and green color scheme also became popular. Date-inscribed quilts in those colors range over the rest of the century. Of 112 such quilts in the database, 108 were made between 1830 and 1900, good evidence that a red, white and green quilt will be from that period of time, although four twentieth-century versions indicate that some quilters continued to use the old style. Other design characteristics of red, green and white quilts are the use of small scale calicoes and plain cottons (although many pre-Civil War quiltmakers combined chintzes and calicoes). Combinations of appliqué and piecing were common. A pieced quilt might have an appliqué border or vice versa. The color scheme is most associated with quality quilts of intricate design and elaborate quilting, but it was also used for everyday quilts with simple pieced design and functional quilting.” From: “Red, Green and White Quilts” from “Clues in the Calico” by Barbara Brackman pgs. 155-156
“Red and green appliqué quilts, most often with 9 to 12 blocks, were popular (in the 1830-1860 period). These quilts frequently included stuffed work in alternate blocks or borders. Many of these pieces were well-planned endeavors because the amount of red and green fabric used was sufficient to complete the entire quilt. These quilts were often designed with stylized or realistic flowers and leaves arranged in sprays, wreaths, or bouquets and placed in urns or baskets. A quiltmaker’s best work was often displayed in a red and green appliqué quilt, saved for special guests or to show on a bed. These quilts are now considered collectors items.” From: “Dating Fabrics: A Color Guide 1800-1960” by Eileen Jahnke Trestain pg. 46
“Beginning in the 1840s, American quiltmaking took another distinctive turn and New Englanders followed. Many quilters began to work with solid or printed red and green cottons in stylized symmetrical foliate and floral designs, which were cut out with the aid of folded paper patterns and appliquéd in repeating blocks onto backgrounds of plain white cotton. The fashion began in Maryland and Pennsylvania, areas heavily influenced by the German design tradition. The emergence of inexpensive and vibrant red and green cotton fabrics in the 1820s and 1830s propelled the style’s popularity. By the mid-nineteenth century, pieced-block quilts were being influenced by the red, green and white color scheme of these appliquéd quilts, which continued their popularity through the 1860s. Red and white combinations for pieced-block quilts were particularly popular. … Many mid-nineteenth century quilts combined block patchwork with appliqué technique, also using the favored red and green fabrics on a white background. Although these appliquéd quilts were made of inexpensive cotton fabrics, they appear never to have been criticized in the literature of fashion and domestic advice. One reason was undoubtedly the level of skill involved; creating the often complex appliqué designs could be quite difficult. Another may have been social class; these quilts were mostly the products of women from at least moderately prosperous households, and they did not incorporate scraps or recycled fabrics into their carefully planned designs.” From: “Red and Green Appliqué Quilts” from “Northern Comfort” by Lynne Z. Bassett and Jack Larkin pg. 87
