Lecture with Metropolitan Patchwork Society

My first quilt, purchased in 1989, c. 1850, Kentucky

Last night, I lectured for the Metropolitan Patchwork Society in Beaverton, and the subject was the New York Beauty quilts. It was my first visit to this group, and I was very impressed and hope to be invited back again. Great audience, wonderful questions, and I could tell there was a whole lot of quilting experience in that room. The quilts were presented in chronological order, and here's what I brought to show.

As seen in "Why Quilts Matter", c. 1860, Kentucky

c. 1870, by Florence Caldonia Corley Shealy, Saluda, South Carolina 

The famous MacMillan Family Quilt, 1868, Kentucky

Rare example with applique, c. 1870, Kentucky

Miss America Phyllis George's quilt, c. 1880, Kentucky

As seen in Quilters Newsletter, a rare late 19th century cheddar ground

"Make this quilt!" pattern in Quilters Newsletter
c. 1910, North Carolina

The namesake: Mountain Mist New York Beauty, c. 1930

"Lady Liberty" quilt, Karen Stone pattern, by Marita Wallace, 2010

New York Beauty, 2010, by Nancy Tanguay, Warren, Connecticut

It's a lot of fun to show these quilts in chronological order. In doing so, we get a much better idea of the life story of this quilt pattern. In the earliest days the pattern already had great stature and importance seen in the fine piecework and quilting. It was a "best" quilt, made for the dowry, wedding, or other milestone occasion. The early names, Rocky Mountain Road, Crown of Thorns, and other names were connected with westward migration and religion. The name New York Beauty, which came from a 1930 pattern by Mountain Mist, indicated a shift toward urbanization in America.

Today, the New York Beauty is much more of an art quilt, and impressively, still maintains its stature as a quilt on a pedestal. Even though foundation piecing has allowed this pattern to become a little easier to make and much more popular in the last 15+ years, it's still among the most difficult to make because of those curved seams and points. In other words, if you want some "street cred" in the quilt world, just make a New York Beauty!

Thank you, Metropolitan Patchwork Society, for inviting me to come talk. I hope everyone enjoyed it as much as I did, and I'll happily come back any time you want me. :)