Friday, October 18, 2013

Civil War commemorative quilt, Macon, Georgia


The remarkable Civil War commemorative quilt created by school children in Macon, Georgia, has arrived. I thought it might have been made in the 70s, but it may be even younger than that. Possibly 80s or 90s. There are some names on the blocks. One of the names that jumped out was Ansley Morris- there can't be many people named Ansley Morris from Macon, Georgia. More research to follow. Here are some pictures. Enjoy!











Thursday, October 17, 2013

found on eBay


It's another fabulous quilt from the 1970s! (I didn't have enough of them, LOL!!). But I couldn't resist- very cool piece. It's 74" x 88" and is coming from a seller in Texas, who called it a  "Spinning Windmill" pattern. Looks like a mix of fabrics, some polyester double-knit, and maybe some cottons and cotton/poly blends. Can't wait to see it in person.



Tuesday, October 15, 2013

big job


In my first two years appraising quilts I've seen close to 600 quilts for appraisals. That's a lot more than I expected, and the tally included a few large jobs.

Today's big job was 170 quilts made by one woman as donations to a charity that gives quilts to abused children through a local care facility. That's really all I can share about the job, but I can say it was a fun morning!

Monday, October 14, 2013

wash day


Today I'm washing one of the quilts I made. It was for the Man-Land exhibit at Sisters, summer of 2012, and I call it "Marvelette". Don't ask me why. I have no idea. Sorry I don't have a better picture of it, but I'll try to get one soon.


After Sisters, the quilt was in a pile with some musty old quilts. When I pulled it out recently, it had some fold lines and was musty. I didn't prewash any of the fabrics, and can't remember if I ever washed it- maybe, maybe not. Should I be nervous? If it withstands the wash, a delicate cycle, cold wash with a scant amount of mild soap and a delicate, low-heat drying cycle, I'll be happy. I like the idea of making a washable quilt. My wool quilt is definitely not washable.

"Wild-Eyed Susans" - not washable!!

Saturday, October 12, 2013

busted again


Lulu is a funny baby. Yesterday she was trying to steal a Hershey's kiss from the bowl of pre-Halloween candy- not because she wanted to eat it, she just wanted to bat it around on the floor. My little magpie loves shiny objects. It's not the first time she's tried to pull a fast one. Lulu has been known to steal money, climb bookshelves, "TP" the staircase, and stampede around the house. One time she knocked a martini glass off the counter, smashing it. And every time she pulls one of her little pranks, I just have to laugh.

Busted again, little girl!




Friday, October 11, 2013

more eBay-O-Rama - bad cell phone etiquette


Usually, I don't use my mobile phone when visiting with friends or in meetings, but today I made an exception while visiting with Mary Kerr, who curated the wonderful "Quilt as Desired" exhibit at the MQX show in Portland. The result was two winning bids on two quilts from one of my new favorite periods in American quiltmaking- the second half of the 20th century.



With the first quilt, a Civil War Commemorative done with hand rendered blocks made by school children, I got lucky. Mary had a client show up, and while she went off to look at a quilt, I placed my bid and then visited with the delightful Janet-Lee Greer Santeusanio, owner and founder of the Machine Quilters Exposition. We were thrilled when I found out my bid was successful. It will fit in perfectly with the group of quilts in the book project I was showing to Janet-Lee and Mary. More about that another time. :)


Mary and I went to my house to look at quilts, and there was another alert on my phone. So I apologized, placed a bid, and in a few minutes I'd won a second quilt from the same sellers in Georgia - a polyester double knit Broken Dishes quilt with a hot lime green. Killer!


After paying for the quilts, I heard from the seller and found out the Civil War Commemorative quilt made by the school children was fresh to the market from the estate of an 88-year-old schoolteacher from Macon, Georgia, who had recently passed away. Her name is a mystery, but I'm hoping someone will see the pictures, recognize the quilt, and speak up!! Th Broken Dishes quilt was made by the housekeeper of the seller's mother, an African American woman named Mattie.

Thank you, Mary Kerr, for being patient with me as I clumsily navigated through my spell of bad cell phone etiquette to snag these two wonderful quilts! 

Thursday, October 10, 2013

MQX Portland

"Christ in Gold" (detail), by Laurie Tigner, Rapid City, South Dakota
I went to the MQX Portland Show today, and there were many amazing quilts. The show had a wide variety of approaches to quiltmaking, from original designs to vintage tops quilted by contemporary quilters. Here are a few favorites.

"Christ in Gold" by Laurie Tigner, 1st place Wallhanging Large
"Eureka" by Pat Durbin, Maggie Stimson, Diane May, Jodi Rusconi,
Donna Parker, Rosalinda Brainerd, and Edith Harmer
"The Value of Gears" by Judith Phillips, Battleground, Washington
"Flight Path" by Terry Knott, Boring, Oregon
"Goat's Eye View" by Lisa Bowles, Willits, California
"FeatherQuest" by Loretta Orsborn, Woodburn, Oregon
"Starburst" by Debbie Scroggy, fellow member of the Northwest Quilters
Best of Show, "The Shell Collector" by Bethann Nemesh, Allentown, PA
(detail) "The Shell Collector" by Bethann Nemesh
(detail) "The Shell Collector" by Bethann Nemesh
(detail) "The Shell Collector" by Bethann Nemesh
"Dragonfly Moon Kimono" by Cathy Erickson, Washougal, Washington
"Matchstick Moons 2" by Melody Johnson, Palmer, Tennessee
(detail) "Matchstick Moons 2" by Melody Johnson
"Haven" by Jennifer Dick, Harrisonville, Missouri
"Pixel" by Angela Walters, Kearney, Missouri
There was a special treat for lovers of vintage. Mary Kerr curated an exhibit of vintage tops quilted by some of today's finest machine quilters. The exhibit is called "Quilt as Desired" and it showed how successfully antique and vintage tops can be finished with today's technology and the hands of artists. 


"My Favorite Flower Basket" quilted by Karen McTavish,
Two Harbors, Minnesota
(detail) "My Favorite Flower Basket" 
"Claudia's Garden" quilted by Claudia Pfeil, Krefeld, Germany
(detail) "Claudia's Garden"
The MQX Quilt Festival - Pacific Northwest will be open through Saturday, October 12th at the Portland Convention Center in Portland, Oregon. For more details, visit the MQX web site- click here.