Labeling the Past

Collecting antique quilts, quilt tops, and blocks has become somewhat of a hobby for me (Kara) in the past three years. Before I started actively searching for antique quilts, I inherited a beautifully made Turkey Red Snowball variation quilt. This beauty had been in my family for some time and was passed down to me from my aunt, along with a funny story that you can read about in Seeing Red and White.

My Turkey Red quilt

We can only suspect the maker based on some family genealogy, as there is no label or signature.  Unfortunately, the lack of knowledge about the maker and why the quilt was made is the sad story for most of my antique quilts. When the quilts were appraised, I gained a little more knowledge about the materials, construction, and age of the quilt, but it's a guessing game as to the rest of the story. How I wish that the makers of the past had labeled their quilts.

True confession time: I am a repeat offender of not labeling my quilts.

Not knowing a lot of the information about my antique quilts has been frustrating. So as not to frustrate someone in the future who ends up owning these quilts, I have been motivated to be more diligent about labeling my own quilts—the ones I make and the ones I acquire. I was asked to show my modest collection at our next guild meeting so I thought it would be a perfect time to get my act together, put my money where my mouth is, and get some labels made. 

I am in a couple of Facebook groups that focus on antique quilt fabrics and quilts, and I asked for their advice as to the best method of labeling. Based on their wisdom, it seems simplicity is the key, so I will start with the basic information of what I know and get that down first. I researched a few tutorials on the internet and here are a couple that were helpful: Label the Old and How to Make a Quilt Label. Plain muslin seemed to be a good choice for a simple label, so I cut some muslin pieces, gathered my appraisals and a micron pen, and got to work.

All set to get some labels done

Unfortunately I don't have any freezer paper at the moment, which might have helped my handwriting, but the goal was to start, so I did without. I made a lined template out of ruled notebook paper and a sharpie. My appraisal reports from Phyllis Hatcher gave me most of the information I needed. I tried to keep it simple and only include things that weren't readily apparent by looking at the quilt. I used an archival-quality micron pen for the writing, and my template helped me keep my lines straight (sort of).

Ready to be stitched onto the quilt.

One of the interesting things about this quilt is that it was damaged by bleach at some point, and my aunt—fearing her mother's wrath—fixed it with a red permanent marker.

My aunt's fix was a permanent marker!

Once the label was finished, I heat-set the ink, turned under the edges and then carefully attached it to the bottom corner with a whip stitch. It struck me as I was stitching that I was stitching on a quilt possibly made by a relative; someone who took such care with her quilting stitches. It was a bit mind-blowing. Who was this woman who hand quilted so perfectly, and why did she reverse the color on one of the blocks?

It's not fancy, but the information I have is now on the quilt.

I'd like to say I made labels for all my antique quilts in one sitting, but in the interest of full disclosure, I didn't. Starting the process was a huge step, and by next week I should have them all done. Feel free to comment and ask "Kara, did you finish your labels?" We all need a little accountability in our lives.

Do you have any tips or tricks for your quilt labels? Please share so we can all be more diligent about labeling the fruits of our labors for the generations to come.

Seeing Red...and White

I (Kara) love antique quilts! If I had an unlimited budget, I would fill my house with them and then travel around the country showing them to other people who love antique quilts as much as I do. Alas, I do not have an unlimited budget and currently do not even have a line-item in the home budget for such a thing. However, I do have three antique quilts that have been given to me over the course of my life. The one I'd like to share with you today is the quilt that was always called "The Turkey Red Quilt," for obvious reasons.

This quilt came from my father's side of the family and was given to me by my Grandma Killian. I just learned a little bit more about the quilt from Phyllis Hatcher last week when I took it to her to have it appraised. It was most likely made around 1870 and is a Snowball Variation as per Barbara Brackman's Encyclopedia of Quilt Patterns. This pattern was also called "Octagons." Because it is made with turkey red dyed fabric, it is assumed that the quilter was in a position financially to purchase that more expensive fabric. My Auntie Mike has a little information about it, but we don't know which family member made it. My aunt and I have narrowed the possible quilter down to one of three ancestors: Sarah Foster, who grew flax and had a linen-weaving business as a widow, her daughter Eliza Stratton, or her granddaughter Electa Mae Young. The Stratton and Young families were flour mill owners, which gives credence to the use of a more expensive fabric.

It's not easy to see unless you are looking for it, but there is one block out of the 25 that has the snowball colors reversed. We will probably never know why the quilter made that choice.

A close-up of one of the 25 blocks

The one block that is reversed

The hand-quilting on this quilt is thoughtfully and expertly done.

There is a funny albeit semi-tragic story about this quilt that my aunt tells. When she was about 17, she took the quilt out of the laundry area where it had been stored only to discover that some bleach had been spilled on the quilt. One of the blocks had lost all of its color, so she decided to fix it. With a permanent magic marker. I will be researching the best way to clean it, but there is the issue of what the magic marker will do when it gets wet. My aunt is pretty sure that she used a permanent marker, but who knows how that marker's permanency has broken down over the years.

The back side of the colored in area

A close-up of part of the colored in block

In spite of its "restoration," the quilt is in great shape structurally if not a bit dirty because it was hung on a wall in our house for about 6 years. Which leads me to a write about the choice we have with not just antique quilts but all quilts. Display and Destroy or Pack Away and Preserve. The word "destroy" might be a bit harsh, but had I known how old this quilt was when I was contemplating hanging it, I don't know if I would have put it on our wall.  The consequences of hanging it for all those years are that it has faded in spots and is overall quite dirty, yet we were able to enjoy its beauty and its exquisite craftsmanship. I think the decision to display a quilt or not depends on a lot of factors: age, value (sentimental or monetary), hanging location, and personal preference. I will admit my knowledge base of quilt preservation is at this time very limited, but as I pursue my career as an antique quilt junkie collector, I need to learn more so that these quilts will still be around for future generations. Oh, and I need that unlimited budget, too.