One of the best perks of social media is stumbling across people you’d never meet otherwise. A few months back, a quilting newbie named Melissa found me online, and wouldn’t you know it...she lives just down the road, a whopping 4 or 5 miles away. In Podunk, that’s basically neighbors. It took us months to finally meet in person, but when we did, she showed up with an armload of things she no longer wanted. Among them was a hand-embroidered quilt top.
Everyone knows my well documented aversion to purple, but this quilt top has earned the right to be finished. Melissa told me she got it from her mother, who got it from a friend who had passed away. Sadly, Melissa’s mother has also passed, so the maker of this purple masterpiece remains a mystery. All I know is she lived in Indianapolis, I guess I could add that to the quilt label.
I plan to gift this quilt to my daughter. She and my granddaughters love the color purple, and my daughter also has a fondness for vintage and homemade items.
The quilt top is as crooked as a dog’s leg and needs a bit of fixing. The plan is to take it apart, square up the blocks, and add sashing. My fabric stash is short on purple fabrics, but I managed to find a couple that might work.
What a lovely idea to finish the quilt, I'm sure your daughter and granddaughters will be thrilled with the quilt! I suggest you go with an even deeper purple for the outside borders to pull out the deep purple embroidery thread. The maker would be so happy her quilt is finally going to be finished, happy stitching!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful even if it's purple!
ReplyDeleteI am fond of embroidery and it makes my heart happy to see that this quilt will get finished and have a place in someone's home. I agree with Gretchen "the maker would be so happy to have her quilt finished". I look forward to seeing this quilt (top) appear again on your blog in the future; as a WIP and even better a finish.
ReplyDeleteI like be finishing the work of another sewing. It always brings sweet memories of my grandmother and mother-in-law who were amazing seamstresses. I loved them dearly. One of my favorite quilts this year were hand appliquéd butterfly blocks rescued from a thrift center. I did exactly as you described! It’s just waiting on binding. I don’t want to give it back to the friend who supplied the blocks! 😊
ReplyDeleteHow sweet to finish up these vintage blocks into a finished quilt. Please don't go darker for the border fabric. IMHO it overwhelms the blocks and draws attention away from them. The light purple is much more in keeping with the vintage blocks.
ReplyDeleteI am so glad we met and I’m even more grateful that you are going to revitalize and finish this quilt. I’m sure the original sewing will be proud of whatever you do. I look forward to seeing the final result as it will most definitely be amazing. I do like the darker purple as it makes the Irises pop
ReplyDeleteWhat gorgeous blocks. I like the softer purple color with the blocks in your first drawing. I'm glad you're finishing those because someone spent a lot of time embroidering them.
ReplyDeleteHow lovely your quilt is going to be! I prefer the version with the lighter colors as it keeps the focus on the embroidery blocks and seems more vintage to me. I think the fabrics you had were perfect! What a great way to honor the hard work of the maker.
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