Intensive Quilt Repair Finally Complete!

I purchased this pretty pink and green quilt at an antique mall in Missouri.  I love the colors and the interesting pattern.  There are only 3 fabrics used in the quilt, a double pink, a faded overdyed green and a maroon print.  The maroon fabric, located only around the edge, was threadbare.  A previous owner tried to help the quilt by adding a new binding.  However the wide, blue, 1940's print doesn't do any favors to this 1870's beauty.  Since the interior of this quilt was in good shape, I decided it would be worth the effort to repair.

 

My original plan was to cut off all 4 sides of the quilt to remove the damaged areas.  But doing this would've left me with only a 60" by 60" quilt.  Too small for even a twin bed.  Instead, I cut off 2 opposite sides and recycled the good blocks from the cut pieces.  These were either put on top of or in place of the damaged sections.  I originally removed the damaged blocks which took a lot of time.  I then decided to simply cover the old blocks.  You can't see the old fabric and this leaves the quilting intact.

 

 

I honestly thought this wouldn't take very long  but I spent at least 8 hours carefully removing  and replacing blocks.  Then spent another 4 to 6 hours requilting the new blocks.  And finally, a couple of hours on the binding.  I used a new double pink pink fabric for the binding.  With all the double pinks out there I had hoped for a perfect match but none was to be found.  

 

 

I really think the quilt looks better now with only 2 colors.  And the 60"X80" size is good enough for a twin bed.  Don't be afraid to experiment with quilts that need some TLC.  Of course, never do anything to a quilt that has historical significance, but your everyday quilts can sometimes benefit from a little reworking. 

 

I've been busy lately with projects other than my quilts.  I purchased these adorable garden bench sides at the local flea market a few weeks ago but thought it was too pretty to return it to a garden bench.  So I turned it into a cozy chair.  I put on new wood slats but shortened them to 22".  Then I covered them with 2" foam and a pretty muted flower print.  I think this shabby chic chair will be great in a sunroom or covered porch.

I'll be setting up at the ICA (International Collectors and Antiques Show) in Charlotte the first weekend in  November.  This chair, my quilts and a lot of other goodies will be there for sale.  Stop by and say "Hi".  I'll post more info on the show in October.

I've also been repairing a pretty green and pink quilt from the late 1800's.  I hope to have that finished next week and will post about the repairs.  It's going to be AWESOME!!

Awesome Quilt

I'm getting ready to put a new quilt on eBay. It's so awesome I wanted to show it to everyone before I listed it. I believe the pattern is called Odd Fellows and it has some beautiful prussian blues and browns from the mid 1800's. 

As with a lot of quilts this age, some of the browns have disintegrated.  The previous owner was apparently going to repair these blocks because several pieces have been covered with new reproduction fabrics.  They did a very good job of adding the blocks without damaging the existing quilt which is very important to value.  And with the wide selection of fabrics available today, they were able to find some that fit perfectly with the original.

I hope you enjoy looking at this old beauty.  I know I'm going to be sad when I have to part with it!