Friday, August 05, 2011

CONTENTED QUILTS


Long time no blog. We all know how time flies so there is no point in bemoaning that fact. I was in Arizona for a couple weeks in July and then had company when I came home. Fill in a little of the normal ebb and flow and there you are--a full time life! So that's a good thing, right? 

I have to confess, I finally got a few more of Barbara Brackman's Civil War blocks done. I know I am way behind many of you, but I am OK with that. I do what I can do. I am not competitive in that way. I am remembering the Carnation Milk commercial from when I was a kid that talked about their milk coming from "contented cows". Does anyone remember that? So I make "contented quilts"! It's good!

 This is a photo of my darling cousin Brenda. I was visiting at her house in Arizona and she pulled out this quilted coat that belonged to her husband's grandmother (I think it was). This coat is so beautifully made! It is a treasure! I just had to share it with you who read my blog. It is museum quality!
Since I am feeling so contented I thought I would show a quilt that I made a number of years ago while living in Issaquah, Washington. The Good Will in Seattle had an auction where they auctioned off any quilts or parts thereof that had been donated. Of course they advertised the event to the local quilt guilds and it was always mobbed. My husband took me downtown and we ended up bidding on a few things. I won the bidding on this stack of vintage Dresden Plate blocks. They were all appliqued onto muslin squares that were really in bad shape. I picked them off this nasty muslin (that I wish I had kept because old soiled looking muslin is all the rage now) and I restitched them onto clean muslin squares. I found the yellow gingham that so closely matches the yellow in the blocks, and happily stitched the whole thing into a quilt! I even hand quilted it, something I never do anymore for lack of time! This summer I placed this quilt on my bed for the first time and am using it! I guess I was too worried in the past to take any chances with it. But this summer I am feeling contented, so I brought it out to enjoy.

Just check out these great fabrics! What do you think, 1930's or 40's?

I know those of you in the US are feeling the heat! This summer has given us record temperatures across the country. Keep cool and contented wherever you are!



11 comments:

paulette said...

Score!! Gorgeous quilt!!
P

pcflamingo said...

Love that coat! It is really a work of art. The Dresden Plate Quilt is SO SO pretty! It used to be a big deal for us kids to go to the big Goodwill store in Seattle with a couple dollars to spend when we were youngsters. I never found any great quilting bargains there when I grew up, though. You may or may not know that we are having just about the coolest and wettest summer in the Puget Sound area this summer. I don't think we've had a dozen hot sunny days yet!

Quilts And Pieces said...

Oh that dresden plate quilt is wonderful! and that jacket is too much!

sewprimitive karen said...

Oh, Marcie, so wonderful that you got those Dresdens into a finished quilt; it is SO pretty. All those yummy feedsacks. Next time, keep the old stained muslin and send to moi lol.

Angie said...

Oh my goodness, Marcie, that coat is to die for!! What an absolute treasure...and your DP quilt is so lovely!! :) I'm glad you put it on your bed and are using it. :)

Anonymous said...

I really like the quilt...a beauty!

Libby said...

What a great find in those blocks . . . lucky you!

The weather has been harsh in most places this summer. So GLAD it hasn't been that way here *s*

Katie said...

What a beautiful quilt! How lucky for it that you could see the potential. :-)

Janet said...

Great post Marcie!! I love your Dresden quilt - it's so pretty. The coat looks pretty incredible - thanks for sharing :0)

pat said...

I'm surprised you didn't hear my shriek when I saw the Dresden Plate quilt! I remember those original blocks.....and how much better the plates looked on a clean white background. Who wants to put dishes on a dirty "tablecloth" anyway? So glad that you are using it! Something that pretty deserves to be seen and loved. The jacket is seriously awesome. I think we need some closeups!!!

Anonymous said...

I'm starting a new online blog directory and was wondering if I can submit your site? I'm hoping to increase my directory slowly by hand so
that it retains top quality. I'll make sure and put your website in the best category and I'll additionally use,
"Blogger: Patchalot More" as your anchor text.
Make sure you let me know if this is okay with
you by e-mailing me at: carmon_kirk@gmail.com. Thank you

Feel free to visit my site: help