TIME WARP

I finally got to work on a quilt today, but really don't have anything to show. I made a bunch of 4-patches and they are not too exciting yet. I can report that I finished my granddaughter's apron! Yea! It is so cute, and I hope that she loves it, but will reserve showing it here until she receives it so I won't spoil the impact of her seeing it for the first time.

So, I thought I would share a couple other things that might be of interest to someone out there, hopefully! Most of you probably have a quilt hanger in your home, of some type. This one is mine. She began life as a perfume model, standing on a counter in a department store. She carried a slinky scarf and a come hither look, urging people to the perfume counter to buy her product. It was sad, really, a beautiful young woman shamefully displaying her body in an effort to sell a product, when, what she really wanted was to be recognized for the person she was on the inside. When she first came to me I recognized her potential immediately! I offered her a vintage quilt, something I dearly love, and she was so thrilled that she tossed her arms in the air for joy! She has remained that way to this day. I have thought of making her a frock to wear, and still think it would be nice. Either way, she is unique and I am pleased to have her share my enthusiasm for vintage and other quilts. Every so often I hear her softly singing, "some day my prince will come". She may have placed an order at the Fat Quarter Shop, I don't know.


Speaking of vintage, I happened upon this darling dress in the back of the closet today. It was my mother's dress, probably worn in the 1940's, and made by my grandmother. It is a tiny coral checked fabric, trimmed with tiny blue rick rack and blue buttons. It actually is similar in style to the aprons that I have been making. I would love to have my granddaughter try this on. I bet it would fit her. We are so taken with everything retro today, but this is the real deal.

Please take note of the Prairie Paisley link on the side of my blog. I added a couple more links of late, and they are super-cute quilts. Let me know if you are making a quilt from the Prairie Paisley fabric or if you know someone who is. I love seeing them all!

Pushing toward the weekend again. Where does the time go? Anyone? Anyone?

SMILES to everyone! Remember, that is the longest word in the dictionary. There is a mile between the first and last letter. Now I am going to run and hide for a few more days to avoid getting pelted with rotten fruit!

~Marcie

WHAT ARE YOU THINKING?

This morning as I was snuggling under the covers in bed, not quite wanting to get up yet, listening to the furnace come on and off, on and off, my mind wandered back to the Vintage Quilts magazine I was looking at last night. I was reading the pattern directions for a quilt that instructed you to cut 2-3/8 inch squares. Hundreds of them. Sympathy wells up in me for these wonderful makers of the vintage quilts. Can you even imagine having to cut all those little squares, and then at 2-3/8 inches to boot? Dull scissors, worn cardboard templates, no strip quilting - ugh!

Well, we don't work that way today. So next I am thinking, "How would I convert that measurement? Would I change it to 2-1/4 inches or 2-1/2 inches"? Naturally all the other measurements in the quilt would change accordingly. The end result would be a quilt that is either a little bit smaller or a little bigger. Let's go with bigger, because the vintage quilts are usually on the small side. Ok, this problem is solved!

Now what about the quilt with all those HSTs? No way am I cutting a million squares at 3-1/8 inch and cutting them in half and matching them to another triangle and sewing those bias edges together! I have to convert that quilt so I can use triangle paper or another quick method! Ok, now I really do have to get out of bed and get my calculator and EQ6! Thus begins my day.

Word of warning: Don't ever ask a quilter, "What are you thinking?" Unless of course, you are a quilter!

Photo from McCall's Vintage Quilts, Dec. 2007 - It's great!

WHAT DO YOU SEE?

Pictured is an old quilt that my husband and I bought a number of years ago at a yard sale. At the time I was not really into quiltmaking. I just loved quilts and the whole idea of owning an old quilt seemed romantic, in some way. We took it home, very delighted with our purchase, and spread it on the bed to examine it. We could see right away that it was well worn and more damaged than we would have liked. That is probably why it was left by the collector ahead of us who bid it up to $30. Well, we aren't collectors and we didn't plan to re-sell it. The idea that it had been well used only added to the romantic notion of owning a bit of the past. I loved the pink sashing and the worn and faded colors. We have used this quilt quite sparingly over the years, and even less since I now make quilts myself. The other night my husband pulled this quilt out of the closet and spread it on the bed for an extra layer of warmth. I smiled when I saw it, and thought how comfort sometimes has more to do with sentimentality than anything. I like to think that the maker of this quilt would be pleased that it still brings pleasure and comfort to people. (Here's the part where all good quiltmakers are thinking, "Quilt Labels"! And I don't even have to write more on the topic, but if you want to read a Cute Quilt Story click on the link and scroll down.)

Last night my husband was watching football and as I sat and shared the same space with him I was looking through a book of antique quilts. I noticed one from 1910 that contained the same blocks as our old pink quilt. This block was identified by several names, including Whirligig, Fly Foot, Devil's Puzzel, Indian Emblem, and Swastika. The author claims that this block was quite popular for many generations. It lost popularity when the block symbol became associated with Nazi Germany. I showed the page to my husband and he said he never noticed Swastikas on the quilt. In fact, he wondered why I never made this block, and decided it must be too difficult for me. "Excuse me?" I say! "Well", he says, "It's all curved lines going every which way"!

Isn't funny how differently people look at things? Any quiltmaker would look at the block, break it down and see that it is simply Flying Geese! I feel like I have had a challenge thrown at me. There is no question that I can make the silly block! The question is, has enough time passed that we can bring this block back into our quilts? Can we see it as a Whirligig rather than a Swastika? I am sure there are many opinions out there around the world. What do you think?