This project came to me last summer as the quilt historian cleared out her old house. It's an antique top that was harvested, with squares removed to go to the fabric company to be reproduced in modern fabric lines.
The way these squares are stitched together is a total pain in the neck. Some are hand stitched, which is not too bad to remove. The machine stitched sections use the smallest stitch length imaginable so removing the stitching is tedious. As a result, some squares were just cut away earlier ...
Some might think this project is just too tedious. I think the fabrics will make it all worthwhile in the end. They are in excellent condition, quite varied and fun to examine as I carefully pull stitches away. Some of the cottons are so stiff and brittle, while some of the flannels are totally soft and lush. I imagine what garments these scraps came from.
Progress on this will be slow, but worth it. Look, here's what I've got to work with - it's like a jigsaw puzzle of ~2" squares. This could entertain me for a while ...
I sort of like deconstruction projects like this, because they're brainless and you can do them while you're sitting around yakking with people and not worry about making a mistake. I deconstructed a huge bag of ties like this, bit by bit, at quilt meetings. Now to figure out what to do with the ties...
ReplyDeleteI can see some of your squares made up into doll quilts, where they won't need to be washed or handled too much. Or do you have other plans for them?
That is why i like projects like this too!
ReplyDeleteI am hoping to make it into a doll-size quilt - not necessarily to be played with !
Great rescue project. Those wonderful fabrics would keep anyone entertained.
ReplyDeleteNice rescue project and I think it is always good to have busy hands :)
ReplyDelete