Quilts from the Colonies (not the book) Part 3

After dinner show and tell, the others had gone to bed but a few of us decided to have a little show and tell

Hello again, I think you’ll find this final part of the Colonial Quilts posts totally swoon-worthy… I sure hope so.

Our tour made its way to the small town of Te Aroha in the Waikato region to view a c 1820-1830 Broderie Perse Chintz coverlet.  This coverlet, which I first visited in 2014, was the impetus for the whole trip.

 As she was revealed, there were gasps and smiles.

The unveiling

The unveiling

And we had two whole days to spend with her.

The first day was an in-depth study day convened by Janet O’Dell.  In the morning we spent time studying the evolution of fabric manufacturing and printing.  Janet’s knowledge in this area was invaluable in giving us an understanding of the cotton industry.  As well, Janet brought many antique coverlets and assorted pieces from her own collection to compare fabrics and quilt styles with the Te Aroha coverlet and we studied those alongside Te Aroha’s coverlet in the afternoon.

image ofComparing fabrics

Comparing a piece from Janet’s collection with the Te Aroha coverlet.  This was the best match we got!

Spots are always the same… or are they?

Close but not quite

Size and spacing are not always identical.

Sometimes the print was similar but the colour not the same.

image of Yellow ground print

Yellow ground with brown motifs from Janet’s collection.

Image of yellow ground print

Yellow ground with brown motifs ~ Te Aroha coverlet.

Or the colour was the closer but the print was different

Te Aroha coverlet

Te Aroha coverlet

Te Aroha coverlet

Te Aroha coverlet

Small geometrics, especially the interesting ‘stacked’ designs featured frequently in Te Aroha’s and Janet’s coverlets.  But not once a perfect match

Small gemetric prints featured in many of the pieces Janet brought with her

Small gemetric prints featured in many of the pieces Janet brought with her.

Te Aroha's coverlet features many too

Te Aroha’s coverlet features many too

Te Aroha’s coverlet is in the medallion style.  At its centre is a large Broderie Perse design featuring flowers, trees, butterflies and other motifs cut from a chintz fabric.  In addition there are some birds cut from plain and print fabrics.  The centre arrangement of flowers and trunk has a seam through the centre to create a symmetrical design.  One tree on the centre section has also been pieced to create the desired design.  Here however, they have not been cut from the same fabric.

image of Broderie Perse

Centre section showing pieced roses and trunk, pieced tree and plain & print birds

All these are raw edge applique attached with a herringbone stitch in white thread.

The Rising Moon blocks are all pieced over papers and whip stitched together, the half circles are appliqued on top, again raw edge and a herringbone stitch.

The coverlet is not backed, but is hemmed on all four sides.  Family history tells us it was a finished piece, and was used by the descendents of the maker.  It would be put on the bed for special visitors, including any house calls from the Doctor.

It was quite a sobering moment when she (the coverlet) had to be returned to her usual abode.  We’d all grown fond of the grand old lady, and crowded around her for one more photo and some last minute looks.  Carefully covering her up again and making sure she was safely wrapped, before she was collected and carried out.

It was good for her to have a really good airing and a whole 48 hours flat

Thank you to these ladies for making this Study Trip so wonderful and especially to Janice, 6th from left.

Thank you to these ladies for making this Study Trip so wonderful and especially to Janice for being so helpful in bringing it all together.

Just a few pics to close of the Broderie Perse workshop we did on the Sunday.  Students worked on their own version of Miss Hitchens’ Whimsy as featured in my book Quilts from the Colonies published by Quiltmania

How very special to have the original coverlet on hand for inspiration!

Broderie Perse Workshop

Broderie Perse Workshop

Maureen's Centre looking divine

Maureen’s Centre looking divine

Mine on the floor in the distance (albeit on sheets) The 'real deal' gets the table.

Mine on the floor in the distance (albeit on sheets) The ‘real deal’ gets the table.

Well that’s the trip… I am already thinking I would love to do it again next year and add some different museums and quilts  if possible. Let’s see what transpires.

Don’t forget to click on all the photo’s  to really get a better view.  Click agin on the green arrow for zooming in capabilities… you’ll be glad you did.

Thanks so much for visiting these posts, I know there was a lot of info to take in

Happy stitching

til next

Margaret xx

 

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Quilts from the Colonies (not the book) … Part 1

Anne Romsey Coverlet c 1795-1830 Made in Dedham, Sussex, England. In the collection of the Auckland War Memorial Museum, New Zealand

Yes already I see I’m going to have to do this in parts, photo and info heavy post right here.

I’m not long back from my wee jaunt across the ditch… to New Zealand that is.

Have I got your attention?

Yes… my travel companions were amused by the constant use of the word ‘wee’ everywhere we went.

Me being a Kiwi lass, I was not at all surprised and found it familiar and comforting.

It’s a colonial expression from the Scots, and we use it all the time.    “That’s a lovely wee sewing bag you’ve got there, if only I had a wee bit more time I’d love to have a wee look at it”

The purpose of going was to see Antique New Zealand Quilts, I’d already seen one a few years ago … my Miss Hitchens’ Whimsy from Quilts from the Colonies was inspired by a coverlet from Te Aroha which I saw in 2014.  And I knew there were more scattered around the country.

Let’s have a pic and then I’ll explain all…

image of Anne Romsey Coverlet c1795-1830

Anne Romsey Coverlet c1795-1830 Dedham, Sussex, England. In the Collection of the Auckland War Memorial Museum.

If I didn’t have your attention before, I should have it now!

This is only one of the eleven quilts and coverlets seen in just four museums in NZ’s North Island.

I’ve been planning this study trip for some time ~ researching quilts and coverlets of interest and working with the museums as most of these quilts are not on permanent display.  The four museums we visited have all been very generous with their time and collections. Janet O’Dell was a key member of the trip too as she brought with her not just some British antique quilts to study (more on that later), but also her wealth of knowledge.  And I know the museums gained as much from her as we did from them.

Let’s make this a fairly ‘photo heavy’ post shall we.  And I’ll reference where I can, what was seen, and where you can see more images of the textiles online.

Day one saw us bright and early to Tamaki Paenga Hira -Auckland War Memorial Museum to view two coverlets.

Anne Romsey Coverlet

Details of the Anne Romsey Coverlet

Anne Romsey’s Coverlet has two dates inscribed on the back ~ 1795 and 1830

More photo’s and documentation is available here http://www.aucklandmuseum.com/collections-research/collections/record/am_humanhistory-object-15434?k=1995.90.11&ordinal=1

We then saw a late 18th c Irish Coverlet, maker unknown.   It was in the medallion style of much earlier coverlets so at first one would think it was a much earlier piece.  It’s in very good condition with the Chintz still highly glazed.

Irish Chintz Medallion

Irish Chintz Medallion c 1880-1890  Maker unknown.

image of Irish Chintz medallion detail

Irish Chintz medallion detail

More photo’s and documentation is available here

http://www.aucklandmuseum.com/collections-research/collections/record/am_humanhistory-object-19159?k=1985.116&ordinal=0

Then we spied a box that looked suspiciously like a quilt archival box!

Two more...

Two more…

We had a bonus two quilts to view! … The red and white quilt is quite fragile, so that stayed in the box but we were able to carefully unfold sections for a better look. Circa 1840 from North Carolina, USA  Maker unknown.

image of Red and White North Carolina, c 1840

Red and White applique quilt, North Carolina. USA. c 1840. Maker unknown.

More photo’s and documentation is available here

http://www.aucklandmuseum.com/collections-research/collections/record/am_humanhistory-object-13117?k=1946.207&ordinal=0

And the final quilt was an early 19th c Log Cabin Quilt from England, maker unknown. An assortment of cottons, wools and silks are used here.

image of Early 19th Century English Log Cabin quilt.  Wool, silk, cotton

Early 19th Century English Log Cabin quilt. Wool, silk, cotton. Maker unknown.

More photo’s and documentation is available here

http://www.aucklandmuseum.com/collections-research/collections/record/am_humanhistory-object-859?k=1949.63&ordinal=0

We were then treated to a rare opportunity to have a wee peek in archival drawers.

As Jane said…”let’s just open a random few and see what’s there”  Lots of interesting early stitched samplers featured heavily along with early colonial artefacts.  These I didn’t have permission to share but I would encourage you to search through the museums extensive online collection to see what you find.

Heartfelt thanks are extended to Jane Groufsky, Associate Curator Applied Arts and Design at Tamaki Paenga Hira – Auckland War Memorial Museum.  Our visit exceeded our expectations as you were so generous with your time.

The following day we travelled in convoy to Tauranga, a beautiful port city in the Bay of Plenty.   A very informative morning was spent with our guide Barbara at The Elms Mission.  http://www.theelms.org.nz/

The Elms Mission

The Elms Mission Tauranga

Two quilts are here and both were made by Scottish migrant Euphemia Ballingall Maxwell (1830-1918).  Euphemia worked on the crazy quilt from 1887 and completed it just prior to her death in 1918. Her applique coverlet is believed to have been made or completed by Euphemia after her arrival in New Zealand in 1865 so both these quilts are New Zealand made.

The Elms website used to have an online collection, but a look today as I’m writing and researching shows an updated and beautiful website, but no clear pictures of quilts.   However there are several photo’s and lots of documentation available in Pamela Fitz Gerald’s book “Warm Heritage, Old Patchwork Quilts & Coverlets in New Zealand and the women who made them”  ISBN 1-86953-529-4

It is readily available here.

http://www.minerva.co.nz/Store/ProductDetails.aspx?product=9280&category=123

image of Crazy Quilt 1887 - 1918

Euphemia Ballingall Maxwell’s Crazy Quilt

image of Borderie Perse Coverlet

Euphemia Ballingall Maxwell’s Applique coverlet 102″ square.  Centre section.

Broderie Perse Coverlet, fabric detal

Applique Coverlet, fabric detail.

A return visit to The Elms is already on my agenda… what an interesting historic home it is.  Thank you to the staff and especially our knowledgable guide Barbara who brought the family alive for us.

I am going to hit publish for this post and get straight on to part 2.  I think otherwise it’s just going to be way too much… not a wee post at all.

Enjoy… and stay tuned. I expect to have part 2 done by this evening

Arohanui

Margaret

PS. some of the pics look a bit faded but click on them for a sharper and bigger image xx

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Two finishes

image of OMG Ombre

I have finally completed the top of Miss Hitchens’ Whimsy, just the quilting to do now.

*Insert Happy Beaming Face*

image of Miss Hitchens' Whimsy

Miss Hitchens’ Whimsy

With MHW’s completion I got stuck into OMG Ombre…cutting the fabric for the remaining flying geese blocks.  Well when I say remaining I mean 22 of the 25 needed…I hadn’t got very far initially.

image of OMG Ombre

Ready to sew.

I spent a lovely (coldish) weekend two weekends ago sewing by the fire, using foundation piecing for speed and accuracy.

image of OMG Ombre

The pile of finished blocks getting bigger.

 By the end of the weekend I had made all the Wild Goose Chase blocks and then started playing with the alternate blocks…I needed to decide if I did or didn’t want them scrappy, did I want to add pink triangles? (cos I had a nice pink Ombre print I was dying to use)

image of Alternate Blocks

Some ombres, some checks, some florals… No pink, didn’t look right.

There was a bit of this going on periodically to make sure I was still happy…

image of Alternate Blocks

Yep, happy with that.

But the weekend was over too soon and I had to pack it away :-(

The very next weekend, out it all came again and I finshed the alternate blocks, assembled them and *even* got the border on.

More decisions to be made there of course, lol I had in my head that it would be quite a subtle pieced border…there was enough going on in the centre I thought.

image of OMG Ombre

I started out subdued but got progressively bolder.

I tried all sorts of combinations and ended up with this… Not what I had in mind at all but, hey sometimes you have to listen to what the quilt has to say.

image of OMG Ombre

More ombre, more prussian blue, more brown.

 So I have two quilts ready to machine quilt .. such a good feeling.

Hoping you are getting some productive sewing time too

til next

Happy stitching

Margaret

Progress x three

image of 1800s sunburst blocks

I’m so close to finishing Miss Hitchens’ Whimsy … I can hardly believe it.

I’ve calculated just four evenings of stitching will complete the remaining two small corner blocks.

(once I have prepared them of course)

image of Miss Hitchens' Whimsy corner

Miss Hitchens’ Whimsy corner block…two down, two to go.

And then I just need a few hours to assemble because all the border strips are sewn…

image of Miss Hitchens' Whimsy borders

Miss Hitchens’ Whimsy outer borders.

…and the centre is done.

image of Miss Hitchens' Whimsy Centre

Centre block…FULL of Broderie Perse.

It is such a *good* feeling.

So that is the first of the three quilts that are in the *Priority Pile*.

The second is the 1800s Sunburst Quilt…maybe progress is too specific a word for this.  Chugging, nay Plodding along might be more apt but I am getting there and I periodically have another finished block to admire.

image of 1800s sunburst blocks

1800s Sunburst blocks, the top left is the most recent finish

I still get a thrill out of finishing one and deciding “which one next?” At the moment I seem to be drawn to these Vermiculate style patterns.

image of 1800s Sunburst blocks

More blocks.

Once MHW is finished I’ll be able to get a bit more gung ho with these blocks.

And I’ve decided to use these Leaf Templates from Made Studio for the elipse corner applique…I’ve used these before and really like the accuracy and speed of these ready made templates.

image of Applique leaves

Made Studio Leaf Templates.

The third is my OMG Ombre (that’s the working title lol)

With the arrival of more of the fabrics I wanted I can get cracking on this (yay)

image of OMG Ombre

Prussian Blue Ombre by Pam Weeks and Eccentric print by Lisa DeBee Schiller.

I’m itching to start sewing again on this… But first I’m going to prepare those last two MHW blocks…today.

I hope you are enjoying your UFO’s too.

thanks for visiting

til next

Margaret :-)