Friday, January 14, 2011 
;)
I found these vintage hankies in pristine condition in Pennsylvania a few weeks ago. They're so wonderfully soft, and I loved the corner shapes on each hankie. I cut them into smaller squares and arranged them in such a way that their plaid patterns could interact then I pieced the remainder of the quilt with subtle variations of neutral linen fabric. I've started quilting the quilt with a really great industrial/vintage feeling dark blue thread, and i'm accenting some of the lines in the hankies that inspired me to piece the quilt. The linen parts will probably be quilted in improvisational lines so I don't really have exact lines drawn out.
;)
I decided to make this quilt a crib quilt size, because I love the idea of creating the connection between generations with quilting. A modern improvisational design with vintage, found fabrics can tell a story and can remind people of something intangible while offering a use to old materials in our contemporary domestic space. I also feel disdain for most manufactured children's items: their limited color palettes, the designs that a child/baby grow out of so quickly (making the items sort of disposable), and limiting a child's experience to all things "cute". I want to make one of a kind pieces that are more than that --- to grow with a child, objects that aren't just "cute", and offer new uses of color and pattern to expand a (family and) child's experience with color, texture and pattern.
Reader Comments (10)
Love it. I really like the hand stitching. What type of thread did you use?
This basically sums up why I quilt.
this is seriously my most favorite quilt & blog post ever.
Really, really wonderful! I can imagine how soft it is. Thats why I do most of my quilt with fabrics from old shirts.
Your handquilting is great too!
Regards from germany,
Christiane
I couldn't agree with you more. and this quilt is going to be (it already is really) wonderful.
I'm using YLI Quilting Thread, and I can't rave enough about how much I love this thread. The colors are really wonderful and different from other thread colors in a subtle way, it hardly EVER gets knotty (wish I could say the same about the gutterman handquilting thread). Oh, oh, and did I mention..... It comes on a wooden spool?!
I will have to try the YLI thread. I like Gutterman alright, but it does get knotty on my if I'm not paying attention. Where is YLI sold?
My mom bought me some a quilt show, but I also found some at Brooklyn General here in NYC --- They do have a website: http://www.ylicorp.com/
Check there and see if their distributor list helps you! I use the "cotton quilting thread". There is a pdf if you click that product.
This quilt is so beautiful! I can't wait to see the finished piece.
i love quilting,
and these are beautiful fabrics
Carrie, how could I have missed this? This quilt is just gorgeous. I think it's my very favorite so far. Save this one for someday when I have babies and I can buy it from you, yeah? Beautiful work. I love what you're doing with both the stitching and the reasoning/inspiration. Love!!