Sitting innocently over in the side bar is a project that I have not yet mentioned.
When I was cleaning out my late parent's house, I discovered several unfinished projects. My mom was a knitter, so there were some charity knits that just need blocked and/or assembled. Those I finished and sent off right away.
There were 'in progress' knits that I eventually finished and donated as well. As mom aged, she began to have a few cognitive issues that affected her knitting. It was tough to pull out her work, but I knew she would have wanted the donated pieces to be as nice as anything she made for her family. So I re-worked the parts that had issues, keeping as much of her work as possible.
There's one very large needlework project that I will eventually finish - table linens made of Irish linen fabric bought sometime right around WWII for her 'hope chest'. This stuff is so dense and luxurious it has to be felt to be believed. You can not get linen like that any more!
And the final project that I discovered was tucked away in a paper bag in the cedar chest - 28 finished Grandmother's Flower Garden sets. The paper bag was falling apart, but had my great-aunt Charlotte Koenig's name on it. Aunt Charlotte was nicknamed "Lottie". She was my grandmother's youngest sister, a "maiden lady" who owned a tiny cottage on the other end of town from where we lived in Solomon, Kansas. I remember her house most from the quilting frame that was always set up in the 'front parlor'. I think she only took it down when the preacher came to lunch, LOL.
Unfortunately, there was some staining on several of the sets and some piecing issues.
I was able to salvage 12 of the lavender sets and 12 of the green ones. But that's not really enough to get more than a very small wall hanging if you set them together. So I carefully wrapped them up in acid free paper and put them away.
Late last year, I came across a Missouri Star Quilt Company tutorial, "What to do with Vintage Blocks". This tutorial uses machine applique to attach rescued GFG sets to plain background squares, which supports the sometimes fragile vintage fabrics. I immediately thought of my Aunt Lottie's blocks. I figured out a layout for a 'throw' sized quilt, but I was 10 blocks short. I knew I would not be able to match the colors, even with reproduction 1930s prints, so I decided to introduce a third color - bubblegum pink.
I took a closer look at the sets when I realized that I would have to match them for the extra blocks. Aunt Lottie's hexagons were cut one inch on the side, which is a pretty standard measurement and easy to replicate. She pieced with traditional piecework, not English paper piecing (which is what I use for hexis), and her seam allowance was definitely NOT the standard quarter inch! Look at that crazy skinny seam allowance. - it's about an eighth of an inch!!
When I measured the finished sides of the hexis in a dozen places on several different sets, I came up with an average of hexagons that are 13/16 inch sides finished. Thank goodness, Paper Pieces out of Paducah, Kentucky sells their EPP templates and laser cut papers in TONS of sizes - including 13/16 inch LOL.
So since January 2017, I've been putzing along on getting the extra pink sets done and also appliqueing a block or two when the mood strikes me. I am doing hand applique, which is more period appropriate.
I have finished six of the pink sets, with number seven under way. I need to purchase three more pink reproduction 1930s prints as I have used all the ones in my stash. I've also appliqued six of the blocks - two of each color.
This will continue to be a 'back burner', carry-along type of project until I get all the blocks finished. The borders will also be applique, but I don't know how portable that part will be. The plan is green vines with leaves of assorted 1930s floral prints. (Inspiration from this vintage piece found on Pintrest - from an ebay listing. No maker or provenance listed other than "Pennsylvania estate, 1930s.")
Linking back to Jo's Country Junction UFO Challenge
When I was cleaning out my late parent's house, I discovered several unfinished projects. My mom was a knitter, so there were some charity knits that just need blocked and/or assembled. Those I finished and sent off right away.
There were 'in progress' knits that I eventually finished and donated as well. As mom aged, she began to have a few cognitive issues that affected her knitting. It was tough to pull out her work, but I knew she would have wanted the donated pieces to be as nice as anything she made for her family. So I re-worked the parts that had issues, keeping as much of her work as possible.
There's one very large needlework project that I will eventually finish - table linens made of Irish linen fabric bought sometime right around WWII for her 'hope chest'. This stuff is so dense and luxurious it has to be felt to be believed. You can not get linen like that any more!
And the final project that I discovered was tucked away in a paper bag in the cedar chest - 28 finished Grandmother's Flower Garden sets. The paper bag was falling apart, but had my great-aunt Charlotte Koenig's name on it. Aunt Charlotte was nicknamed "Lottie". She was my grandmother's youngest sister, a "maiden lady" who owned a tiny cottage on the other end of town from where we lived in Solomon, Kansas. I remember her house most from the quilting frame that was always set up in the 'front parlor'. I think she only took it down when the preacher came to lunch, LOL.
Unfortunately, there was some staining on several of the sets and some piecing issues.
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| Grandmother's Flower Garden sets |
Late last year, I came across a Missouri Star Quilt Company tutorial, "What to do with Vintage Blocks". This tutorial uses machine applique to attach rescued GFG sets to plain background squares, which supports the sometimes fragile vintage fabrics. I immediately thought of my Aunt Lottie's blocks. I figured out a layout for a 'throw' sized quilt, but I was 10 blocks short. I knew I would not be able to match the colors, even with reproduction 1930s prints, so I decided to introduce a third color - bubblegum pink.
I took a closer look at the sets when I realized that I would have to match them for the extra blocks. Aunt Lottie's hexagons were cut one inch on the side, which is a pretty standard measurement and easy to replicate. She pieced with traditional piecework, not English paper piecing (which is what I use for hexis), and her seam allowance was definitely NOT the standard quarter inch! Look at that crazy skinny seam allowance. - it's about an eighth of an inch!!
When I measured the finished sides of the hexis in a dozen places on several different sets, I came up with an average of hexagons that are 13/16 inch sides finished. Thank goodness, Paper Pieces out of Paducah, Kentucky sells their EPP templates and laser cut papers in TONS of sizes - including 13/16 inch LOL.
So since January 2017, I've been putzing along on getting the extra pink sets done and also appliqueing a block or two when the mood strikes me. I am doing hand applique, which is more period appropriate.
I have finished six of the pink sets, with number seven under way. I need to purchase three more pink reproduction 1930s prints as I have used all the ones in my stash. I've also appliqued six of the blocks - two of each color.
This will continue to be a 'back burner', carry-along type of project until I get all the blocks finished. The borders will also be applique, but I don't know how portable that part will be. The plan is green vines with leaves of assorted 1930s floral prints. (Inspiration from this vintage piece found on Pintrest - from an ebay listing. No maker or provenance listed other than "Pennsylvania estate, 1930s.")
Linking back to Jo's Country Junction UFO Challenge
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