Saturday, May 22, 2010

~*Cutter Quilts*~

Oh I do hate calling them that... cutter quilts... all that time, love, and craftsmanship... but they are too frayed to use on the bed now. However, maybe because they are so tattered & torn, they have been loved and snuggled with for many years.



Hello Dear Friends! I've spent the morning at a local estate auction. They are always fun! That battle~of~bids, that hunt for a lost treasure, and just watching the crowds. It is always an enjoyable time! The weather has cooperated too... no more rain... just sunshine and heat!

My treasure finds today included some sweet, old quilts. I love to see the collection of vintage fabrics. I'm not 'schooled' when it comes to quilting and am not familiar with the pattern names. I try to examine them to see if they were made by hand, by machine, or both. As far as I can tell, one is completely hand pieced and quilted... the other two look to be put together with a machine, but are hand quilted.





They smell a little musty... it would be nice to leave them out on the line, but it is too windy... they will get ripped to shreds. I'll just wash them on the gentle cycle and put them out to air on another day.

There are large areas on each the could be used to make something else... but I'm not sure what... and I do hate to cut them... but I probably will. Pillows maybe for the larger pieces? Pinkeep make~dos for the smaller pieces? For now, I'll just fold them and stack them on a cabinet though.

Wishing you all warm smiles and a blessed weekend...

Betty

20 comments:

  1. Super finds darlin! The second quilt pattern is called "Grandma's Garden". These were made completely of hexagonal pieces, and usually finished with the hexagonal edges showing. This one seems to have been either unfinished on two sides or cut, and the finished sides are quite unusual. The top one appears to be a variation on a Diamond Star pattern, and the bottom is a combination of Ducks on the Pond and Flying Geese. I found a modern pattern called Toulouse, in which the blocks are bordered by a row of Flying Geese. Your lovely find is DEFINTELY older than Toulouse my dear! xoxo Andy

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  2. great finds today..I am going to have to start going to estate auctions, I know I am missing out on a lot of great things. Thanks for sharing.
    Blessings,
    ~Ronda~

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  3. Oh Betty, such beautiful quilts, don't you wish they could tell you their stories.

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  4. Betty~

    The quilts are beautiful. I really like the last one. As a quilter, I know the love put into the making of each quilt.I don't like cutting up quilts either, but I do occasionally.I just consider it giving them new life. They go to new homes as pillows, ornaments, framed pictures, pinkeeps, etc. where they are loved all over again. Please share pictures of projects when you do make them. I love to see what becomes of old treasures.

    Have a great evening!
    Hugs~Becky

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  5. Thanks for the info, Andy! :) Yup, the "Grandma's Garden" one is missing the sides. It does seem to be unfinished rather than cut. Thanks for giving the pattern names! I've learned something! :)

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  6. What beautiful quilts..FYI..I wash mine with oxy clean and it does take most of the smell away..

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  7. Wow Betty that is a supper haul, and you would never find those treasure where I live. If there was a sale here you would pay up in the hundreds of dollars for them. Good Work. LenZie

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  8. Hello, Beautiful quilts but you don't have to keep washing them. All you do is add vinegar to the wash and the smell is gone. I put one cup to a med.-lg. wash cycle. The smell will be gone. If your quilts have a strong smell use two cups and add an extra rinse. Blessings, Janice-Black Creek Primitives

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  9. Great quilts, Betty! The perfect thing to do with them will come in time... I do still enjoy the headache pillow you made me a couple of years back! Made from an old quilt and stuffed with lavender and something... still smells like lavender too! Love how nice and green your yard is too! Pretty! :-)

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  10. The quilts are gorgeous, and aren't estate sales so much fun? I purchased a quilt top not too long ago that is also a cutter. I'm going to make curtains for our bedroom with it - one of these days!

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  11. Wonderful finds and would be great to make other things with, but I always hate the idea of cutting up someone's work, lol.

    Debbie

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  12. Hi Betty, I have bought severalvintage and antique quilts in varying stages of disrepair. With a lot of patience and not much skill I repaired all but one. There is lots of info on the internet on quilt conservancy that you can google as for smell and stains oxy clean and sunshine are the best! After soaking the quilt for 24 hrs and spinning on the delicate cycle you can lay your quilts out on the grass to dry and the enzymes in the grass will pull alot of the gunk out of the fabric.

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  13. Lovely treasures you have there.
    I don't think I'd want to cut them either.
    Looking forward to seeing what you
    do with them.

    Melinda

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  14. A weekend for quilts! I got a good deal at an antique mall on a cutter quilt~Thought about passing it on but I think I've convinced myself to keep it and use in projects. The ones you found are beautiful...can you just imagine their histories?

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  15. Oh Betty - The last one is BEAUTIFUL!! I would try to keep it together - just love it!! What a fun day for you :)

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  16. Those are so pretty. I too have a hard time cutting them apart thinking of all the love and time that went into them. The creators, I'm sure, would be proud to know that pieces are being handed out to others who love them as much as they did. Thanks for sharing.
    ~Melissa~

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  17. oh c'est splendide bravo ! quel talent
    amitiƩs marylin

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  18. What a wonderful find. I know that I would hate to cut them up too. If you do though you can frame bits of them or make pillows out of them. But perhaps they could be folded with the sorry parts hidden in a cupboard.

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  19. What wonderful luck! Your quilts are so lovely. I have been thinking cutter quilts for the past few days and finally bought a piece on e-bay yesterday. I spent about 2 hrs yesterday just looking at quilts. I don't care if they are perfectly quilted, I love them all.

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