Treasure Box Quilt from A little bit biased...

Amber from a little bit biased created this darling quilt with blocks she found is a "craft" box from her husband's Grandma. I love these embroidered blocks, so much time taken. I think these quilts that have touches from generations are so special. Amber has a darling blog here, and she sells her Gigi's thimble patterns here, be sure to check her out.

There is a little story behind this quilt (which, I think make for the very best kind of quilts.) Well, about 5 or 6 years ago (before we bought the house we're in now) we were living with Ryan's Aunt and Uncle for about 9 months while we figured out if we were going to build a house or not. One day, Ryan's Uncle (Ryan's mom's brother) handed me a box and said it was his mom's and he thought it had some sewing stuff in it and I could keep anything I wanted that was in it. Well, low and behold I found these beautiful embroidered blocks - about 10 of them - that his mother had made. 

Finally after some time I pieced 9 of them together in this simple 3x3 grid pattern, with gold sashing and red posts. Some people would kill me for doing this next part, but I decided to go ahead and have it machine quilted as opposed to quilting it by hand. But, the quilting turned out beautiful (my favorite quilter in Idaho did it.) I loved how the back fabric was a tone on tone green hydrangea pattern so that the cream threaded quilting showed up wonderfully. The quilter traced the pattern of the embroidery so it really featured the darling embroidery design.

Shortly after the quilt was finished (and shortly after Ryan's Grandma Barfusspast away) I felt inspired to give it to Ryan's mom. It was a spur of the moment idea and I went ahead and gave it to her. The blocks I found that day were a beautiful surprise so that is why the quilt is called, The Treasure Box Quilt.

The Crafty Quilter's closet...Great grandmother's quilt...

Look at this amazing quilt Kristen from The Crafty Quilter's Closet sent to us?  It was made by her great Grandmother. How lucky she was to end up with it. I am always amazed with the beautiful time consuming quilts our Grandmother's made. Such detail and patience, I don't think I could have been a quilter back then! Thanks Kristen. Check out Kristen's cute blog, and she has a fun tutorial link here.


When someone finds out I quilt, I am always amazed at the shocked look that cross their face.  It is as if a quilter can be nothing more than a wrinkled old grandmother who sits wrapped in her shawl quilting...when she is not napping in front of re-runds of Matlock.  Their responses, while slightly delayed, are predictable, and I have heard them many, many times.  I get the, "Oh, I wish I could do that!" or "I've always wanted to learn."  My favorite has to be the "How nice for you",  which implies it's not nice for them.  What I love to hear is "My Grandmother used to quilt" which is quickly followed by "BUT she did it all by hand."  As if somehow I am cheating by using a machine.  I have done my share of hand quilting, a very small share.  I'll admit hand quilting is an art form, not one for the faint of heart or those afraid of a little blood.

Truthfully, many quilters are fortunate and do learn to quilt at their mother or Grandmother's knee.  I was not one of these fortunate quilters.  As far as I knew, no one genetically linked to me quilted at all.  And then I received this.

This quilt was Quilted by my Great-Grandmother. Inez Irick Huber.  Sadly there is no label stating when or where. (Label Your Quilts Ladies!)

I find this quilt an amazing work of art and patience.  Inez was the mother of 5 boys.  As the mother of 3 children, only 2 of whom are boys, I can see why she might have needed an outlet.  I never had the opportunity to meet her since she passed away before I was born.  When people speak of Inez it is always with strong words.  She was a small person with a defiant personality who was the driving force of her family.  (Perhaps we have more in common than just our quilting.)

Inez age 16

As I admired this hand quilted beauty with it's perfectly spaced quilting, something I assure you I never will aspire to, I realized not only was it hand quilted by it was also hand pieced!  I can only imagine the number of hours put into this quilt.  These were hours away from husband and boys, peaceful hours perhaps with friends or family, hours doing something you enjoyed with people you love.  These too are things Inez and I have in common.

Although, I have not been able to put a name to this pattern, it contains elements of Irish Crosses, Ocean Waves and Tree of Life.  In case you wondered, I know I did, this quilt contains 7,128 triangles or 3,564 hand pieced 1/2 square triangles, just over 3,560 more than I care to ever hand piece.  I have no idea when it was constructed and can only assume that since Inez was born in 1884 is was sometime after that. (and of course before she died.)

This quilt is in remarkably good condition and has only two small tears.  Before being passed down to me it hung in my Aunts farm house for years.  Now that it is down it seems to be saying, "Just let me rest awhile."  And I plan to let it do just that, AFTER a nice relaxing bath, for the quilt not for me.

Despite the fact that I am saddened by the lack of information about this quilt, I am quite happy it has found its way into my home.   I feel grateful that through this beautiful family heirloom I have found a connection to quilting and family I never new existed.  Perhaps with luck, I will be able to pass this quilt down to my daughter someday and continue the legacy of quilting that Inez started.  

 

Nap time Quilter...Roots

Okay folks, this is the epitomy of a quilt story. When we got this quilt submitted from nap time quilter
we knew we had to feature it! What an amazing and beautiful quilt. It tells the story of her father and where he came from. Such an amazing and original design. We are truly impressed!

Roots

May 2010

Approximately Twin Sized

100% cotton, original design

Here it is, aptly named, my Dad's quilt: Roots. Roots for the garden growth that sustained my Baba and Dido as well as our family. Roots for the foundation of where we come from. Roots to acknowledge such an important part of our family legacy. Roots to impart growth the the family as the next generations arrive and thrive.

This was a true family project. My sister and sister-in-law and I pieced together the top, with a few helpful hands from my daughters and husband. Hubby and my brother watched the 6 kids so we could get that done, while my Mom kept the secret and took care of my sister's dog when she was away to get the top done. Then my brother and sister-in-law found the fabric for the back (so much Mark Lipinksi Krakow - how appropriate). They, with their kids, basted the quilt. I quilted it, again with input from Hubby and help from the girls. Here are my brother and I putting the finishing touches on the quilt. Me, the binding, and he, the label. (This picture entertains me so, the surgeon doing hand stitching.)

 Here is a broader view of the quilt, off the back deck of my brother's house. A house my Dad built for them. My Dad is a builder, always has been. He is one of those guys that doesn't know how not to work, so he is always happy to be putting something together. Of late, he's been spending some time with crochet hooks instead of hammer and nail.

Now, some details. This is part of the flower patch. A 2 inch checkerboard, with free motion quilting. See those little flowers interspersed here and there?

This is the house. Baba and Dido's house was this tiny house that my Dad himself help build, probably back in high school. It was probably less than 500 square feet. It consisted of a sitting room, an eat-in kitchen, one bedroom plus another sleeping area, and an entry/pantry. At some point my Dad added on another room, creating two bedrooms in total. And I still remember, back in the 80s, when the bathroom, and running water, was added.

It was quite a shock to the system to visit the house - we were suburban kids. I hated using the outhouse, and our arrival meant sleeping in stuffy beds, listening to the drinking and yelling of Ukrainian visits. Even to this day, it shows me what one can do in a small house.

On two sides of the house was a boardwalk made of wood. A small forest was on the back side, and a small lawn on the front. Otherwise the house was surrounded by garden.

No Ukrainian garden would be complete without dill and onions! Each of the veggies in the garden was quilted individually, with some brown, tight stipple in between. In fact, looking at these close-ups, you will see that each section was quilted individually. I would say I used at least 20 different threads throughout the quilt. Time-consuming and frustrating at times, but worth it.

The white picket fence that led up to the house was a perfect spot to really personalize the quilt. I practiced my cursive writing and put the family's names on the fence. This frames the yard with the picnic table, complete with a box of drying onions on it.

This Toe-Catcher photo shows the slough/dug out at the front of the property, complete with the little dock where we stood to gather water for the garden. Or where we caught frogs to freak out my Mom.

This is the label for the quilt. My brother is a label star. He found the grain elevator image. It was perfect because both my parents grew up across the street from the grain elevator. He played with the image, adding the town name and the necessary details about the quilt.

And here we are sharing the quilt with Dad, at a family brunch. It was presented with little fuss, but we all spent a lot time pouring over the details. I didn't see any tears from my Dad, but that isn't surprising. He's a gruff, tough man. But he knew what it was right away and definitely appreciated it. I only hope that it keeps him warm for all his upcoming naps on the couch.