It followed me Home - Can I keep it?

I have added another quilt to the (growing) collection.

I was attracted by the big, bold blocks and interesting patterns.  Sampler quilts are my favourite, I don't like making the same block over and over again. 

I bought it online; the seller described it as late 1800s and purchased in Chester County.  Excellent - another Chester County quilt to keep the Criswells company! 

I wasn't disappointed when it finally arrived.  The fugitive green fabric has faded to tan and some has perished altogether but the patterns are clear.  The whole quilt is in good condition, you don't have to hold your breathe when you fold it up (like I do with the CCCQ).  The cable border is just a bonus.

I wanted some expert opinions on the quilt's age, so I posted some photos in the Facebook group Quilts - Vintage and Antique.  I got over seventy likes which was very nice and a variety of thoughts on how old the quilt is.  The patterns and fugitive green fabric points to 1890s, but the scalloped edge has a 1930s feel about it.  The border fabric matches the background fabric so it must have all been made at the same time.

The big surprise was the number of people that said, it's an Ohio quilt, isn't it?  It looks just like the Miami Valley quilt book.

I went to find my copy of the book and looked through it.  I was very pleased to find lots of similar blocks in the book and my new quilt.  I live in Australia now but I grew up in Ohio; I have always wanted on Ohio quilt.


 There is one odd block however.

That's not fugitive green, red and cheddar.  That's double pink and a tiny green print. How does this block belong with the others?

I love a good mystery.

Map Maker, Map Maker, Make me a Map

I was searching on Ancestry.com for some information on next month's block maker, Mary Trayner.  As I was following the family tree trail I came across a set of maps drawn in 1883 of Chester County land owners. 

Detail of Oxford Borough, 1883

 I was charmed by the tiny sketches of the prominent buildings in the town centre.  The offical map maker that year must have been very talented, or artistic, or bored, because each map has its own style.  I went through each of the 150 pages and saved my favourite fonts.  Which one do you like the best?

An Introduction to The Quilt

I'd like to introduce you to a special quilt.  This quilt celebrated it's 160th birthday earlier this year and the time has come to get out of the chest and make some friends.

This quilt was made in 1852 in Chester County, Pennsylvania.  It was made as a quilt for Mary McClellan Criswell on her engagement to Jesse Jackson Smith.  Mary's family, friends and neighbours all contributed to make blocks for the quilt. And on each block the maker signed their name, where they lived and a few added some best wishes.

The Criswell quilt is typical of signature quilts made in the 1850s.  Red and green was a popular colour combination for the period, and by 1840 red and green fabrics were reliable and affordable.  Friendship quilts such as this one were first made in the early 1840s in the Delaware Valley region of Pennsylvania and the trend quickly spread through the eastern United States. (Source Roderick Kiracofe, The American Quilt: A History of Cloth and Comfort 1750 - 1950)

So, please accept an invitation to come on a journey of discovery about Mary Criswell's quilt and the friendship it represents.  You may even make a quilt of your own!