Antique Blocks and Tops

Linda and Bev organised an antique show and tell at Quilts in the Barn and I was fortunate enough to get an invitation.  The theme was antique quilt tops and blocks and there were so many delightful things to see.

 There were antique quilt tops and blocks for sale.

 This quiltmaker got better as she went along.  Some blocks fit together better than others.

There were two large trestles set up to keep the display moving along.  Everyone would be gathered around one table; then someone would say, Look at this one! and we all ran to the other table.

I showed a few of my orphan blocks.

Miriam from Yellow Roses brought along her CCCQ blocks.  Mine are on the left and Miriam's are on the right.  We were quite please with our efforts.

 

Miriam brought along another three projects she is working on.  I am tempted by these Noah and Matilda blocks.  If you are tempted too, the patterns are on Dawn's blog Collector with a Needle.

Another one of Miriam's.

And Miriam's finished Morell quilt.  It has come up beautifully.

By the end of the afternoon our heads were spinning with quilts and talk and good food. It was a great day, thank you Linda and Bev.

Photos of Block 19 Emily Carlile

I was searching through the photos that have been used on the blog already.  It is interesting how these three patterns are similar in form and colour but the patterns are all different.

Block 19 Emily Carlile

Block 2 Elizabeth Cowan

Block 6 Reuben Stubbs

I was also searching through Ancestry.com to find some clues about the next few block makers.  I was fortunate to find a family tree that showed that two of the block makers were cousins, and some of my surnames seemed to be attached as well.  A signature quilt is like a family tree.  The big difference is that with the quilt you already have all the names, but none of the relationships.

Have you finished Block 19?  If you have your can share a blog post below.

1. Write your blog post. Publish it on your blog.
2. Copy the link of the specific blog post. This is not just the link to your blog itself (www.chestercriswellquilt.blogspot.com), but the link to the specific post: (http://chestercriswellquilt.blogspot.com.au/2012/08/hows-it-going.html)
3. Click the blue link up button below and paste your link into the box.

Work in Progress Eye Candy

Kathleen from Connecticut sent a photo of her nine CCCQ blocks.

Well, it's actually a photo of seven Chester Criswell blocks and two Kathleen blocks.  Can you pick the two that she's designed herself? I do like the way the green elements balance the whole set. 

I finished quilting my Block 16. I love the feel of the quilted block.  The applique block itself is nice to look at but the quilted block is nice to hold.

Block of the Month Number 19

Block 19 is on the website now.

Block 19 Emily Carlile

If you are receiving the blocks each month you will have your pattern now.  The pattern is fine but there is a mistake in the story (sigh).  The second sentence should read:

Aunt Margaret wasn't well, wrote Maria, and the springtime farm work was keeping Maria busy.

I put Maria and Margaret's names back to front.  They were sisters, it probably happened all the time.

If you don't have the pattern and would like one, visit the Two Bits Patches website and get a copy for yourself.

Photos of Block 18 Chester Lily

Block 18 Mary McKissick

I spent a bit of time trying to discover what flower was represented by this quilt block. I use Barbara Brackman's Encyclopedia of Applique to search for the Chester Criswell Blocks. I could not find a picture of this pattern but I did notice that lots of floral blocks were called rose, lily or tulip.  I thought a lily was the best choice, so Block 18 has become the Chester Lily.

Did you know that you can write reviews of the patterns on the website Two Bits Patches? If you go to the product page for CCCQ Block 18, there is a Description tab and a Review tab.  You can submit a review about your favourite block.  The review may have to be approved before it appears - I'm not sure because no one has submitted a review before now.

There are a few finished Chester Lily blocks.  If you have blogged and would like to share, you can link up below. Or you can put a photo on the Facebook page.  Looking forward to seeing your work - and reading your reviews!

1. Write your blog post. Publish it on your blog.
2. Copy the link of the specific blog post. This is not just the link to your blog itself (www.chestercriswellquilt.blogspot.com), but the link to the specific post: (http://chestercriswellquilt.blogspot.com.au/2012/08/hows-it-going.html)
3. Click the blue link up button below and paste your link into the box.

An InLinkz Link-up

A Stroll Around the Blogs

My stitching is going a little slowly, so I'll show you what everyone else is doing.

Carole has had to evacuate her home in the face of bushfire threat - yes really.  Fortunately her home is safe and the wheels are back on the Warrandyte Bus blog.

Yellow Roses Miriam has finished the latest block, belonging to Mary McKissick.

Chris is Quilting at the Farm and has finished Block 16 for a swap with ....

.... Wanda the Scrap Happy Quilter.  Wanda and Chris have been coping with blizzards; Carole and I are watching bushfires.

Nancy from the Tattered Garden has finished the centre block (and quite a few other blocks as well).

Jan of Sew Many Quilts - Too Little Time has been making up for lost time.

How are you going?  Any photos to share? Stay safe everyone!

Next Block Please

I gathered all my Chester Criswell Blocks together for a family photo.

The new block is in the bottom left hand corner.  If you have signed on for The Second Year you will be receiving it soon.  If you would like to receive it check the website Two Bits Patches, it will be arriving shortly.
If you are expecting it and it doesn't arrive in you inbox, please check your email settings.  One or two addresses have blocked my email and I can't get through to you. 

Too Hot Today

I'm working at home today. It's the fourth day of heat wave conditions and I'm pleased to be in the same room as the air conditioner.  Two days ago lightening strikes started a fire in the state forest about 30 kilometres away but there is currently no threat to private property.  The wind is blowing the smoke away from our house so this morning I washed blankets and hung them out to dry.

I been distracted from the 19th century events in Chester County, Pennsylvania by life in the 1930s at the opposite end of the USA.  I've been working on reproducing the blocks from my 1937 sampler quilt made in Malaga, Chelan County, Washington.  It's a signature quilt made by a group of women for one of their friends.

I bought this quilt on eBay last year.  When I started making the Malaga blocks I wasn't going to research the quilt makers.  Unlike the Chester Criswell Quilt it wasn't made my ancestors so I didn't think that the women's stories would be of interest.

I was wrong.  I created a family tree on Ancestry.com so I could see the relationships between the 25 names on the quilt.  There are now 158 people in the tree and I'm about halfway through the names.  There is a mother and daughter pair and also a mother-in law and son-in law's sister's pair.  I have found a woman who made friends with the local Indian tribes; a Scottish migrant who lived in Chicago during the Roaring 20s and a housewife whose son grew up to be a Senator.

The story of this quilt is on my blog Patchwork Bits and Pieces.  You can also see a picture of it on page 58 of the latest Down Under Quilts.  I was asked to contribute to an article on buying antique quilts online and the quilt's photos made its way into the magazine. Again.

Photos of Blocks 15,16,17.... Anything!

The posts for your photos have got a bit behind, so now is a good chance for a show and tell.

Block 15 Alice McClellan

Block 16 Adeline Gibson

Block 17 Criswell Gibson

If you have blogged about your blocks, please follow the instructions to link your post.  If you have finished one of the earlier blocks, why not link it too - the more the merrier!

Do you make New Year resolutions?  I don't really but I do think about what I would like to achieve in the next twelve months.  A lot of people focus on their UFOs  - unfinished projects that have been hidden away. I have as many UFOs as the next person, but I leave them hidden.  Occasionally one surfaces and gets completed but I try not to feel guilty about them.  I had fun making them, and when they stopped being enjoyable I put them to one side.  How do you treat your UFOs?


1. Write your blog post. Publish it on your blog.
2. Copy the link of the specific blog post. This is not just the link to your blog itself (www.chestercriswellquilt.blogspot.com), but the link to the specific post: (http://chestercriswellquilt.blogspot.com.au/2012/08/hows-it-going.html)
3. Click the blue link up button below and paste your link into the box.

Happy New Year 2014

Happy New Year!  Hope your 2014 contains everything you wished for!

In October I received a photo album from my aunt in Tennessee that had photos of the Criswells as well as other relatives.  My sister flew to Tennessee for Christmas and I sent a copy of The First Year as a thank you for the photo album.  It was well received and appreciated by my American cousins.
My aunt and uncle are in the process of moving to a smaller home and their family was told, take anything you want.  My sister happened to see this photo frame on the wall and brought it back to Australia for me.

These are photos of Jesse Jackson Smith and Mary Criswell Smith, taken about 1870 (according to  my grandmother's handwriting on the back of the picture).  I will need to take the photos out of the frame to make a good copy, but I couldn't wait to share them.  Do you see the carpet that Mary is standing on?  It's like one of the applique patterns from the quilt.  How many yards/metres of fabric would it take to make one dress?  And how many petticoats are under the skirt?

Block 17 is on the website now.  The fabric I used is Moda's Collections for a Cause Friendship.  The ring of flowers around the centre was a nice surprise.

Almost Christmas

Isn't it good when you get a chance to work on an idea that has been buzzing around in your brain.  

Summer Tulips

I have been wanting to make some six inch blocks based on the Chester Criswell patterns.  This is the first one.  I've used the small flower pattern from Block 14 and added some cheddar too.  I like the colours but I like just red and white too.  I'm not sure which colour scheme to continue with for the next blocks.

It's three sleeps until Christmas and I am looking forward to Christmas afternoon.  After church we will be driving to our Christmas rendezvous. No cooking for me, hooray!  We have three grandchildren and one more on the way so Christmas is a great time to be with family.  

Hope your holiday plans are just what you ordered.  See you in the New Year.

Inspired by Quilts in the Barn

When I visited Quilts in the Barn in September I bought about a dozen fat quarters.  I was inspired by the fussy cut hexagons and hour glass blocks on display and I decided to make my own little quilt.

I made the hexagons first, and then I made some hour glass blocks.  I was stuck with how to get started when a quilting friend mentioned Di Ford's Antique Wedding Sampler.  I used Block 15 from that quilt as a beginning, then just kept adding rows.

Fussy cut hexagons are great fun.

This star didn't make it on the front, it had to settle for the back of the quilt.

This blog is going to be quiet for a little while, Christmas does seem to take a lot of energy.  Block 17 will be on time on 1st January 2014.  In the meantime, enjoy what ever the Christmas season brings.