An Old Wedding Quilt Finish -- Finally!

I'm sure my friend Pattie thought this day would never come.  I was beginning to wonder, myself.   The restoration of the Old Wedding Quilt is complete and it has been delivered.  Pattie is "over the moon" about it.  

Looking back at our electronic conversations it was January of 2015 when she showed me the quilt and asked for advice.   I took it home with me to see what I could figure out.  It was seven months before I even had a chance to look at it.  In case you don't remember this is what it looked like .....

 .....and my first blog post about this project describes the condition.  I think the most fun part of this entire thing was taking it apart.  I had never done that with an old quilt, and it was so cool.  (Yes, my favorite part of home remodeling projects is the demolition!)  Between finishing the top and starting to quilt it, I had to set it aside again for a while, but I got back to it, anxious to see it finished.  

There wasn't enough original fabric in good shape to use for the binding, so I ordered several shades from the Fat Quarter Shop hoping one of them would be at least close enough to the right color so I could use it.   Wonder of wonders!  One of them was a perfect match.

It could not have been a better match!

I used clip art and hand-embroidery to make the label.  Isn't it fun?  That's supposed to be the happy couple in 1963 and Pattie in 1967.  

Actually these pictures are a little better.

And now, for the rest of the story.

Pattie's mother, Irene Mayfair, was set up on a blind date with a young sailor named Harlon Doyle by her best friend and his best friend.  After their first date Irene told her best friend that she was going to marry that man!  And she did.  On July 3, 1963 in a courthouse in Florida.  They traveled to Harlon's hometown for their first Thanksgiving as a married couple and were presented with the quilt by Irene's new mother-in-law, Effie Doyle.

Pattie came along in 1967 and as she was growing up she took over the quilt as her own.   In her words,  " I sort of took it over growing up.  It was my favorite and one of the blankets I wanted to wrap up in if I was sick.  It went to the beach as a beach blanket, and was used for picnics over the years ... until it started coming apart, and I just put it up so it wouldn't deteriorate completely."

I am so privileged to have been a part of this quilt's restoration.  I hope as it hangs in Pattie's home it brings as much comfort to her as it did when she was growing up.  I know it will bring back many precious memories every time she looks at it.

NOTE - if you haven't seen previous posts on the progress of this quilt check them out here -

Aug 29, 2016 -- http://sewthisismyblog.blogspot.com/2016/08/up-next-real-challenge.html

Sept 1, 2016 -- http://sewthisismyblog.blogspot.com/2016/09/old-wedding-quilt-progress.html

Sept 29, 2016 -- http://sewthisismyblog.blogspot.com/2016/09/old-wedding-quilt-its-coming-along.html

Jan 8, 2017 -- http://sewthisismyblog.blogspot.com/2017/01/where-to-start.html

Feb 5, 2017 -- http://sewthisismyblog.blogspot.com/2017/02/all-kinds-of-progress.html

Mar 7, 2017 -- http://sewthisismyblog.blogspot.com/2017/03/old-wedding-quilt-update.html

Old Wedding Quilt - Update

After setting aside the Old Wedding Quilt for a while I've been excited to be back to work on it.  I don't think any of the blocks from the original quilt were the same size, neither were the sashing strips or cornerstones.   That made it interesting (and a real challenge!) to put it all back together and get it to be square.  In order to make it lay flat I cut and marked the backing and batting and made the reconstructed top fit within those lines, then used a lot of pins to baste.  The plan is to quilt it into submission!

I've  tried to maintain as much of this quilt's character as possible.  It was originally hand pieced using a heavy thread I haven't been able to identify and quilted with what looks like crochet thread.   I used hand quilting thread to piece it, and I'm using a medium weight Perle cotton to hand quilt it.  

I'm making steady progress every day and loving every minute.  

It won't be long now, and I'll be putting on the finishing touches.  As long as this is taking it is still a labor of love.  

When it's done I'll tell you a little about the love story behind the quilt!

All Kinds of Progress

I've made a lot of progress on three of the projects I shared with you in this post.   The baby quilt I've decided to call "Strings Around the Block" is actually quilted .....

..... and the binding is ready to be stitched down.

"Craving Color" is also quilted .....

(even though there was a little collateral damage when I took my eyes off the bobbin while I was binding it!  There was no way to salvedge that thread.)

..... and the binding is partially stitched down.   I may get both of the bindings finished during the Super Bowl game this evening.  (Fingers crossed!)

As for the Old Wedding Quilt, I finished putting it back together .....  

..... and it is ready to be basted.

I set goals to finish these three quilts by the end of February.  What has helped me get so much done is another one of my goals - getting out to my sewing room for at least 20 minutes a day.  I must admit that "20 minutes" often turns into more, but one of the reasons for the goal is to bring me joy.  It's working!