A Tale of Two Victorian Crazy Quilts - in Four Parts Parr 1 Setting the Scene      This pair of crazy quilts still lives in the family and the town where they were made, with a descendant of the two quiltmakers.   They were made circa 1890 in Brooklyn, Connecticut, by Emily Harris, and her daughter, Eva May Harris.  They are great-grandmother and grandmother to the current owner.  One of the quilts has a small piece of red fabric embroidered with the name of Samuel Cady Harris, Emily's husband. Both quilts include bright yellow Special Constable ribbo ..read more

Preserving Our Quilt Legacy Virtual Workshop Introductory Video Hi, Friends! I'm discovering new ways to reach out and find more people who are wanting to learn about repairing caring for old quilts - so we can have more quilters "preserving history one quilt at a time". I've just listed my big workshop on Global Teacher Connection - a great website which lists all sorts of virtual classes and lectures, and also hosts informational presentations for teachers, guild program chairs, and so on.   My new promotional video is linked at the photo above.  Full information and registr ..read more

Taking good care of antique and vintage quilts is taking good care of family, textile, and social history. It’s a wonderful journey!  My next workshop will be held January 27 - February 24 2024, on 5 consecutive Saturdays.  All the details and registration are on my website.  If you have questions, contact me here or at annquilts@comcast.net.  Restoration Conservation Preservation Philosophy   Techniques Supplies  Each student can present one (or two if time allows) quilts for discussion of how, when, and why to use the various supplies and techniques. All e ..read more

Taking good care of antique and vintage quilts is taking good care of family, textile, and social history. It’s a wonderful journey!  Preserving Our Quilt Legacy Virtual Workshop My next workshop will be held January 27 - February 24 2024, on 5 consecutive Saturdays.  All the details and registration are on my website.  We will cover many aspects of the process.  Restoration, conservation, and preservation.  Finding patching fabrics, which includes gaining knowledge of the history of fabric printing and dyeing.  Learning about needles, threads, and other tools ..read more

Quilt Repair Tidbits.  The next (somewhat) weekly installment of quilt repair tidbits and photos. This week’s tidbit:  A hand-me-down set of vintage/antique Mosaic/Grandmother’s Flower Garden blocks. I’ll be teaching a virtual quilt care and repair workshop in winter 2024.  One thing I’ll be talking about is learning how to tell the age of the fabrics in old quilts.  These blocks have a secret key to their age.  All the info about the workshop is on my website.  And you can me to be added to the interest list for notification when registration opens. So, about ..read more

The next post of fun quilt repair moments.  This week:  a prize-winning family heirloom quilt.  Check out the design and sewing skills, about as perfect as a quilt can get. I hope this beauty will inspire you to join in the virtual quilt repair and care workshop that I will be teaching in winter 2024.  All the info is on my website.  to be added to the mailing list for notification when registration opens. The workshop will cover restoration and conservation supplies and techniques and how to choose which to use, and also, fabric history, and preservation concepts l ..read more

The second installment of weekly quilt repair tidbits and photos. Schoolhouse quilt, c. 1915-20 This week: a wonderful schoolhouse quilt, a lovely and unusual rendition of a favorite traditional block.  One of the benefits of working with antique and vintage quilts is that it’s like having your own up close and personal quilt show! I hope I can inspire you to join the virtual quilt repair and care workshop I’m planning for winter 2024.  All the info is on my website.    me to be added to the mailing list for notification when registration opens.   The workshop will ..read more

  The worktable.  Grandmother’s Flower Garden c. 1980 I’m starting a new little outreach project here.  A weekly tidbit and photos.  A new insight or skill?  A really cool fabric?  Who knows what it’ll be! This week’s tidbit:  I’ve found myself ending up patching with fabrics that at first glance I was sure would look terrible.  They certainly aren’t exact matches, but end up being just right. My underlying goal is to inspire new students for the virtual workshop I’m planning for winter 2024. All the info is on my website.  And you can me to be ad ..read more

Do you know how there can be a project with one little glitch that ends up defining the whole process even though the project was otherwise super successful and fun?  Well, this quilt had one pesky fabric that would not "accept" anything in my stash as a fair patch.   You see, it's actually a really fun quilt.  I date it to the 1940s or so.  I'm super fond of the color combination, especially the use of the solid orange.  I'm generally not a fan of orange, but in this case, I absolutely love the bright sparkle it gives to this happy quilt! I discovered that the p ..read more

Here comes some thinking and wondering that I've been doing lately. Over the last few years, people have been asking me to repair soooo many really seriously damaged quilts from the 1960s-70s and onwards.  For the most part, these are family heirlooms, made by beloved grandmas and great-grandmas.   I'm thinking that what I'm seeing are the quilts that have been used and loved and "used up" in the old-fashioned terminology.  Many are not fancy in pattern or workwomanship.  Part of this is that in the 1950s-70s era, the making of super intricate quilts kind of drifted o ..read more