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I think my ‘old fashioned’ sense of thinking gets the better of me sometimes. Does anyone else ever feel like you belong in a different era?
I like old classic books. I grow my own food. I sing old traditional hymns. I bake bread from scratch. I tediously tend my flowers.
And, I treasure old quilts.
Why would a quilter, who can sew as many new quilts as time allows for, ever want to buy an old…somewhat worn and somewhat torn…vintage quilt?
My answer is simple.
I can’t make a vintage quilt. You can’t make a vintage quilt.
My husband and I were just discussing this yesterday. Am I a trend follower? Am I a trend setter? Or am I a trend avoider? Cynic…maybe that’s a better word. Am I cynical towards trends.
Yes, my husband says I resist trends…I resist the crowd…at almost every turn.
Is that the same reason I don’t shop at Target? Everyone shops at Target. If I buy something at Target, everyone has that something.
I digress.
Maybe vintage quilts are trendy, and I just don’t know it.
Why am I drawn to an old and worn treasure of a vintage quilt?
I know no one else can have that quilt. I know no one else can make that quilt. There’s something beautiful in the handmade. They’re not mass produced. They’re slowly and simply stitched together. Not replicated. Not duplicated. Just finished.
No matter how hard I try (or you try), I cannot create a quilt with wear and tear and love that a worn out vintage quilt holds.
The quilt above was the first vintage (possibly antique?) quilt I ever bought.
I bought it maybe two summers ago. Our neighborhood garage sales were going. I told my husband I wasn’t going to even walk around because I didn’t need anything. If I go thrifting, I know I’ll find something. If I don’t need anything, I shouldn’t go.
My husband told me to go just for fun.
I did.
Soon thereafter, I found three old quilts hanging up in a garage for sale. I bought two of them. They were very similar. I bought them each for $50. They were used and loved, and they’ve been even more used and loved in our home. One covered the cushions on the couch for a while…until the boys started picking holes in it.
The log cabin quilt above was a more recent purchase. This one I found for $25 at a local garage sale as well. It’s definitely my favorite of the four vintage quilts I own. I love the variety of fabrics, and I’m almost always drawn to blues. There is lots of blue in this quilt.
And then there’s this red beauty. I bought this one recently at the same garage sale where I purchased the log cabin quilt above. This one was also $25. I am not one to have much red in our home, but I can handle some red in a vintage quilt. I’ve never made or owned a star quilt of any kind.
I may have to attempt this pattern with my own fabrics. I love it!
(Sidenote: After much experimentation, I figured out how to rid these old treasured quilts of any smell or odor. You can read about my findings here.)
So tell me, do you love a tired yet long loved quilt?
Hello Kelli, I truly enjoy your Blog and reading the comments. Your Vintage Quilts are beautiful!
I am a Quilter, and treasure rescued quilts. I have never commented online, but thought you might find this interesting! I live in southeastern Ontario. In many areas, quilt tops were referred to as “Flimsies” till 1964. Many Quilters apparently thought the word was demeaning, considering the time and cost involved. Therefore the word Flimsy was dropped. I think of it more as “in the delicate stage” .
At our Guild Quilt Show, we had a Vintage Display promoting “Flimsies” and Quilts. Perhaps “Flimsy” will catch on again!
Hello,
I love the vintage log cabin quilt in this post. Could you take a picture of it all spread out so I can make one like it?
Thank you so much!
Kris Dutra
I just shot you an email with a picture of the quilt, Kristen. 🙂 I hope that’s helpful!
Hi
Can I get a picture too? Im very interested in starting one.
I just emailed you a picture, Joyce. 🙂
I enjoy sharing my love for quilting by appreciating some dear soul who expressed her love for others as she carefully used the things she had to create a beautiful but necessary piece of art for someone to use everyday for years.
The amount of time, effort, and energy…the creativity, the love is a beautiful reminder of keeping things simple. Without any words kindness expressed in so many beautiful ways. I have used quilt tops to make quilts for others to save time. But it also is a fulfillment of soneone else who spent many hours putting it together but it was never completed kind of like a completed unbroken circle.
Love this. Thanks for sharing, Jill.
Great post! On the one hand, buying a vintage quilt is no different than buying vintage furniture or china — as you note, you won’t find those things at your local big box store! They add a bit of spark when displayed among your contemporary possessions. How about another practical (or maybe tactical) reason for buying them?
Earlier this year, I was hired to teach an English Paper Piecing class (EPP). Mind you, I had only made one hexagon flower prior to agreeing to do the class but was confident I could explain and demonstrate the technique. I chose three small projects that the students could make up within the class time (or shortly thereafter) and made those up as class samples. However, I also wanted to be able to show students who might not be familiar with EPP (or quilts in general) what their new skills could produce if they were so inclined or ambitious. I didn’t have time to make a full EPP quilt for the class so was lucky to find a few beautiful vintage examples. One was a flower garden style quilt completed (including hand quilting!) except for binding and two other tops employing different layout designs but using EPP shapes.
The quilted quilt made a great backdrop for my presentation and I look forward to eventually raiding my 30’s repro stash to finish off that binding and learning to bind an uneven edge. Having seen mostly longarm quilters do wonders with adding modern quilting designs and techniques to finish vintage tops, I also look forward to taking on the two tops as another chance to grow my own quilt stitching skills without the work of having to piece the tops in the first place!
I love hearing this Vivian! Thanks for sharing. I bet you inspired many a quilter with your classes. 🙂
I have about 2 dozen quilt tops made in the 1930’s, 40’s maybe early 50’s. I remember going with my grandmother to the feed store to choose some of the fabrics! Does anyone want them????? I will never do anything with them and one day my son’s will throw them out if I don’t find a home for them.
Hi Beverly! They sound beautiful! I will send you an email. 🙂
I have a few hand stitched quilts made in in the 1930s and 1940s . I would be happy to give them to someone who would appreciate them. My children have taken their favorites and a few remain.
Well, Kathleen, you are welcome to send them here, and they’d be treasured, but I’d feel a bit guilty. So you do what’s best. 🙂
So many things said here that I agree with. I have at least 60 tops and 40 antique or vintage quilts that I’ve purchased or inherited and about 500 blocks. I also make quilts but working on restoring, repairing or finishing those made before I was born is a sort of spiritual experience. I’m not sure what my life would be without my quilts but I don’t want to find out.
Wow Jan!! You have quite a collection. I bet it is all so beautiful. Vintage quilts are so inspiring to me, and I can only image all those quilts you have stacked in gorgeous squishy pile. 🙂
I see you restore and repair. I purchased 2 vintage quilts for $10 each from an estate sale. Both needs repairs and was wondering what methods you use. I’ve had a few suggestions but have not attempted this task yet.
I love reading all your inputs on why you rescue vintage quilts. I do the same,too. I’ve bought several quilt tops and finished some of them, I still have some to do but, have to research some more on how to finish it. I have made my own quilts by watching youtube.com. It is fulfilling to finish one, but, has preference to hand made old quilts. I also like civil war quilts reproductions and will try to make one using reproduction fabrics. It is so calming just by going through the handwork of vintage quilts and wonder how much time was put into them,
I love this Gloria! I prefer hand quilted quilts and am hand quilting, for the first time, a quilt I made. I’m thoroughly enjoying the slow process. I’ll have to look up the Civil war quilts. Vintage and antique quilts are so inspiring to me!
I absolutely loved seeing the photos you included, reading your comments and those who responded to them. I’ve been tempted to buy a few worn quilts and resisted, but will no longer resist. I will rescue! Thanks,
Linda
Hi Linda, if you find some, I hope you love having them in your home! 🙂 They’ve been a joy for us to use these last couple years…despite their tears and fading.
I buy vintage quilt tops more so than finished quilts, especially bright ones with feed sack fabric, and I finish them. I like knowing that I’m finishing something that someone worked really hard on a long time ago. They are full of history, and then I add my own to it. They can then be put to use, instead of hanging out in an antique store!
Sarah…you’ve opened up a new world to me! I’ve never even considered buying a quilt TOP. How inspiring to finish some that another quilter started years and years and years ago. What a connection to the past!
I also enjoy buying old quilt tops and finishing them. Or just quilt blocks! I bought 12 vintage maple leaf blocks at a quilt show for just $4.00! And I put them together and am hand quilting them now. I also bought butterfly blocks and finished that too. I love finishing them, wondering why they weren’t finished, and just cherishing the end result.
I love that Joye! What a great way to use something from the past! I bet the hand quilting is just beautiful. 🙂
I too rescued a vintage quilt top with lots of embroidery in the squares. I took it home and finished it! It’s beautiful!! I know it has a good home now, mine!!
Well what a beautiful way to connect to another quilt from the past! This sounds so precious Delores!
I call them rescue quilts because I have rescued one that was being used as a dog bed. One that was being used to wrap metal yard ornaments for transporting. Two from a bitter daughter in law that was selling her mother in laws quilts at a yard sale. And yes, she told me that when I rescued them from her. Lol And so the story goes… I am a quilter too but love the soft buttercream feel of the old quilts. They bring such comfort. I like to think of the person who made them and the time and love they put into these quilts So with that being said, I consider us heroes for rescuing these long forgotten and misused treasures. 😉
I like that Lorri. ‘Rescue’ quilts. Yes indeed! Most of them have so much life left in them! Not to mention they’re absolutely beautiful.
I started collecting quilts for a few years, have some gorgeous 30’s and one 1860 never washed. Made quilts for many years, love my antique quilts. Learned how to hand quilt first, treasure that exquisite stitching on antique ones.
Oh Nancy, I sooooo very want to learn to hand quilt. It’s intimidating to me, but I continue watching some tutorials online. I found a large hoop at a thrift store, and I think I have all the supplies. Now I just need to give it a try. The 1860 quilt you have sounds like a rare find!
I also love vintage quilts, I love the feel of them, and try to imagine what they have been thru, maybe they were brought West in a covered wagon, or were used when a baby was born. I have many and love them all. I am also a quilter and also love new quilts, you can never have to many.
Cathy, I love that you say ‘you can never have too many…’ I love the quilts, the old ones and the new ones. They each have such a story behind them. 🙂
I love vintage things, many things. I’ve never bought a vintage quilt though, but I have a couple handed down from family. You have some beauties there, and I LOVE the red star quilt. What great treasures!
Thanks Wendi! They were a treat to find and treasures indeed. 🙂