Bed Turning

With AQS in town, the Grand Rapids Public Museum decided to haul some of their antique quilts out of storage and have a bed turning.   We saw 13 quilts, and I can't wait to share them with you!  I will start and end with the most exciting ones, for me anyway.

They set up two stations, and then moved the quilts to the center table after viewing, and started all over again with each group seeing the ones from the other table.  Each station had a reader telling the particulars of the quilt, and everyone got to inspect the quilts up close and take pictures.

The first one is a Baltimore Album quilt dated 1847.

The quilt is made with 13 appliqued 16" x 16" blocks set on point.  The fabrics are mostly solid and print turkey reds and greens, but the center block also has blue, pinks and browns.

There are many handwritten signatures on the quilt, but only one is dated.

Sorry it didn't show up better in the picture, but it reads Mathilda Kindle, or Hindle, May 30th, 1847.  The donor of the quilt said it was made for a wedding that took place in 1857.

There are two more lyre blocks.

The ship block has tan and brown embroidery for the rigging.

  Two basket blocks.

And several floral blocks.

The center urn is my favorite.  Some of the roses are actually broderie perse, which I don't think I've seen on a Baltimore before.

It is finished off with solid red sawtooth borders and binding.

Stay tuned, because there are many more to come, and I'm saving the best till last!

I want to thank everyone who emailed and commented on my illness.  I appreciate your thoughts and prayers more than I could ever say.  I'm still trying to respond to you personally, but please know how thankful I am.  I am feeling better, and hope to return to work soon.  My surgery is postponed until after the first of the year, as there are some things that need to be resolved first.

Please let me know in the comments if you came to town for the AQS show!