Tuesday, November 1, 2016

My Grandmother's Hexagon Quilt

I recently learned from my 95-year-old aunt that my grandmother was a quilter.  The only time I ever saw her quilt was when she helped my mother with two Dresden Plate quilts Mom made for my sister and me.  My aunt said Gramma used to quilt with other women at church when my aunt was a child.

My daughter and I drove several hours to visit my aunt last week.  She lives in an apartment in a senior care center.  She's mostly independent but requires some help.  After we ate lunch with her she asked if we'd like to see the rest of her apartment. 

In the bedroom was this amazing quilt.  It lit up the room!


When I asked about it my aunt said her mother--my grandmother--had made it.

I'm not a big fan of hexagons but I have to say this quilt took my heart.  The symmetry, the colors, the brightness of it, and all those wonderful print fabrics.


The hexagons were very small, between a half and 3/4 of an inch across.  I didn't have my tape measure but they were smaller than the length of my first knuckle.


There must be thousands of hexagons in this quilt.  Hours and hours of cutting and stitching, not to mention the time to hand quilt.




I love that 1940s green.  I wish I could find it these days.


Is this quilt pattern called "Grandmother's Garden" or am I thinking of a different pattern?


I think the only fabrics that were used more than once were the solids.  (Of course, I didn't examine every single block, but from the ones I looked at, each was different.  Do you suppose she traded fabric with friends?)


I would like to have photographed every block and examine the quilt really closely but it was much more important that I spend time with my aunt.  We had a great visit. 

There's something special about touching a quilt made by an ancestor.

--Nancy.
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22 comments:

  1. Wow! What a treasure! I can't imagine the hours that went in to that. It really does have its own glow, doesn't it? Just beautiful, Nancy!

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    1. Yes, it's gorgeous, Janet. I imagine my grandmother sitting and stitching in the evenings after the rest of her work was done. It's a treasure I wish I could bring it home. (It's the selfish descendant in me.)

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  2. It's a beautiful quilt, well made, well loved and well cared for. You are right. Articles from the hands of a loving ancestor are very special. Does this quilt have a label?
    Neame

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    1. I didn't think to ask about a label while I was there but I doubt it has one, Neame. I'll have to ask my aunt. The quilt has been well-cared for, but it's also been well-used and is getting thread-bare in places. My aunt mentioned using fray-check on it. Agh! I hope she doesn't.

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  3. What a wonderful family treasure. I think you are right that pattern is called Grandmother's Garden.

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    1. My cousin, my aunt's son, will inherit the quilt. I hope he takes care of it! Thanks for identifying the pattern, Allison.

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  4. A beautiful quilt, and so very precious!

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    1. Thanks, Linda. I know quilts don't last forever, and I know not everyone who inherits quilt will vole and care for it, but I hope this quilt has many more years, even if not in active use.

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  5. What a beauty!!! A real treasure. So glad you got to see it....and your aunt.

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    1. Hi, Jennie. I was very pleased to be able to visit with my aunt and surprised to see the quilt. It was just fun to learn that bit of history about my grandmother.

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  6. Absolutely beautiful! You are right, it lights up the room!

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  7. Yes, it is a grandmother's flower garden. My sister has the one my grandmother made. I love how she made rows of colors, what a treasure!

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    1. Missy, do you have another quilt your grandmother made (because your sister has the other one)? I hope so. As far as I know this is the only surviving quilt my grandmother made but I have some of her embroidered pieces.

      I like the rows of colors, too. It gives it a medallion effect.

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  8. That's so pretty! It's even prettier than the antique one my husband bought for me at a furniture shop - they didn't know what they had, but my quilt-educated husband did! That one's all lavenders, but yours is so pretty in the multiple colors moving out from the center. It's possible she traded with friends, but one thing people also did then was buy cutaways from garment manufacturers. She might have done both. Someone who knows textiles could tell if she used flour sacks, too. A lot of women saved those and made all kinds of things. Does your aunt remember wearing clothing made from them? If so, that could be where some of her scraps originated. I had a friend who remembered her mother talking about wearing underwear made from those pretty floral flour sack prints - and she said they scratched until they'd been washed a lot! LOL Thank you so much for sharing this beautiful quilt with us.

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    1. You educated your husband well, Susan, if he knew to buy you that quilt!

      My aunt did mention wearing clothing made from feedsacks though she assured me that neither her mother nor grandmother (who lived nearby) ever had chickens or animals of any kind, so I don't know where she would have gotten the feedsacks. She may have bought cutaways but unless they were available by mail order I don't know where she would have gotten them. She lived in a tiny village in northern Ohio where there were not fabric mills or clothing manufacturers.

      I can imagine the feedsack clothing being a little stiff at first. Imagine being presented with a beautiful new dress that was scratchy and uncomfortable to wear! It would take a bit of work to be grateful for it, I suppose.

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  9. P. S. If you decide you want to try your hand at making one, the 3/4" size is very traditional, the papers aren't terribly expensive, and I'd be happy to send you some reproduction 30s print scraps. =)

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    1. I'm chuckling, Susan, because I have a hard time refusing fabric, but when I think about those tiny little hexagons.... Thank you for offering. Let me think about it and I'll get back to you.

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  10. Time with your daughter, your aunt, discovering that your grandmother was a quilter, and that amazing quilt! What a treasure filled day! I can only imagine the added connection you must feel with your grandmother now when you sit down to quilt.

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    1. Hi, Karin. It was a wonderful day! The house where I grew up was just several houses away from my grandmother's and I spent a lot of time at her house. It still surprises me that I didn't know she quilted. In fact, I don't remember seeing quilts around her house.... But now, yes, there is that connection know that we both quilt.

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  11. That is a gorgeous quilt! Thanks for sharing!

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    1. Thank you for visiting and taking the time to leave a comment, Loretta.

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