The quilts are made from kilts and coats that were in the families mothers attic. There were kilts, coats & traditional Irish dresses from their childhood. The fabrics, textures and colors were bright and beautiful - a mixture of wools, velvets, cotton (and maybe some mystery blends.)
I decided to add some white flannel to all the quilts - flannel because it is soft and snuggly - but also because it compliments and blends into the texture of the wool kilts and coats. All the squares were cut to 2.5"x2.5" and are 2"x2" finished.
I was very careful when I took the clothes apart to preserve all the details. I took the ribbon off and reattached it to strips of flannel to use as squares. I didn't want to waste any ribbon detail so there is a button hole included in one block.
I left some trim and lace on in some places. I love how you discover something new in every square.
The center of this quilt is a panel from a blue cotton summer dress.
I used most of the rest of this blue cotton dress in the diagonals lines of the triple Irish Chain pattern. I added some matching blue flannel so that I had enough of the same color to complete the pattern.
In the center of each chain is a flower ....
... which is surrounded by tiny pebbles. Would you believe me if I told you each flower took me 1hr to complete?
The border of the quilts is taken from the blue velvet in this dress ....
... I LOVE quilting velvet. It is gorgeous to work with.
The binding is made from an old school uniform.
And I love the back. (I couldn't decide which photo I liked the best ....)
AND just to remind you of what some of the different materials started as ...
Childhood wool coats
13 wool kilts
This is the first of four quilts I completed for the family.
For me there are several really exciting moments in a project like this - being given the work is such a tremendous tremendous honor - the moment you load the finished top on the machine is so exciting - then finishing the quilting is even more exciting - and finally when you hand the materials back to the family as a finished quilt - that feeling is just something else.
5 comments:
This quilt means the world to me. My favorite velvet dress, my grammar school uniform, my funny orange coat - every single square holds a memory for me.
As heartbreaking as it is to say goodbye to my childhood home and all the things it held, I now feel like I have all of the most important memories with me all the time.
The first person I wanted to show this quilt to was my mom. I know she would have absolutely loved these quilts.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
You amaze me with your skills of quilting, Awesome!
Thank you - I was just honored to be part of this amazing project. I love the quilts - I will miss them and all the love & memories they contain. x
What a great job you've done with these fabrics. And I love the way you've tied them together with the flower quilting. Big smiles!
Wow Rachael. Wow. That's a lot of bulk to deal with and you handled it beautifully. What a treasure for the family!
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