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Saturday, September 19, 2015

A Missouri Antiquing Leg Stretch!

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Long road trips need rest breaks.

And it is even better if there is a sign for an antique mall right on the interstate, just take the next exit and turn Left!

I made a stop in Warrenton on my way from St Louis to Kirksville on Wednesday – and it was just the leg stretch I needed!

Why stop at an interstate rest area when you can stop at an antique mall instead?

Antique malls, like yard sales are always a crap shoot.

There is no way to know if there is “good stuff” in there, or if it is going to resemble a 3 day old yard sale with all the good stuff picked over and gone.

I am always on the look out for sewing notions, linens, funky kitchen items, quilts, sewing machines, and the rare oddity!

The Antique Barn in Warrenton gave me a good  half hour of browsing pleasure before I forced myself back on the road to make it to Kirksville to meet the guild girls by dinner time.

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Hen & Chicks quilt!

Kings Daughters, 1936

I love how that one yellow block just shines forth!  This quilt was nicely made, with no binding – the edge of the quilt is faced and turned to the back and stitched down.

I didn’t expect the kind of price I found on it though…$329.00!!

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But photos are free!

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Hello, ladies!

I traced each embroidered signature with a finger and noted each name.  Who were these girls?  Did they quilt often together?  Was this a fund raiser?

And I started to think about the demise of penmanship and the fact that cursive writing is no longer taught in schools.  Our individuality is being  sterilized into printing and identical computer fonts.  SAD!

**Note to self** I need to WRITE more letters..by hand.  I’m so sad that emails are quickly written and deleted…..what will be left to pass down?

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Shredded crazy quilt.

This beauty was once a REAL stunner.  This quilter liked to mix traditional patchwork units into her crazy patchwork ---and though most of the silk patches are now crumbling, her fine embroidery skills remain:

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Such fine stitching!

She had more than a dozen different stitches used just in this camera view alone.  She was a skilled needlewoman….and I traced HER stitches with my fingers, wondering who she was, saying hello, and moving on.

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Bow Wow!

Now this is fun!

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1950s doggie quilt.

I’ve seen donkey blocks, I’ve seen elephant blocks – I have never seen a doggy block like this!  And the fabrics are so 19950s.

some grandma probably made this for a beloved grand child.  It’s not very big…snuggle size maybe.

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Crazy fabrics!

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Middle row.

Screaming yellow sashings and giant pink cornerstones – grand daughter maybe??

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Of course there were treadles!

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This one is up for grabs…$47.00?!

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Standard!

Okay, this machine looks a bit rough….it’s had a hard life, and someone loved it enough to sew all of the decals off!  The best news is…the hand wheel, though a bit rusty looking turns freely.  Someone please go adopt this little girl, she needs a happy place to continue sewing up a storm!

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Who knows what THIS is?!

This is the “weirdest find of the day”.  Remember drive in movies?  This is a set of speakers from a drive in!  Like….what are we supposed to do with this?  LOL!  Still – it was fun remembering how my folks used to pile us 3 kids in the back of the volvo in our jammies to go see a family show.

A large brown paper grocery sack would be full of fresh buttery popcorn, mom always saying that homemade was better than theater popcorn any day.  At that time I didn’t realize just how frugal they were having to be.  And it WAS the best popcorn, hands down!

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And THIS is coming home!

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NO VENT HOLES!

I wasn’t extravagant.  I didn’t buy a machine.  This iron was $10.00 and it will make a fun display piece if indeed it doesn’t work. 

And the best part?  It fits in my suitcase!

As this posts I am on my way to Marshall --  looking forward to meeting the quilters there and having some fun over the next few days!

Enjoy your evening, everyone!


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16 comments:

  1. I have a Standard Treadle Machine just like the one pictured, although mine is in better shape. I learned to sew on it when I was 6 years old. It was my Grandmother's. I also have an iron like the one pictured. Mine is a GE. I got it when I went to college in 1965. I still use it as it is the best iron I've ever had! Great finds!

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  2. Love the iron Bonnie, perfect! Wish you could find they were available now. Also really like the hens and chicks quilt. When I sew on my old machines I often wonder what it made, how long she saved to purchase it etc. And yes the written word is almost lost. Maybe we should start signing our quilts and embroidering the signature.

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  3. Oh, Bonnie, you brought back memories. My parents loaded up the five of use for drive-in movies with, yep, a large brown-paper grocery bag, grease stained with the butter on the popcorn. AND Kool-Aid in a red plaid gallon jug with pump on top to serve into little waxed-paper Dixie cups. Such a fun memory.

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  4. The Vermont Country Store has the old fashioned heavy iron with no holes, it's not expensive, and perfect for quilters! Carol

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  5. I have an iron just like that. My mom had one but it sold in the estate auction. I so regret not getting it. I used to iron my dads hankies when I was little. I did find one at an thrift store and it came home with me. I love reading about your excursions...thanks for sharing them with us!

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  6. You say it so wonderfully! Antique Malls just off the interstate are a crap shoot! You never know if you will find something wonderful or someones junk! The doggie quilt was fun

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  7. I'm so curious about the King's Daughters quilt. I live in Ashland, KY. We have a King's Daughters Medical Center here that was actually started by a group of ladies. I'm thinking it was in the late 1800s or early 1900. I'm wondering if that quilt was from here. Probably not, but I am certainly curious!!

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  8. Wonderful idea to sample a quilt from differrent persons,
    hugs Olga

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  9. Love the iron! I have a couple of those...Ebay $5.
    Yes, I very much agree with you about the cursive writing..such a shame..I don't really write letters anymore, but I do send quite a few cards always hand written sentiment inside..I'm one of those sentimental people who saved every card I ever received..keep them in a big box.
    Debra in Ma.

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  10. I know what you mean about penmanship. I'm one of the only ones left in my family that still WRITES letters! (One of my aunts actually wrote me back!!) Everyone else either e-mails, texts, or Facebooks. It would be nice if you wrote to someone ... even if it is your husband or sons!! (Won't they be surprised?!!) I take my writing pad with me everywhere I go. I always have "wait times" that I use to write!! Recently, I've also enclosed pictures of my quilting projects so they can see what I'm talking about in the letter!! Fun!! Joanne D. in Charleston, SC.

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  11. You struck the memory box with me with the visits to the drive-in with the brown paper bag filled with homemade popcorn. Such wonderful memories. Sometimes, it was $1 a carload.

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  12. Anonymous6:54 PM EDT

    I had to do a double take on the iron! I bet I know the story, or at least close to it....because I acquired one very similar and with a new cord also! Hope yours works as well as mine. Anyway...maybe yours ended up in an antique store because (1) the original owner became elderly and no longer did ironing, (2) the "children," probably young adults or maybe grandkids, grown but wondered why no stream, and "who irons clothes anymore anyway." LOL Mine is a GE flat iron, and it presses like a dream, and has a nice point in front for small areas. I love this iron so much, I used to take it to classes I taught, and my students (all over a certain age) all wanted to buy it. No way, this iron is a keeper in my sewing room. I do worry that my kids/grandkids will toss it when I'm gone for the reasons above. LOL Thought I'd share that story with you, and hope you love the iron and it works like a charm for you! :o) Melanie jimmel37@frontiernet.net
    PS: I was thinking of sending you a pic but thought that's going overboard. LOL

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  13. I attended your classes in kirksville, mo. It was an opportunity of a lifetime. Thanks again!
    Sharon h

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  14. I bought a set of signature blocks in Brenham, Texas. A couple years later, a woman spoke at my guild in Colorado about a signature quilt from my area. She was into genealogy and tracked down the women and their descendants. I contacted her and she found all but one woman on my list...but only one had a living relative. It was so cool.

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  15. You sure find some great places sto stop and love that you post some of your pictures.
    Am going to TX but our 2 Wesries ( Weert highland white Terriers ) are coming with us.
    Hope I can talk my husband to stop at some great places Roo. Sure hope so.
    That doggie quilt sure is cute but am not fond of THE bottom feet lol.
    Thanks for sharing your trips with us and your finds.
    Happy Quilting, Yoka Bazilewic

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  16. Your quilts are just beautiful

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