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Wednesday, September 09, 2015

Silks, Ribbons, Velvets and the 1887 Jubilee!

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When you are in the presence of  Joe and Mary Koval, you just KNOW that some hidden treasures are going to come out to play!

Be prepared for some outstanding, and definitely some unusual!

This is a quilt that was acquired by Jo and Mary from Sharon Hultgren on one of their trips to Minnesota.

It is an outstanding example of fine needlework using silks, satins, ribons, and velvet to commemorate the 1887 Jubilee –the height of Victorian patchwork!

Unlike the crazy quilts of the era with no rhyme or no reason, this beautiful example shows exquisite workmanship including fussy cutting and pattern play.


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The whole quilt..

Here is this remarkable museum quality piece and we are laying it out in Mary’s dining area – sun streaming through the window on my last morning before heading to Boiling Springs.

I was completely and utterly GOBSMACKED over this piece!

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Oh the discussions we had….the placement of the black velvet triangles are ALWAYS on the lower right of the rectangular blocks.  Was there something significant about that?  We will never know!

And that center medallion.  WOW.  Just wow!

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All kinds of ribbons and organizations.

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Glorious beyond words!

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Floals, and a Duke!

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Some ribbons were trimmed and appliqued down.

I love this crest!

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Love the sweet little girl and her kitty cat ribhbon!

And check out the strips in that center hex…

The hex next to it was cut whole from a ribbon.

Don’t you wish you could just talk to the maker of this fabulous piece of patchwork and find out the story behind it?  How long had she been collecting ribbons of all varieties, and what made her choose this design to set them in?

The one thing I was unable to determine is whether the diamond designs were English Paper Pieced…but being as this is from England, I consider it highly likely.  It would be an easy way to work with shifty satins and silks and have blocks still be so precise.

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Upper edge.

There are a lot of those RACER ribbons in this quilt.

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I am just fascinated by this whole piece!

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What a wonderful commemorative piece!

This quilt has been written about in publications, and I took snap shots of the pages for some more info:

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First page.

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Second page.

As I continue to work on my hexagons as I travel, and hand quilt in the evenings at the cabin when I can…and fit needlework in between all the other chores of the day, I am completely struck with awe at how much time this must have taken the maker.  It is all done by hand. 

Yes, I wish I knew more…and I love the thought that we are all connected by needle and thread.

I have many more antique quilts to share over the next several days.  I can’t do them justice in one slide show.

I’m planning on spending the next week mainly at my computer tackling the 5 remaining book patterns and the front matter – I won’t get it all done in the time I have before I leave for Missouri, but I’m giving it a good shot.

I’m also dealing with a bit of a tummy bug – I was in bed last night by 9pm and slept until 7am – 10 hours!  It’s been hanging on for a few days now and I’m just not feeling “Normal”.  so I think it best to push Quilt-Cam to a later evening.  This week already feels short sheeted with Monday being a holiday.  I’m thinking Monday evening should see me right – give me the week and the weekend to set things in order here and we’ll have a good time then.

Stay tuned and I’ll keep you updated.

Have a great Wednesday, everyone!


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13 comments:

  1. Hope you feel better soon. Hugs.

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  2. WOW, JUST, WOW!!! The ribbons and silks are amazing and I'm glad you got to see it. How could Sharon let it out of her collection? Mary Koval has a treasure in that Quilt. So much History all stitched in those diamonds. Sorry you're still feeling ill. Take good care of yourself.

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  3. Anonymous10:54 AM EDT

    Hope you feel better soon. That has been going around here in Oklahoma as well! Take care and thanks for sharing that gorgeous quilt!
    Chris

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  4. Hope you feel better soon. Take care of yourself.

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  5. Do look after yourself and get rid of that tummy bug quickly.

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  6. Oh Bonnie..we all can wait on you anytime..just get better.
    Gosh, you do find the gorgeous antique Quilts..that one sure is a beauty..I wonder how long it took her to make it too.

    Debra in Ma.

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  7. Take care of YOU ... we'll be here when you're feeling better!! Linda

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  8. Anonymous2:40 PM EDT

    Bonnie, take care and get better. Thanks for everything you do for us!
    Pam M FdL WI :)

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  9. Just love that quilt so much history. And yes I would want to know the quiltmaker and find out how she aquired all those ribbons, did some come from cigar boxes or other means or did she buy them outright. She put a alot of work into the quilt so did the people in the quilt have a special meaning to her, OH... if quilts could only talk.
    Hope you are feeling beter soon Miss Bonnie.

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  10. Anonymous5:00 PM EDT

    omg what a glorious treasure...yes gobsmacked seems a good description! Thank you for sharing your experiences with us... things I'd never get a chance to see... cwhitcher@roadrunner.com... aka Cats Whitcher on FB

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  11. What an amazing quilt! Having just finished a family photo quilt myself, which is very different from this one, I would love to learn more about the maker and the photos and symbols. What is the name of the book you reference in your post?
    Thanks for your post.

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  12. What a fantastic quilt. I loved reading the history that you included. Take care and feel better

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  13. Anonymous10:01 AM EDT

    Is it known how the photos were done? She didn't have the photo transfer techniques that we have available today. Hope you feel better soon!

    Chris
    sewincat2000@yahoo.com

    ReplyDelete

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