Moby needs a bumper sticker that says “I brake for Antique Malls!”
There were a few days on this last long trip through Georgia and into Tennessee that all I needed to do during that day was get from one place to another and be ready to teach the NEXT day. These in between days gave me ample time to find Antique Malls off the beaten path to wander and ponder.
How do these items end up in an antique mall?
Who originally owned and used these items?
Would they be happy that I have loved this item enough to bring it into my home and into my life adding my memories to theirs?
I would like to think so!
When traveling deep down into South Georgia, you can find many quilts that are barely held together by threads. These quilts I refer to as “Hard times” quilts. Quilts that were made with whatever scraps were on hand. Sometimes the workmanship was not the main focus, but color and pattern kept the maker happy while making something WARM for cold winters to come.
I loved this one!
Found in Macon, Georgia.
Butterscotch and blue, plaids and stripes and shirtings!
Is the construction perfect? NO way no how, but I still LOVE this. I think there is one of these in my future from recycled shirts. I just LOVE this one so much.
So Humble.
I looked and looked at this…the center row is blocks cut in half. Instead of making 2 more blocks to make this quilt set 3 X 4, she cut two blocks in half and sewed them in as the center row. Evidently, the bed was only THIS wide!
A closer look.
Something is awry in that top left block! LOL!
Hey, we’ve all had days like this!
I loved having Irene with me on the last leg home from TN!
What a great broken dishes quilt! That yellow looks so happy against that green, doesn’t it?
Of course we had to stop looking at quilts for a bit because Irene found this:
I had to fight her for it!
We drove further down the road singing at the top of our lungs “I’ll meet you half way, it’s better than no way….there must be someway to get it together….” Oh, the memories of a shared childhood! Little did I know at the time that I was loving MY Partridge Family Album as a young girl that Irene was living about 45 minutes away from me doing the same! Fate has brought this friend into my life through quilting and I just love her to bits.
Along with this silliness in the antique mall comes the challenge of finding the WEIRDEST thing. I so love doing that, and Irene has jumped right in. This thing takes the cake:
Just keep swimming, just keep swimming!
I also find vintage Tupperware disturbing. LOL!
There are WALLS of vintage Tupperware to be found in antique malls across America, still very capable of producing that satisfactory “burp and seal” sound. This stuff will NEVER be biodegradable! I have to admit, I still have some here at home received as wedding presents 35 years ago. And I crack up when I see the 20-somethings thinking it’s really cool and stocking up on it. That goes for Pyrex bowl sets too. Had those, ditched them because they were too heavy, and now the set is worth over $100!
And the ugliest quilt award goes to…
Stuffed log cabin blocks, size Double D!
Shaking my head! LOL!
Leaving Knoxville and cabin bound!
We really did have a great day of it, and stopping here and there to browse broke up the very long journey home to the cabin and we were able to sing Partridge Family songs and laugh about the oddities we saw all the way!
You’ll find all of the goodies from this trip to GA and TN in the slide show below. Enjoy! Oh, there are some real beauties, machines included. Watch it to the end. Remember you can use the pause button to see anything you want to spend more time on.
Stuff from home:
Gifties in the mail!
I came home to a box of feed sacks from Linda, a card for Sadie from furry pals Dale & Tank! So sweet! Sadie thanks them both, and she is doing much much better. Not shown: A HUGE Lambchop stuffed lamb toy from Robin for Sadie as well! Thank You!
The other fabric bundle and the New Simplicity Needle Case is a MYSTERY. The box just said “Scrap Quilter”. Dear Scrap Quilter, how can I ever thank you for this box?!
Wooden tubes with needles inside!
The holes that are empty contained “normal” sizes of needles, which means the ones present are the HARD TO FIND sizes! These are the ones I’m looking for! I am so thrilled with this. Thank you so very much!
Today Irene and I are working on a project together, a secret behind the scenes. We are packing up our stuff and preparing for our flights tomorrow morning. We check in to the airport in Greensboro at 4:30am. Yikes. But we are so excited! If you are on the Alaskan Cruise with us, I can’t wait to meet you on the ship!
Quiltville Quote of the Day!
Vintage Rocky Road to Kansas string quilt found in Kansas!
People will always remember how we made them feel! Happiness is contagious, spread it around!
I had that album!
ReplyDeleteAnd love the butterscotch nine patch...adding that one to the list
oh what a great post !
ReplyDeleteugh, 4:30 a.m. checkin ..... you have so much energy, it's amazing.
Keep on going, Bonnie.
Bonnie's Blog with my first (and maybe second!) cup of coffee every morning - best way to start my day! Thanks sew much! Carol
ReplyDeleteSafe travels tomorrow - we'll see you on the ship on Friday!
ReplyDeleteGlad Sadie got her snuggle buddy. I hope it wasn't too huge and that she liked it. You can share if you want.
ReplyDeleteRobin Wood. Knoxville, Tennessee
Glad Sadie got her snuggle buddy. I hope it wasn't too huge and that she liked it. You can share if you want.
ReplyDeleteRobin Wood. Knoxville, Tennessee
You do find some of the prettiest old quilts and some of the oddest stuff on your stops at antique malls! Several of those quilts would have TEMPTED me, I'd probably have broken the bank buying some. And the Tupperware! I saw some pieced on those shelves that would have come home with me if they were in better shape than what I've got. Bon Voyage! Enjoy the cruise.
ReplyDeleteI, too, love that 1/2 blocks down the middle find from the antique store. What if that upper left corner square was part of an Underground Railroad message? I am absolutely enthralled with that whole thing! Suzanne
ReplyDeleteLove hearing about your antique mall adventures! Interesting stuff . I need to plan better next trip through TN!
ReplyDeleteDear Bonnie, I just want to say THANK YOU for the antique quilt slide show. It was absolutely wonderful, and so kind of you to do for us.
ReplyDeleteHave a good trip!
I just love hearing about your adventures! Can you imagine how much BPA is in that Tupperware? Is that where the big rise in cancer is coming from? The quilt slideshow is awesome! Thank you for taking the time to put it together for us. Enjoy Alaska!! My favorite state so far😄 Can you keep your eye out for nesting dolls for me please? Just let me know where you saw them and I'll contact them directly if you don't mind.
ReplyDeleteThanks,
Katy Lillie
What fabulous quilt finds! They really do transport us to "I wonder..." land. I never thought of the Underground Railroad connection. Maybe?
ReplyDeleteWhile we were in Smyrna, Rick went to the Stone River Battlefield. He loved it and relayed interesting facts and stories to me.
There were a lot of young women who dressed as boys so they could help the cause. A man who was carrying the flag into battle was injured and passed the flag on to the next person and when that person was injured they passed it on. So it went. At the end of the battle the flag was in the hands of a young boy (who was really a young woman). She knew that the flag would be destroyed by the Union Soldiers so she hid it and took it home with her. The young woman, being a wise and gifted woman, cut the flag up and pieced it into a quilt. It is now in a museum. I need to find out more about this brave and gifted woman.
I know you all will have a wonderful Cruise. Bon Voyage to all the traveling Quiltvillians!
Absolutely love that Butterscotch and Blue quilt. You'll have to include that in a future book or quilt-along! Can't wait to see your version.
ReplyDelete