Capital Region Quilt Study Group 

The pictures below are all thumbnails.  Click on them to see them close up..

Our theme today was yellow and orange.   The picture to the left shows all the quilts laid out on a table before we held them up and discussed them individually.  Several members had done some research before the meeting and brought their notes, which we found very helpful.  Deb had found that chrome yellow (also called cheddar) was available in Europe by 1797 and in America by the 1830's, commercially by 1840.  It was possible to home dye antimony orange and chrome orange as early as 1820 but it was toxic as it used the element chromium.  The mordant might be a metallic oxide such as lead chromate, easily available in the local drugstore next to the arsenic and the cocaine. Chrome orange is colorfast on cotton but not on wool, and may crock (rub off) on nearby fabric.  Dee mentioned that in the 1890's some quilters would deliberately insert a circle of cheddar in their quilts to represent their support for the gold standard. 

One of the oldest quilts we saw	had some interesting restoration done to it	Another really old piece	click on the thumbnail to see the intricate quilting	A family piece that predates Red Cross Quilts
The fugitive green helps date this to	pre Civil War.  Note the Lafayette blue in this block	Album block quilt	with shamrocks in the quilting	Chrome yellow
The beauty of this quilt wasn't seen until we held it up	Do you suppose those blues are fugitive greens?	A small crib quilt	closeup of the block showing the cats in the conversational print	classic quilting bee quilt - the lines aren't straight and they don't match up

We spent a lot of time examining this quilt.  It has some wonderful French and English fabrics.  It is quilted over a heavy cotton batting with a knife edge finish.  There are divided hearts in the quilting of the plain blocks, dropped diamonds elsewhere.  Most of the plaids are printed, but we did find one woven and some madrids.  Note the missed register on the block printed red and yellow block, and the couple in the pillar print. This quilt was signed. 

Crib quilt	A quilt inside!		butterscotch
				modern blocks

Story Quilts:

This Boston Commons quilt was given to a member in 1968, as she prepared to leave the Barberville KY area where her husband had been studying at Union college for the previous two  years.  It was made by Mrs. Hinkle from 1950's and 1960's fabrics.  It was the tradition in this part of Kentucky to give quilts as gifts.

This quilt was given to a member by a family descendent who was able to confirm the story of how it was made.  Seems there was a blizzard February 17 - 22, 1902, which left the Miller family housebound.  Mrs Miller got tired of her two daughters whining, so she sent them to the attic to gather scraps and they spent the entire time piecing this top.  Click on the thumbnail  to the right to see the signature block.

Three members had attended the estate sale of Anna Call of Warnerville. We all brought our treasures and were able to compare the fabrics and construction details.  One quilt top still  had the original needle and thread, along with a note saying "pieced the empty spool winter 1890" (click on the thumbnail to the right)

Our next meeting will be held April 22.  The topic will be "unusual construction methods" (such as a potholder quilt, or quilt-as-you-go) or pink.