OH, KY, IN, IL

The Midwest Fabric Dating Study Group went a little "crazy" on Saturday, March 6 as we immersed ourselves in Crazy Quilts in Bloomington, Indiana. (all pictures are thumbnails; click on them to see them close up) Sixteen members and three guests congregated at the Monroe County Public Library with several of the group arriving a day earlier for the 13th Annual Indiana Heritage Quilt Show, also in Bloomington. We began at 11:00 a.m. with a slide presentation by Dixie Webb of Tennessee on "Japonisme - The Influence of Japan on Western European Art" and by extension the influence on quiltmaking. We viewed a variety of oriental images (screens, pen and ink scrolls, and paintings) as well as works by several Western artists (Mary Cassatt, Edgar Degas, Claude Monet, Van Gogh) that present the Japanese aesthetic of asymmetry, two dimensional perspective, and emphasis on pattern and line.  

Joanna Evans, who is researching a crazy quilt made by her great-aunt, Sara Frances Cory (Mrs. William S. Mayor), presented a brief overview of crazy quilt documentation, including viewpoints from Ruth Finley, Penny McMorris, Virginia Gunn, and Cindy Brick. After a brief lunch break and dessert that included a crazy quilt carrot cake, we donned white gloves and began to look at the quilts. 

First was the quilt made by Joanna's great aunt, which had won a first place ribbon in the World's Columbian Exhibition in Chicago in 1893, held to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the discovery of America by Columbus. Next, one of our guests, Trudy Schmidt, wowed us with her ever-growing collection of crazy quilts, many of them purchased on e-bay. She is devoted to their care and maintenance and is learning conservation techniques to slow the silk deterioration as much as possible. Most of her acquisitions are in excellent condition and they provided an array of painted, embroidered and fancy-stitched surfaces. 

Of special note was a quilt with embroidered turtles, which she recently learned is a Japanese symbol of good luck. Another of her quilts that sparked comment contained what we called "wooly worms" - eight small caterpillar-like lumps with stripes of red, purple yellow and blue - set in pairs on the quilt's surface. 

Wooly worm quilt

Also unusual was the wool batting, the wide variety of intricate embroidery stitches containing metallic thread and the quilting through all layers. 

Another of her quilts had an intricately embroidered letter "J" and a date of 1889, but no known history. 

One of the quilts (1930s) was made of pieced diamonds assembled in strips with a Nile green backing and several fabrics with polka dots. Still another quilt had no painting or embellishment, but was made of many dressmaker silks in different colorways. In addition to many full-size quilts, Trudy also showed us several smaller pieces - one of which she rescued after finding it stapled to a dealer's ironing board!

One of the most notable quilts of the day was a dated 1883 crazy in extremely fine condition with an "ice cream cone" border. Made in New Jersey, the quilt had a large "R" embroidered in the center for the Rambaut family (of Georgia) and images of lilies, wheat and Kate Greenaway figures. 

Ice Cream Cone Quilt

Another fine example was made in Montgomery County, Indiana (1880-1900) by a world traveling quilter who included a variety of embroidered images of wildlife and plants. This particular quilt was also interesting because of the backing made of a silk flag with 38 appliquéd stars. 

One of the most recent quilts was made in 1976 by Guy E. Hughes (a female) and purchased in Paducah, Kentucky. The quilt was made for the maker's husband and contains many complex images of birds, as well as some of his silk neckties. 

Another extremely fine quilt had an intricate basket of flowers in the center of a 6-pointed star and had been made for a political figure in the owner's family in West Virginia. This quilt had a wide blue velvet border and a braided binding. Another quilt was dated "Merry Christmas 1893" and contained 36 blocks, one which featured a large image of a rooster, the symbol of the Democratic Party before the donkey. Interspersed among the finery were several utility crazies, one of large wool pieces made after the turn of the century with a plaid backing and tied with pink yarn visible only on the back. Another was an all cotton quilt made about 1910 in the crazy-patch style and paper pieced by machine. Most of the quilts were "contained" crazies (made in a recognizable block format), although at least 2 of the quilts were more randomly pieced.

Our next meeting is scheduled for Saturday, May 15 in Cincinnati, Ohio where we will meet with Linda Pumphrey for an in-depth study of batting at the Mountain Mist facility. In July, we will travel to Marion, Indiana to The Quilters' Hall of Fame Celebration 2004 to take part in the Grand Opening of the Marie Webster house (July 17).