Linen Union Quilt - Art Nouveau

Here is a quilt made in about 1900-1910. It is made from furnishing offcuts in Linen Union (i.e. a cotton linen mix). The use of black fabrics in quilts is quite common in quilts of this date, and there do seem to be a lot of this particular pattern about. Black was evidently a fashionable colour at that time.


The fabrics are various floral furnishing fabrics, giving a cheerful appearance. It is quite a heavy quilt - and large, about 76 inches square.


The centre is a diamond in a square pattern. The whole is machine quilted in white thread.

The reverse of the quilt shows a similar pattern.

We can tell that this is the reverse as the quilting follows the front side of the quilt!

In one spot there is a tear, and we can see that the filling is a piece of light coloured woollen fabric (not an old blanket).

Some of the black fabric is ribbed - similar to the white dimity seen in other quilts - was dimity made in black? Dimity was used for womens' and childrens' clothes, also underclothes. Perhaps black was used for mourning clothes? or perhaps it was a practical colour to hide any smudges....

As is common with these scrap quilts, bolt ends have been used, and one can see lettering still remaining.

Another look at the floral fabrics used in this quilt. Originally bought at an auction house in Watlington - Jones & Jacob.

Welsh Quilt with Art Deco Fabric

Here is a Welsh quilt in Art Deco fabric - the background is a bronze/salmon colour and it is covered with lively roses and sprays of flowers.

It never ceases to amaze me that each Welsh quilt can be quilted in such an individual style - no two seem to be the same. This quilt is no exception - the quilt is covered with spirals with a chevron border, unlike any of my other quilts. And, the corners have large "Baptist fans".

A closer look at the colourful fabric, which is the same on both sides.You can also see the chevron or zigzag pattern on the border. This quilt dates from the 1920's or 30's and measures 75 by 72 inches. It is a very heavy quilt (it weighs nearly 3.5 kg) and probably has an old woolen blanket inside - perfect for chilly winter nights.

The surface is covered with spirals densely quilted. A good example of what happens when some areas are quilted and other areas are not - the unquilted areas puff up a bit. And can you see that the maker has not bothered to match up the motifs on the lengths of fabric? This is the usual case - Welsh quilters were very frugal and could not afford to buy the extra cloth that would have been required to match up the motifs. This is sometimes not so obvious with smaller patterns but can be very obvious when fabrics with the largest patterns are used in a quilt.

The corners are neatly finished by hand in the usual Welsh style.
Here you can see the fan or elbow quilting in the corner.

This is the top side of the quilt as it went in the frame and seems well done. You can see that the spirals are not marked but just freehand sewn in the frame.

But the reverse or underside has some very odd stitching - perhaps it was made very quickly or by an inexperienced quilter?

Another view of the stitching on the underside of the quilt.

No provenance on this quilt. Other colourways of this fabric have ben seen in other quilts.

Green and Russet Welsh Quilt

Here is a nice Welsh quilt that dates from about 1900.No provenance for this quilt, as it was bought at auction. The size is 80 x 87 inches. The stitching is of good quality but a bit difficult to see due to the lively print fabrics, which are in a matching russet print on the front and a green print on the back. The filling is carded wool, and the thread used is a dark pink to match the front fabric.

You can see that the Welsh format is followed with a central medallion surrounded by corner fans and further borders.

The central medallion is a star surrounded by leaves and a border of stars, with infill and fans in the central field.

Here is the russet side in a matching print - art deco with bows and garlands of pink roses and blue forget-me-nots.

The corners repeat the leaf motif and there are more stars in the outer borders.

There is a border with stars surrounded by lined squares - simple but effective.

Another view of the centre with its leaves and border of stars.

Even though it was undoubtedly a special quilt, it is interesting to see that the quilter had to piece one part of the back to make it just large enough - haven't we all had to do this at one time or another?

The edges are neatly hand sewn in the Welsh manner.