Red and Blue Flannel quilt - More Photos

Today, I thought that I would post some more photos of the red and blue flannel quilt - to show the quilting designs and detail more clearly. This is a wonderful quilt, and clearly has never been used. You can see that the quilting is simple but effective - a central sunburst is surrounded by a spiral scroll and corner fans. Then there are borders of church windows infilled with chevrons and spirals. At the outer edge is a simple twist.

Another look at the church windows and the corner fan.

The colours are a bright red (which doesn't photograph as well) and a royal blue. The quilting thread is blue - so the blue must have been the right side - but was it quilted from this side (hard on the eyes!) ? Just went to have a look - its hard to tell, but it looks as if the quilting was done with navy thread from the red side.

This is a heavy quilt - I would guess that there is no filling? The two woollen fabrics would be quite heavy in their own right.

A detail of one corner, and the simple twist used there.

Another detail of the spiral infill .

Deatil of the central "coin".

The two fabrics contrast well....

A close up of the flannel fabric - it is woven , but has a teased, brushed surface - it is not a felted fabric.

Red and Blue Flannel Quilt

Here is a flannel quilt that I bought using Carol's money as I was keen to have a flannel quilt. As no doubt you have guessed from the famous gate, it was bought from Jen Jones. The size is 216 cm x 167 cm - that is, 85 by 66 inches. These flannel quilts are rare now as few have survived - the woollen cloth is prey to moths. I assiduously use modern moth proofing in my storage room - the smell is not as bad as the old fashioned moth balls that was familiar when I was growing up....

I have traced the patterns on this quilt and the stitching is very neatly and precisely done - the work of a professional quilter. The patterns include wonderful church windows, fans, spirals, twists and a central medallion. the colours are a bright royal blue and a bright red.

A very heavy quilt. It was made about 1880 in the Swansea valleys, probably near Aberdare where a great many quilters lived.

This flannel cloth was formerly a common product of many Welsh mills, but is now, to my knowledge, made only at one factory - the Welsh Wool Museum, the former Cambrian Mills in the village of Dre-fach, Felindre in the Teifi Valley. A part of the Museum of Wales, the mill demonstrates the process from "fleece to fabric".

In 2007, the remote location led to the Museum having the dubious distinction of being Britain's least popular attraction with just over 17,000 visitors. I have not visited and am certainly looking forward to my visit!

You may have seen DeAnne Hartwell's quilts at the Festival of Quilts last summer. DeAnne, who lives near Cardiff,uses woollen fabrics sourced from the Museum in many of her quilts. Jen Jones also buy the fabrics to send to Ethiopia where it is used to make modern flannel quilts in the Welsh style.

A beautiful quilt - it was exhibited at the Quilt Associations summer exhibition in the Minerva Centre in 2009.