Quilt Restored (Repaired) & A Request for Advice!
Dec 16th, 2008 by S. Anderson
(Sorry for the quality of the pictures here. It is snowing here!)
I think that I am safe to post this here. I don’t think my brother-in-law, Sam, reads, so I wanted to share the way his quilt turned out. I explained the whole scenario before, but as a brief recap. My husband’s great grandmother, Mawmaw, made this quilt for Sam when he was younger. However, the original black fabric used around the edge of the quilt disintegrated, making the quilt unusable. So, I told him that I would fix it for Christmas this year.
I seriously had such a good time doing this. I love the combination of modern elements with the existing quilt. I know that this isn’t technically a restored quilt because it wasn’t repaired to look exactly like the original, so I guess this is a repair. What I did was add the muslin on the front with the new black strip. Then, I bound it in the same black fabric. Then, I added muslin on the back of the quilt over the old backing. I did a loose hand-quilted stitch around each of the designs on the front through to this new backing.
One of my favorite parts of the whole thing is the fact that I was able to save his grandmother’s original label (it doesn’t say anything now) even though I added the muslin on the back of the quilt.
And, of course, I added my label here as well.
What I would like to do is take some inspiration from the Alabama Stitch Book and cut out the shapes quilted through out of the muslin and fray block the edges, so they won’t fray. That way some of the original machine quilting and the red backing fabric can come through. Otherwise, I think the back is a little boring. What do you guys think? I would love some advice! Has anyone tried this before?
Regardless of what I decide to do, I really love the way the whole thing turned out. I am hoping that it will be modern, and sturdy, enough now that it can be used again. This is the second quilt I have worked with from Mawmaw, and I love that it feels like I am working with her to create something across generations.
I wonder if this is something that I could do for others? I don’t even know if there is a market for something like this, but I think it would be awesome if there was.
I love it! I have a couple of older quilts that I’m contemplating what to do with them. I’ll add you to my life as inspiration.
You did a great job! I love your idea of family connection as you restored this treasured quilt. No advice to give, though. I have never done a restoration. Jen
kudos for such a great job restoring a beloved quilt-I like what you have done so far…can not offer advice as I am not familiar with what you mentioned- but…just wanted to say I am sure he will be thrilled to have this special quilt back -able to be enjoyed.
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