Tuesday, May 29, 2018

Back to the Scientific Pinwheels

I'm home for a couple of weeks for some rest and recuperation. At least I thought it would be that. DH mentions the scientific baby quilt several times a week and it is time to finish it up.

Home has a design wall so the first thing was to lay it out again.

Scientific Pinwheel baby quilt in progress

I wasn't happy with the pinwheels as the inner border and thought the quilt could use a quiet area. Then I quickly added more pinwheels in dark to balance the inside and outside. Good enough.

Next was to make some quick Chinese Coins for the inner border. Driven by the design wall, it seemed they should be soft and light. Like this.

Building an inner border of Chinese Coins
for Scientific Pinwheel baby quilt

And just as I was congratulating myself on an "original" design, I read Audrey's post at Quilty Folk. Look. Almost the same quilt. Nothing new under the sun; just variations on a theme.


Enjoy the day, Ann

Tuesday, May 22, 2018

AHIQ #33 - Scale Change

I have not quilted at all this past month. Too busy... but I did write about a family quilt we found at Mother's. We know we are lucky to come from a family of makers. We know that history but we can prove it because she SIGNED HER WORK. Sirena passed away long before any of us were born. There is a faded photograph of her but no evidence my mother met her. If she hadn't signed this quilt no one would know its provenance, its importance to our family history. Take the same care for your family. Sign and date your quilts.

I made a few visits to family to deliver small mementos. Driving in Texas involves hours behind the wheel. In fact, you can tell a Texan because if you ask how far away something is, they answer in hours rather than miles. "Amarillo? Oh, 'bout five hours away."

The scenery may appear desolate to others but I love the undulating plains of north Texas. The photo doesn't do it justice.

View of North Texas plains 
from the Hedley safety rest area

Texas DOT is upgrading the old rest stops with new safety areas combining picnicking, restroom, DOT facilities, and tornado shelters. If a thunderstorm builds while traveling, these are welcome sights indeed.

However, because it's Texas, beware rattlesnakes.

Picnic table at Hedley safety rest area, Texas

The Coca-Cola Building in Dallas has a Foucault pendulum. I enjoyed watching the movement of the pendulum while eating my sandwich last week. If you stay long enough, the pendulum rotates through the circle.

Foucault pendulum,
Coca-Cola Building, Dallas TX

Kaja has all the scoop on Scale Change. Be sure to check out her site and all the links.

Enjoy the day, Ann

InLinkz removed because it was hacked.

Saturday, May 19, 2018

Vintage Flower Garden Quilt

While clearing out the house QS and I rediscovered family quilts. Several of them were made by us - including the quilt that makes the background of my banner and one QS made from Hawaiian fabric she purchased on the Big Island. How timely considering Kilauea is currently erupting.

There was also this Flower Garden quilt,

Flower Garden quilt by Sirena Jenny Salyers, 1935

a classic Depression era scrap quilt made by a master quilter

Detail of Flower Garden quilt
by Sirena Jenny Salyers, 1935

One of the unusual aspects of this quilt is the path of tiny connecting diamonds and triangles in very pale blue. Were they always this light or has the color faded over time?

A pale blue diamond path surrounds
each flower in the Flower Garden quilt.

What a lovely, though time-consuming, addition to this masterpiece.

Best of all, our great grandaunt signed and dated the quilt!

Flower Garden quilt signed and
dated by Sirena Salyers, 1935

This one must have been at our Grandmother's house. I'd never seen in growing up. Most of our other family quilts were used to death over the years. What a better fate than rotting forgotten in a box. So this one will continue to be enjoyed, encouraging future generations to appreciate and love quilts.

Enjoy the day, Ann