Friday, August 9, 2013

The Redo is Done

I finished reassembling the quilt top I was remaking.  Whee!

Doesn't she look pretty dancing in the breeze?  Footloose and fancy free!  (I'm going to have to Google the origin of that phrase, word nerd that I am...)

I am so happy that I went ahead with redoing my grandmother's quilt top rather than stuffing it back in the tote.  If you missed the other posts about this quilt top, including block by block comparisons, you can find them here, here, here, here, and here.

The four-lily block in Grandma's quilt was the inspiration for the Thoroughly Modern Lily quilt pattern.

Here's the original quilt top, made by my grandmother in the late 1960s or early 1970s:

And the updated version:


Another before and after comparison:

Before

After
The original quilt top would not have withstood quilting or use in its condition.  There was some bleeding of the green fabric dye into the white parts, and other problems with most of the solid colored parts of the old quilt.  However, all the prints used in the lily shapes within the blocks were in good condition.  The vintage fabrics were like a little time capsule.

I took each block apart and rebuilt it, using stash or scrap fabric in place of the solid colored cross pieces.

Grandma had used a lot of red, in seven of the block centers, which I replaced with various other colors instead.  I put some of the red back in via the cornerstones in the sashing.


The multicolored sashing/border print seems to tie it all together.

Special thanks to Quilt Diva Julie for the inspiration and encouragement.  Her remake of "Shirley's Journey" got me thinking of the possibilities.  Also thanks to Elizabeth for sending me a bit from her stash to finish the last block.  Quilting friends rock!

Now it's time to whoop it up with Sarah and the gang at Confessions of a Fabric Addict!

16 comments:

Kevin the Quilter said...

What a wonderful finish for you on so many different levels! It looks AMAZEBALLS! How cool!

Quiltdivajulie said...

I love the new flimsy!

And I'm so glad there are others out there who "get" my passion for the process of rescuing legacy quilts!

I'm pretty sure your grandmother would be thrilled with your efforts!

Anonymous said...

I'm doing a 'happy dance' for you. I know how special this project has meant and the link across the generations! Looks good and I know your grandmother is smiling!

Elizabeth said...

I really love how this quilt rescue turned out! You did a beautiful job. I love how you incorporated new fabrics in with the old. What a fun project!

xo -E

P.S. Glad that fabric worked!

jan said...

I love how you did this! It looks wonderful and I am sure your grandmother would be proud!
Visisting from can i get A Whoop Whoop?
xo jan@sewandsowfarm
I am a new follower :)

Laura said...

Both quilts are beautiful! You did a nice job on the curved piecing too.

Shay said...

There just aren't enough adjectives available for me to tell you how much I love this quilt and what you've done with it. It's amazing, fabulous and terrific all rolled into one!

MomWaldsPlace said...

"Bravo, Bravo!" (cue applause)

Michelle said...

Totally awesome! Very much worth the effort. Those vintage fabrics that remain or so cool! And your choice of sashing is perfect. When you showcased in your last blog, I really couldn't imagine, but I love it!

I can't believe how different the quilt looks in scrappy for, from the one you designed. That is one of the fun things about quilting. :)

Way to go!

Anonymous said...

Gorgeous Gorgeous Gorgeous. I love this quilt and the way you have broken up the block with sashing. Thanks for sharing Marie (mlismore@optusnet.com.au)

Sarah Craig said...

Wow, P., that turned out even better than I thought it would! Love the sashing - it really does pull it all together! Whoop whoop for a fabulous finish!!

Karen said...

Gah! I can't take it! So incredibly amazing! I love all of it so much :)

Dina said...

I love how your make-over turned out. I've worked on a few pieces that my mom started (nothing as complicated as the lilies) and I loved how I felt like I was working with my mom on them. It was a great feeling, and I hope you got some of that while you were working on this, too!

Lorna McMahon said...

You certainly do deserve a Whoop! Whoop! I LOVE that sashing! It just ties it all together. Your Grandma would be proud of the beauty you have restored to this fabulous quilt top! Congrats!

Vicki @ DottyJane said...

It's beautiful! I have an old quilt from my grandmother that I had never considered redoing until now. Thanks for the inspiration!

Lynette said...

Hey, wow! That looks great. Isn't it interesting how the solids deteriorated while the prints held up? I wonder why.