Saturday, April 23, 2016

Saturday at the Quilt Museum - Basket Quilts, Part 1


I love basket quilts. I've made myself one and am in the process of designing another.  For the next couple of weeks, let's take a look at some from the 19th century.  They are many and varied!


Red and Green Baskets
New York
1870
76 x 87
Red and Green Baskets New York 1870 76 x 87

This is the first one that caught my eye as I was perusing Pinterest.  I like the way she alternated the tilt of the baskets so the quilt can be oriented in any direction.  Interestingly, there are blue quilting lines still on the top, though it is well quilted and laundered.  I wonder what happened there?

You can see more about it and more pictures here:
http://www.stellarubinantiques.com/items/993119/enlargement993119sra.html

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Unusual Set Baskets
Michigan
1880
Unusual Set Baskets Michigan 1880

This one caught my eye because of the unusual set and cute border treatment.  I don't think I've ever seen a basket quilt done this way.  It appeals to my symmetrical streak!  And her use of color is fun.

This is the source:
http://blog.thequiltcomplex.com/2011/06/more-making-it-her-own.html

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Flower Basket Signature Quilt
Rachel Kingsland Oakes
Abigail Baldwin Oakes
Bloomfield, New Jersey
1864
Flower Basket Signature Quilt Rachel Kingsland Oakes Abigail Baldwin Oakes

"Flower Basket Quilt made in 1864 by Rachel Kingsland Oakes and Abigail Baldwin Oakes of Bloomfield, NJ.  Each block is signed by a member of the Oakes family or by friends and neighbors."

You can see more here:
http://barbaradschaffer.blogspot.com/2011/10/1860s-nj-quilts-on-display.html

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Red Baskets with Flowers
Lucille Meyer
Possibly Highland, Illinois
1880 - 1900
85 x 85
James Collection

Red Baskets with Flowers Lucille Meyer Possibly Highland, Illinois

I love the uniqueness of this one.  The baskets are simple, the appliquéd flowers providing the interest.

You can read more here:

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Red, White & Blue Cherry and Blueberry Baskets
79 x 82
1890
Red White Blue Cherry and Blueberry Baskets 1890

Red White Blue Cherry and Blueberry Baskets 1890 Detail


Red, white and blue are always favorites of mine and I like what the quiltmaker did with this one!

There are more photos here and apparently it is still for sale.  $3600!
https://www.1stdibs.com/furniture/folk-art/quilts/antique-quilt-baskets-cherries-blueberries/id-f_267994/


Next week we'll continue on our tour of Basket Quilts!
Thanks for joining us.

Happy Quilting!


PLEASE NOTE:
- I am not a quilt historian.  I simply enjoy finding interesting quilts and sharing them with you!

- The quilt images on this post were sourced from Pinterest, unless otherwise noted, and are linked to their origin whenever possible.



6 comments:

  1. Interesting - although I'm not particularly *fond* of basket quilts, I did a BOM with the LQS a few years ago when I was learning 'piecing' techniques. I've just recently decided to put it together. each basket is different - and, that, is more desirable (to me). Somehow, the single type of basket repeated seams 'boring' to my eye (and hands).... some of these are 'really different'. They are interesting to look at to note the differences - but, I wouldn't want to make one. :-)

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  2. Gorgeous! you picked some truly lovely basket quilts - love them!

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  3. I absolutely ADORE basket quilts and basket blocks. I've made several, and I own an antique homespun fabric one (literally home spun fabric!) from the late 1800s that is similar to your second one. Mine is simpler, doesn't have the applique, but the rows face each other across the bed like that, and there's a lot of that same cheddar in mine - I think it's the only possibly store-bought fabric in the quilt, including the backing. I'm excited to see what else you come up with!

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  4. Susan, that's so cool! The cheddar in the second one is just so unusual in a basket quilt. What fun that you have one like it! Next week's quilts are fun, too. :-)

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