Wednesday, September 18, 2019

GSQ Friendship Quilt

Monday night was the first meeting of our local guild, Garden State Quilters. What a lovely surprise it was to see a Friendship Quilt that was made by members in 1988.  


Every year one of the anticipated group projects was to make a Friendship Quilt and this one was called "My Favorite Things." The completed quilt has 94 blocks and is huge. Postcards were sold as fundraisers.


A favorite book at the time was Treasury of American Quilts by Cyril Nelson and Carter Houck. 

  
This c. 1860 Album Basket was the inspiration for the friendship quilt. It was pieced and appliqued and made in PA. 


We were encouraged to design our favorite things to place in the basket. The guild provided instructions and a 10" piece of muslin. Each person had to provide dark brown fabric for the basket and scraps for the applique.

  
I knew I had made a block but could never remember what I put in my basket. When Rachel found it I had to ask her what she thought it was, lol! Well, it's a cornucopia of leaves. Not surprising as I still applique leaves on my quilts :)


Rachel didn't remember making a block but there it was--apples! Perhaps it was because her kids were little and made reference to an apple for the teacher.


Rita added fruit in colors that she still uses today. 


The blocks were so much fun to look at and had the initials of the makers embroidered on each one.


I thought this one was charming.

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A fun take on hopscotch, don't you think? I was on my early morning walk the other day when I noticed this had just been painted on the blacktop at the elementary school where my kids went many years ago. 

And the next thing you know a FOX came out of nowhere right in front of me on the road. Not again!! What is it with me?? I walked over to the delivery/worker guys at the school and stayed with them for about 10 minutes until one of them got in his car and blew the horn to scare it away. 

 
A Labor Day weekend sunset taken from our yard down near the river :)

Have a great week!




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Copyright 2019, Barbara Schaffer


 

8 comments:

  1. I love the different baskets---a great idea! Signature quilts are fascinating!

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    1. So glad you stopped by. That friendship quilt is really charming!

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  2. How sweet and charming is that friendship quilt! who owns it? what cute details. Aren't you glad that you initialled the blocks? ha ha
    cute hopscotch :)
    I had a dream about a fox last night. Maybe it is your spirit animal.
    wonderful photo, reminds me of childhood's simple pleasures

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  3. Always so much fun to revisit a quilt made by guild friends...lovely and personalized blocks in your quilt but I am thinking the memories of all the friendships is the treasure. Love that book too - it is a classic...sometimes I just pull it off the shelf and lose myself in its pages for a while.

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  4. What a lovely personal quilt!!
    The hopscotch is so sweet!! I played it a lot as a kid.

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  5. Interesting to see all the different designs used with each basket. A beauty!

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  6. What a treasure that beautiful friendship quilt is! ---"Love"

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  7. What a wonderful quilt! Isn't it fun to revisit something you made so long ago. I love seeing what you used for fabrics in the limited choices we had in those days. What a treasure! Maybe nature is just trying to tell you that you are a "fox"!

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