I love garage sales, my husband and I usually went every Friday of "The season." I haven't been doing as much of it lately, but I did stumble on one late in the day, while out doing other errands. Whoopeee! I scored Vintage blocks and a vintage quilt top. I can't believe the antique dealers did not get them, they are like vultures at a garage sale. Most of the ones I get are from the 1920-1940 era but some are older. I won't pay $5 a block, which is what most antique dealers want for a single block, or even if it is a set of blocks 20 x 5 = too much money. I got a box of miscellaneous blocks for $10 yea. What I liked about this purchase was that there are sets of blocks, not enough to make a quilt, but I had been planning a row by row quilt, so it got me started on that. Some were 5 or 8 blocks, some just singles, in smaller 6" or 8" block sizes.
I got out some other boxes I had of vintage blocks and started to put them together in rows. The rows are about 60" wide, I'll get a finished size when I get all the rows made, and then finish off each by adding extra blocks, 1/2 blocks or just filler fabrics or sashing between blocks. The "improved 9 patch" blocks in the first picture had been removed from their white backing that was shredding, so I am hand appliqueing them to a muslin backing. Muslin is the only new fabric I allow myself to add, everything else is vintage.
The "hexagon flowers" at the left are made with English paper piecing, I had to remove the basting stitches and the manila folder hexagons. The 3/4" inch hexies are put together with a center, a solid ring and a print ring, I've pinned each flower to a muslin backing and I'll applique them in place. The next row is a "9 patch" with a wonderful wine colored print, then "Jacob's Ladder" in soft tan and blue on a white background. "Bow Tie" in bright large prints are hard to see, because of the lack of contrast and the busyness of the fabrics, they are made with set-in hand piecing.
After the bow ties are a set of quarter square triangles in red and blue prints, there is no fading on the bold colors of red, & blue, they might be even older then the 1920's. The red, white and blue solid fabrics make great contrast in the star row. They were however a bit wonky, and the centers don't match at all, and the points got cut off a lot because there was not enough seam allowance. I have two more if I have to make the row longer. There is also a set of 8 stars, made mostly with shirting plaids but they are made so badly, there is no way to redeem them, or to sew them together. On the far right are a set of "4 Patch" blocks with a common blue and white check print with flowers on it. I also have a set of "Fishes" blocks that are shaped like a volcano, the bias pieces are way too wonky to lay flat, they also have embroidered signatures. I will use two more rows, one is 8" "Dresden plates" set with sashing the same red as the stars. There are extra plates and extra sashing so I can finish several more blocks to make a row. I also have larger hexagons sewn into a flower, and mixed prints hexagons that I will sew to a muslin backing. A friend gave me a baggie of cut out butterflies in vintage fabrics and I think I'll applique them to 6" blocks of muslin. The quilt will be a good mix of pieced and applique blocks, after I finish the applique, I'll see how long it will make it. Then I'll start arranging them how I want the rows to be. I love playing with vintage fabrics, the prints are so unique and fun.
