Friday, July 12, 2019

A Pieceful Week

Welcome to Treadlestitches!
Here's what I've been sewing on my Singer treadle this week--spiky stars.
Two of these are not like the others!  
While making the pink spiky stars for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge, I ended up making two more in patriotic fabrics for Covered in Love's July-August block drive.  (Read more about that HERE.)  So with the 4 from last year and 8 more from this year, I made an even dozen.  Maybe this will make up for forgetting to mail any last year.  Little Buddy and I took them to the post office Friday morning, and sent them on their way to Texas.
These blocks are also easy to make with strips.  All the pieces in this 12 in. finished block are cut from 4.5 in. strips.  The triangles are cut using the Tri-Recs rulers.
My pink stars are made of 1800s reproduction fabrics.  I am normally not a big fan of pink, but I absolutely adore the double pink prints popular at the end of the 19th Century.
For backgrounds, I used white or off-white scraps and strips, mixing and matching as needed.
These still need to be quilted by the block, which is the way I'm finishing this quilt.  Heck, the dark blue spiky stars from LAST month still need to be quilted.  The blocks are waiting until I get the dinosaur quilt finished, and I haven't been working on it much this week.
We're right in the heart of flea market season now.  I took a few photos at the latest one in Elkhorn.  It's amazing how many people use antique quilts as tablecloths or backgrounds for their booths.  Such great eye candy.
Gorgeous 1930s quilts, with scads of handwork.
These tops were only $50 each.  Beautiful, but I managed to resist their charms.
I didn't buy any quilts, but I did come home with a mystery.  And it even happens to be pieced with double pink!
I have been studying antique quilts for years, but I don't think I've ever seen this particular block.  It looks like some kind of basket.  It also looks like it might be hard to piece.
If you've seen it before, could you let me know in the comments?  (By the way, I've turned the photo so I could see the block more clearly.  The upside down legs in the background do look a little weird.)

Even though I have lots of quilting that needs to be done, this just seemed to be a good week to cut and piece, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
And in the end, that's what it's all about.

I'm wishing you joy and peace (or piece!) in the week ahead.

Thank you for reading this post!
Sincerely,
Sylvia@Treadlestitches

Linking up with:
Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict (Can I Get A Whoop Whoop)
Myra at Busy Hands Quilts 
Angela at So Scrappy (Home of the Rainbow Scrap Challenge)
Cynthia at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework (Oh Scrap)

 












Posted by at
Labels: , , ,

22 comments:

  1. maggie fellowJuly 13, 2019 at 6:25 AM

    I really appreciate the old quilts - I wonder what those women were doing in their life.

    ReplyDelete
  2. LIttle Penguin QuiltsJuly 13, 2019 at 6:30 AM

    Wish I could help you with your block mystery! It does look like a basket, but the handles look like they could be tulip blocks. I wonder if you could draw it out on graph paper. I like your stars - both patriotic and pink!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sylvia@TreadlestitchesJuly 14, 2019 at 5:49 AM

      Thanks, Diann! Good idea about drawing out the block.

      Delete
  3. Violet WitheyJuly 13, 2019 at 7:38 AM

    I agree with Little Penguin, this should be easy to draw. Looks like basket. I Will let you know

    ReplyDelete
  4. Violet WitheyJuly 13, 2019 at 2:18 PM

    I did a line drawing of the basket quilt ,if you are interested

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sylvia@TreadlestitchesJuly 14, 2019 at 5:50 AM

      Thanks, Violet! I'd love to see the drawing. My email is piece the past at att dot net (no spaces).

      Delete
  5. Deb AJuly 13, 2019 at 3:54 PM

    Pretty quilts!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sylvia@TreadlestitchesJuly 14, 2019 at 5:51 AM

      One of my favorite things to do at a flea market is "quilt spotting".

      Delete
  6. AngieJuly 14, 2019 at 4:51 AM

    Great stars, love the double pink fabrics, too! Don't know the name of your mystery block, but it does look like tulips. I wonder if there were supposed to be appliqued stems?

    ReplyDelete
  7. AngieJuly 14, 2019 at 5:01 AM

    I checked Barbara Brackman's Encyclopedia of Pieced Quilt Patterns and found a small family of blocks that are similar to your mystery block. Blocks 740-744.7 are all constructed in the same style as your block, but all the blocks have appliqued flower stems. Blocks 741 and 742 may be the closest to yours.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sylvia@TreadlestitchesJuly 14, 2019 at 5:54 AM

      Angie, you are a genius! I overlooked these blocks in Brackman because all the fading confused me. Either the stems were left out or they have faded out too. Thanks for solving the mystery!

      Delete
  8. The Joyful QuilterJuly 14, 2019 at 6:42 AM

    Too HOT here for flea market-ing!! SEW glad to see that you enjoyed some quilty sightings.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sylvia@TreadlestitchesJuly 14, 2019 at 7:54 PM

      Thanks, Joyful! It was a wonderful day. Rain had been predicted, but held off til we were on the way home.

      Delete
  9. Cynthia Brunz DesignsJuly 14, 2019 at 12:07 PM

    What a fun and unique basket block. It is a mystery why the stems are missing. Thanks for sharing all this lovely eye candy with Oh Scrap!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sylvia@TreadlestitchesJuly 14, 2019 at 7:55 PM

      Hi, Cynthia! Thanks as always for hosting Oh Scrap. I look forward to it every week!

      Delete
  10. Auntie EmJuly 14, 2019 at 7:54 PM

    I really love the way the striped fabric in your middle pink star gives it such a sense of movement.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sylvia@TreadlestitchesJuly 14, 2019 at 7:56 PM

      Thanks, Auntie Em! It's a neat print. I love it, even though it's pink!

      Delete
  11. JustGailJuly 16, 2019 at 1:10 PM

    It's definitely a basket with 3 flowers. I *think* the stems are there, they are very faded though. I can't tell if they are appliqued or pieced.

    Yes, the old quilts can be hard to pass by. I got one at a flea market this past Sunday as well.

    ReplyDelete
  12. JanineMarieJuly 17, 2019 at 12:53 PM

    I was having trouble using my old pinks. So many are too dusty for my current tastes, but your double pinks with the light backgrounds really sing. I may need to re-sort the scraps.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sylvia@TreadlestitchesJuly 19, 2019 at 2:57 PM

      Hi, JanineMarie! I've got some old dusty pinks, too (AND dusty blues). I was thinking about mixing them in with other fabrics in a scrap quilt. Maybe, if I cut them small enough...?

      Delete

Thanks for reading! Post a comment--I want to know what you think!

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)