1930s Irish Chain and Boston Commons: Hubby for the Win

 Welcome to Treadlestitches!  It's the last Saturday of the month, so time for a show and share of some antique quilts from my collection.

Some background information:  My husband and I don't like all the same things.  I love quilts and fabric and yarn, and he reads math books for fun.  (Seriously, he really does.  Can you imagine?)

We both like going to flea markets and antique malls, and along the way I have shamelessly bent his ear about antique quilts.  I didn't really think he was listening (I mean, am I listening when he talks math?), but apparently he was.

One day several years ago when I was busy, he went to an estate sale, and came back with this Irish Chain quilt.  He seemed a little worried about it, that maybe it wasn't something I'd want, but I soon cleared up that confusion!  It's a lovely 1930s quilt, hand quilted, in perfect shape.  It looks as though it's never been used.

He didn't get the maker's name, unfortunately, but we know the quilt was made right here in the town we live in.  There are only 4 fabrics in the quilt:  the print on the front, the print on the back, and two slightly different blue solids for the piecing and the binding.

I was a little bit afraid to ask how much it cost, but inquiring minds want to know, so I did.  He paid $25.00!!!  I might have cracked the house foundation jumping up and down.

With that success under his belt, he next came home with this Boston Commons quilt.  (It's even got purple, for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge color of the month!)

In this photo, you can see how the corners were done.  Also, there are solid purple squares and solid green squares surrounding the random scrap squares, with white as a background.  The edge is sort of a try at a scalloped border.

The white squares, all eleventy-million of them, were cut and sewn individually.

The back is white also, and the quilt has been machine quilted.  It has a very thin batting, maybe even a flannel sheet, which was common in the 1930s.  The condition is good, but not perfect.  There are a couple of places where seams have popped or raveled out.

This time, hubby knew he'd done well.  He got it for the low low price of $40.00.  

Both of these quilts are in this book:  Warman's Vintage Quilts, Identification and Price Guide, by Maggi McCormick Gordon.  I knew Maggi through the Wisconsin Museum of Quilts & Fiber Arts.  She came out one day and went had a lovely time going through my quilts and tops.  Many of the quilts in the book came from Wisconsin collectors.

My Boston Commons quilt even made the back cover!

So many thanks to my dear hubby for finding these lovely ladies of the past.

I've often thought I'd like to make a Boston Commons quilt, but I'm not sure how difficult it would be.

I bought this classic book back when I was fairly new to quilting.  It's The Boston Commons Quilt, by Blanche and Helen Young, copyright 1983.  The cardboard templates kind of scared me off.  I kept the book anyway, hoping I'd figure it out someday.

Recently I saw a fun quilt in this book, Easy Layer-Cake Quilts 2, by Barbara Groves and Mary Jacobson of Me and My Sister Designs.

It's called Around the Block, and isn't exactly a Boston Commons, but it's similar, and made with scraps, which I love.  I might have to adjust it a little to get the look I want.

Here's the piecing diagram from the book.  Maybe it wouldn't be too complicated if I took it a row at a time?

With July coming quickly to an end, I had to get this purple crayon made to go with the other RSC blocks. 

There are so many different shades of purple!  These crayons have yummy names like Grape and Wild Berry.

In other news, we went camping in the Wisconsin Dells last weekend.  Whenever I go camping, it rains, and this was no exception.  We had a huge thunderstorm, but we were safe and dry in our cabins.  This is my favorite way to camp, no more tents for me!

All of our kids and grandkids were able to come, and we had such a good time.  This is only part of the family contingent.  The guy in the middle with the red shirt is my hubby, formerly Quilt Buyer Extraordinaire.  He's retired from that job now that I've stopped actively collecting, and is resting on his laurels.

If you go to the Dells, you are almost required to take a ride on a Duck boat, an amphibious vehicle that dates to World War II.  This is the view of the Wisconsin river, just before our driver drove us right into it.  We made a big splash, and the kids loved it.

How was your week?  I hope you had time for fun, family, and quilting.

Thanks for reading,

Sylvia@Treadlestitches

Just a note--I know I'm going to be too busy this coming week to get a blog written by the weekend.  So I'll be back on the blog Aug. 12-13.  In the meantime, Happy Quilting!

Linking up with:

Alycia at Finished or Not Finished Friday

Angela at So Scrappy