Summer is quickly turning to fall, but I’m just not ready for the change of seasons. I’m still focused on this summer’s project, a doll quilt that features a vintage embroidered strawberry. Perhaps you remember it from here.
Motifs like this are typical of the 1940s-50s when they embellished household linens such as tea towels, tablecloths and napkins. I added calicos, polkadots and gingham checks for vintage charm and bordered the quilt with a retro style daisy print from American Jane Fabrics. Isn't it fun?
The quilt top itself was finished years ago but got set aside when I gave up doing handwork. What a shame, I thought, to leave something this sweet half-done. Apparently, my friend Ruth agreed, because when I brought it out to show her, she offered to finish it for me.
Just look at Ruth's beautiful stitches. She used perle cotton for the quilting which adds a subtle luster to the overall design.
It turns out a quilt was the perfect way to preserve that embroidered berry. Thank you to Vicki Haninger for her inspiration and to Ruth, of course, for seeing this project to fruition. I couldn't be happier with the result!
Strawberry Preserves
15” x 17”
machine pieced, hand quilted
2019