Clearing the decks

A little while ago I saw the Fabric of Society exhibit.  Some amazing quilts with their history documented by Annette Gero.  I bought the book, too.  The most expensive book (that is not a textbook) that I’ve ever bought.  I’ve implemented a no eating rule for looking at this book, and considered a white glove rule as well but I didn’t have a pair so that fell by the wayside.  But definitely no food near the book.  

Victorian Quilters are having a contest for quilts made based on quilts in the book – there are 30 or so patterns included.  I like a contest – apparently I have a competitive streak – so thought I might have a go at making a different (for me) sort of quilt.  The one that intrigued me most is this one – Mrs Keens’s Quilt.  The quilt wasn’t travelling with the exhibit, it’s kept at the Queenscliffe Historical Society.  It has cats and ponies on it – it’s completely bizarre.

 

This one didn’t have a pattern in the book, so I am trying to recreate it from the pictures and draft it myself in EQ5.  The original is hand pieced over papers, but I am going to use modern methods.  I think I’ll use foundation piecing for most of it, plus the little bits of applique.  After a couple of false starts I’ve managed to do these:

 

The block is supposed to be 10 inches, but it’s a fraction under that, probably because of the number of seams involved (14 X 14 squares that should be 3/4 inch each).  Just as well I measured the finished blocks, because I can adjust the  rest of the quilt easier that I can fix the sizing on these ones.

I just need to get a few other projects out of the way so I can get stuck into this.  I want to start embroidering the ponies.  And cats! lots  and lots of cats!