QuiltSpeak Exhibit at the North Carolina Museum of History

Postage Stamp by Mamie Hollis Dameron

 I went to see the QuiltSpeak exhibit at the North Carolina Museum of History in Raleigh, NC.

Princess Feather by Priscilla Robinson Grose

The variety of styles, techniques, and materials represented were extensively wonderful.
It was difficult to photograph, with the special lighting and no flash to protect the quilts. 

 In this detail of the above quilt you can see the fabulous hand quilting, done in tiny stitches.  Do you see the red thread outlining the green applique?  That is a very small blanket stitch.  It inspired me to do some blanket stitching on my current project, although I did mine by machine.

Cotton Boll by Probably Nancy Johnston

This quilt's visual impact is just stunning!  The traditional red and green applique over white is classic color combination.  My photo shows just one block of this amazing quilt.

Tennessee Beauty by Louisa Green Furches

Another amazing quilt!  Tennessee Beauty showcases precise piecing (yes, those curved patches are pieced!) and fabulous quilting.  

Heel, Tap & Shoe Point by Ara Adner Williams Farrar

This is my favorite quilt in the exhibit.  I'm sorry I couldn't get a good photo of this one.  I love the block design!  It's so unique and beautifully done.

 Here's a detail of the above quilt, shown in black and white so you can better see the design and quilting.  

Six-Pointed Star by Mary Blount Grimes

Each quilt is accompanied by a short story that tells about the quilt and it's maker.  This quilt had my favorite story.  It's sewn in silk fabric, and though it looks to be English Paper Piecing, it's not!  It's all very precisely hand pieced from fabrics the maker acquired from her suitor's ties and her own dresses.

Mariner's Compass by Elizabeth Jennie Roach Witherington

Fabulous Mariner's Compass quilt!

Crazy Quilt Top by Sallie Fisher

One of two crazy quilts on display.  Amazing to see in person!

 My son, Trent creating some designs using the interactive display.

Double Wedding Ring by Diana Lualtah Myers Cecil

Double Wedding Ring quilt made with feedsacks.

Checkerboard associated with Edith Anne Williams Uzzell

 I really liked this quilt made with all blue and white plaid fabric.

Not a terrific photo, and also not part of the QuiltSpeak exhibit, but I love this Alligator pincushion on display in another section of the museum!

This is just a small sample of the quilts included in the Quilt Speak exhibit.  If you're in the Raleigh, North Carolina area I highly recommend checking it out.  It was amazing to see these quilts in person and read the stories about them.  It's going to be open through March 8, 2020 at the North Carolina Museum of History, and it's a free exhibit.  I purchased the accompanying book from the gift shop.  It shows all of the quilts, and has more detailed information about each one.  I'm enjoying the read.

Be Creative ~ Sew Something Beautiful Today.

Jennifer Thomas

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Try It! ~ Jelly Roll Rug

 Disclaimer: The products in this post were given to me by Island Batik and industry partners at no cost to me.

 The June Challenge for the Island Batik Ambassadors was Try It!  I've been wanting to make a Jelly Roll rug for a while so it seemed like perfect timing.

 This month's project could be any size, any technique.  

 I ordered the Jelly Roll Rug pattern from another shop on Etsy.  I used Island Batik's Twilight Chic 2-1/2" strip pack, Hobbs cotton batting, and Aurifil thread in a medium brown to make my rug.

 Here's a closer look at the Twilight Chic fabrics.  Aren't they gorgeous?  I've been wanting so much to use them.  It's been sheer torture to save them all year for this project.  Those yellows!  The purples!  The deep dark blues and greens!

 The first step to making a strip rug is to cut the batting into strips.  This was the only part I didn't enjoy.  By the end of the batting cutting my hands were red and sore.  I can see why it would be helpful to purchase pre cut batting strips, or maybe next time I will use a thinner batting.  I wonder how this would work with Hobbs Thermore.

 Next, I sewed all of the Twilight Chic strips together into one long strip.  It looked like this coming out of my sewing machine.

 Then I sewed the batting into my long strip.

 I ended up with this huge unruly ball.

 Next I began sewing the strips together into the rug itself.  I used a beautiful medium brown Aurifil thread for all of the stitching on this project.  It looks nice with the spectrum of color ~ yellow, blue, green, and violet.

 My kitty cats found this project especially interesting.  That long fabric strip moving and the rug growing.  I'm sure they think I made it for them.  This is Ragamuffin, my youngest cat and biggest quilting helper.

 Trail Mix liked this project, too. She kept coming along and trying to nap on my rug.  

 When I completed the stitching, my rug looked like this.  It was amazing how much I was able to flatten it with careful pressing.  

 This is my completed rug!  I love it and can't wait to make another one.  It was fun to try this technique, and I learnt a lot.  I have an idea to make a rug that will fit into my super skinny farmhouse hallway next.

Be Creative ~ Sew Something Beautiful Today.

Jennifer Thomas

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This is an affiliate link.  Clicking this link will not affect the purchase price.