Sunday 29 June 2014

Hidden Treasure




I've been using  over-loved antique quilts as the basis of my own work for many years, giving them a new lease of life.  It started with  a rather tatty grey white Durham quilt that  I used to use as a door curtain and then became my canvas for  painting with acrylics : 'Bexhill Breakwaters' and 'Rich as Honesty' were 2 of these. Then having run out of large size pieces , I started buying 'cutter' quilts from ebay : a red and white strippy coverlet formed the basis of 4 quilts.
Planning on dying some of my finds in an indigo vat later this summer, I've been buying quite a few more recently.   I obtained this blue wavy medallion for a very reasonable price as the red areas of the quilts are  disintegrating. The quilting is fairly crude and the backing is perfect tight weave for painting on so as is my practice, I put it in the washing machine on a gentle wash.
When it came out of the machine the areas of disintegration were more marked and  several seams were giving way. Which is when I found that instead of wadding, old fabrics had been used,  a few fairly coarse cottons  but  principally  what looks  like a very fine wool paisley striped shawl  in pale greens and browns.  I will do a bit more careful unpicking but what a  find, my own  'Boro'!

2 comments:

Susan Briscoe said...

Very interesting!

Heather said...

Isn't that wonderful?! I know how exciting it can be to discover such a treasure.