Quilts

"The quilt is made entirely from over 7300 hexagons cut from scrap materials, and is hand stitched throughout using the 'English' method of quilting. Scraps of plain unbleached calico were used for the background with the pattern pieces cut from plain and floral fabrics in shades of blue. The design is medallion style, with a large central diamond surrounded by two concentric diamond borders beyond which are scattered different sized hexagonal rosettes, all made from hexagon patches in the same size. The pattern patches were cut from the offcuts of dresses and dressing gowns made at a friend's factory and from another friend's dress material scraps." [PHM] There is no padding. The backing is 'Actil' unbleached sheeting dyed pale blue and attached with a blind stitch to the quilt top. A central rosette set within a large diamond of hexagons decorates the back and is stitched through to hold the 2 layers together.
2720 x 1880mm
Cotton quilt, hand pieced from dress type materials with the backing applied by machine. The backing is calico and has maker's signatures embroidered on it. There is no padding.
2460 x 2300mm
Machine made wholecloth quilt in gold satin cotton. "�...perhaps a new cover over the blue japara cotton base. Vaguely oval central medallion with floral tulip pattern in trapunto with ruching. Outside this is another trapunto pattern." [Edith Young]
The backing is gold satin cotton and the padding is quite thick, possibly down. 1720 x 1420 mm.
Quilt of Suffolk Puffs made from blue bags joined together. No padding or backing. The quilt has two matching pillowcases with lace trimmings.
2060 x 1980mm
National Trust of Australia (SA)
Patchwork frame quilt in various cotton print fabrics, main colours are red, grey, pink, blue, light brown. Centre panel (104cm x 99cm) made of stars constructed from diamond shapes, in a grey stripe frame (2cm). Wide border (25cm) of hexagon 'flowers' with a grey stripe frame (3 1/2cm), then a border (17cm) of randomly placed diamond patches with a frame of grey stripe fabric. Two sides have a border of pastel stars with bright colour diamonds in between, then a narrow frame of red and grey stripe fabric. Quilt has a border of triangle squares. No padding. Cotton backing.
2810 x 2340mm
The top of this quilt is made from men's suiting samples and the backing is cream cotton. It is machine stitched. There is no padding and no quilting.
2160 x 1550mm
Wholecloth quilt of white linen with signatures embroidered in satin and stem stitch. Approximately 400 signatures as well as the names of district servicemen are arranged in flower shapes and geometric grids. Embroidered title on the quilt reads: 'Rylstone Autograph Quilt. For our Australian wounded, Dardanelles, 1915.' There is no backing.
2580 x 1730mm
National Parks & Wildlife Service of SA
Child's cot quilt of crazy patchwork, with patches of velvet, silk brocade and satin, all seams embroidered with feather stitch in different coloured threads. There is a wide border of peach-brown velvet. Backing is a floral cotton. Has been in poor condition, conserved by Artlab SA.
1490 x 1000mm
Utility quilt, machine pieced from mainly squares of dress materials in many different patterns. The backing is a wholecloth paisley print. The padding is pieced used clothing and materials including chenille and plush.
1950 x 1270mm
Helen Sparkman
Patchwork quilt, reversible, with both sides constructed from rectangles of cotton materials. These have been joined in strips and then the strips joined.
1900 x 1680mm
Possum skin cloak. The possum skins are sewn together with vegetable fibre or kangaroo sinew. Designs are incised into the skins, some of which are decorated with ochres. 2720 x 2100mm
"The quilt is of plain weave white cotton, quilted with white cotton thread. The design is 288 squares following the log cabin design. The lining is a fine white cotton.
The edges of the front face and the lining have been turned, and positioned within this seam is a ruffle. This ruffle is of very fine muslin with 2 rows of pin tucks along the edge. The ruffle runs along all edges of the quilt." [NGA] The quilt is not padded and is lined with white cotton fabric. 2400 x 2140mm
Utilitarian quilt made from roughly square patches of tailors' samples and men's suitings. The backing is calico and a border has been formed by turning the top under. The padding is ticking and pieced reused clothing.
2000 x 1400mm
Utilitarian wholecloth quilt made from red flecked furnishing material. The padding is army blankets. It is machine sewn and quilted.
2100 x 2100mm
Machine pieced patchwork top of Tailor's samples with a backing of patches of furnishing materials. There is no padding.
1930 x 1530mm
Patchwork quilt made of gathered circles stitched into a square shape. Made of scraps of fabrics from the depression period. The maker called the shapes 'squirkles'. No padding. Quilt is lined.
2100 x 1400mm
Joyce Lloyd
Hand pieced quilt of mainly cotton hexagons with 7 forming a 'flower' in a pattern often called 'Grandmother's Flower Garden'. The backing is glazed chintz and the padding is American polyester.
3000 x 1430mm
Mary-O Roberts
This domestic Wagga is made from an opened out jute wool bale as the padding with a woollen blanket as the backing. The top was originally curtains (brown cotton printed with daisies and dull yellow tulips) and the material has been folded over to the back for 60mm and stitched with 'Barbour's Linen Wax Thread' using running stitches about 50mm long. The whole domestic Wagga is then stitched in a large square grid.
1980 x 1730mm
Patchwork quilt made from cotton fabric, mainly in greens.
2100 x 1400mm
Embroiderers' Guild Victoria
Hexagon shaped patchwork cover in an all over design based on very small hexagons in plain colours and prints. It is unfinished and there is no backing. Papers are still in place. Some of the materials have been dated to the 1830s and it is thought they came from old garments. This is similar to another cover in the Guild's collection.
1280 x 1280mm

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