Quilt No.1028JL - Joyce Lannin

Joyce Lannin
Owner: 
Joyce Lannin
Location: 
WA Country
Maker
Maker: 
Lila Myrtle Harvey
Made in
AUSTRALIA WA
Date: 
1941 - 1970
Description: 
Machine stitched quilt made from tailors' samples cut into squares. The colours are mainly greys, browns and fawns. There is no padding and the backing is a grey herringbone heavy woollen material with a white fleck. This is folded back to the front to make a 75mm border and finished with a dark grey braid where it meets the patchwork top. 1525 x 1225mm
History: 

This tailors' sample quilt was the first quilt Lila Myrtle Harvey made. It was made in 1947 at Lake grace Western Australia. It is now owned by Joyce Lannin, Lila's daughter. It is still used.

Story: 

Lila Myrtle Harvey: "When a small child Lila spent her early years in South Australia with her Aunties who spent hours doing patch work and Lila was fascinated with the colours and results of their work. So much so that she always had a hankering to do patchwork herself. But she lived a very busy life and it was not until after her own children had grown up that she was able to indulge in her dream.
Her first quilt was made from tailors samples which were destined for the rubbish and which she saved. With these she made a very serviceable rug which has seen many years of service in her family. All her life Lila has been busy making clothes for her family and has kept the pieces left over from her sewing. As soon as she had spare time when her family had less need of her full attention she started making hexagon templates and covering them with pieces from her scrap box. These she joined into flowers which she joined together to make her first quilt. Many years later after hours of hand sewing her first quilt top was finished making a masterpiece of beauty. It stayed on her bed until she passed away when it was handed on to her daughter who has since passed away and the quilt now belongs to her first grand-daughter Debbie Rendell.
A neighbour of Lila's had a quilt made in Log Cabin design and gave Lila a square as a pattern so Lila sat at her machine for months making Log Cabin squares until she had enough squares to make her quilt. Each square is made of different materials and colours. The final result is a very lovely [quilt] which is now owned and used by her daughter Joyce Lannin in Lake Grace.
Besides these quilts Lila made quilts for her grand-daughters and many cushions for her children. After she passed away her unfinished pieces were incorporated into patchwork quilts and articles by her daughter.
Lila was born in 1892 and passed away in 1970." [Joyce Lannin]

Related Quilts:

The Pioneer Women's Hut
Patchwork top with a centre frame of a mauve cross outlined in black within a square bordered with pink. The rest of the top is rectangles and squares in a wide variety of materials. There is no padding. The backing is brown, possibly curtain material.
1910 x 1480mm
National Gallery of Australia
" This well worn quilt is of pieced diamonds set into squares (221 make up the quilt). Thick woollen fabric has been used for the pieces. These are with plain dyed fabrics or tartans and checks. All work on the quilt is hand sewn. The quilt was lined with a fine blue cotton." [NGA] The quilt is not padded. 1835 x 1400mm
The Pioneer Women's Hut
The top is a wholecloth piece of twill type cotton and the backing is a wholecloth piece of finer patterned cotton. The padding is a layer of pieces of used clothing stitched together, including part jumpers, some darned. These are inside an old folded blanket.
1540 x 950mm
Valinda Gale
Patchwork quilt made from squares of cotton prints in florals, stripes, spots and checks, joined together in rows. Colours are predominantly blues, reds, yellow and pastels. Binding is of turquoise blue fabric. Materials appear to be from the 40s or 50s. Patches caught in the middle with a woollen knot - red, yellow, blue wool. No quilting. Backed in blue fleecy flannel.
Single bed length and width.
National Gallery of Australia
"The quilt consists of 12 blocks of crazy patchwork with an embroidered border. The quilt is made of 167 different fabrics; most of these are silk. These velvets, printed silks and satins are beautifully embroidered with flowers, household items and Kate Greenway images of children at play. Many of the motifs have a strong influence from the Aesthetic Movement. The edge of the quilt carries a border in maroon silk decorated with tendrils and daisies in very fine embroidery.
The patches are joined with hand sewing and embroidery, however the 12 panels are joined with machine stitching (chainstitch machine stitching). The blue silk lining was hand sewn into position with silk thread." [NGA]
"The quilt does consist of three layers but the central layer is not padding. The crazy patch pieces were sewn together and this was lined with white cotton fabric prior to the embroidery at the edges of the 12 panels being placed. This in turn was lined with a fine blue silk." [NGA] 1810 x 1460 mm
Mare Carter
Patchwork quilt, all cotton including cotton filling. "8 pointed star" with turkey red surround, white background. Hand stitched and hand quilted.
2109 X 1727mm