Quilt No.478RR - Rita Ruchel

Rita Ruchel
Owner: 
Rita Ruchel
Location: 
SA
Maker
Maker: 
Toni Nickolai
Made in
AUSTRALIA SA
Patterms
Patchwork, Mosaic, Tumbling Block
Date: 
1941 - 1970
Description: 
Quilt of cotton diamond shaped pieces feather stitched together with the pieces slightly overlapping. There is no padding and the backing is a light white cotton
1900 x 1060mm
History: 

Made by Toni Nickolai in the Loxton district of S.A. during WW2 and now owned by her daughter Rita Ruchel. It was used on Rita's bed when she was a teenager and then on her own daughter's bed. It is now on loan to the Willewa Community Pioneer Forest Historical Group in Meringur Vic. [1998]

Story: 

"During World War 2 it was often a struggle to make ends meet with restrictions through rationing of almost everything. There were many do-it-yourself projects. As our mother made a lot of our clothing (8 children) and her own furnishings there were many left over scraps of material. She had trained as a dressmaker before marriage. Droughts and low farming returns made it very necessary to 'make-do'. One of many Aussie battlers so all the otherwise useless pieces of material were made into something useful.
I too am a qualified dressmaker and follow the tradition of making quilts, toys etc from scraps." [Rita Ruchel 30.10.1998]

The quilt maker, Mrs. Tonie Nickolai
The quilt maker, Mrs. Tonie Nickolai

Related Quilts:

Barbara McCabe
Quilt No.196BM - Barbara McCabe
Patchwork quilt made of squares and rectangles in woollen fabric, stitched together without any particular pattern. Colours are mainly green, grey, blue, black, pink and some yellow. Fabrics are plain, checks and stripes. No padding, quilting or binding. Backing is a remnant of synthetic fabric. The quilt has been well sued and is very worn with fabric torn and marked in some places.
1400 x 400mm
Patchwork, Mosaic, Square
National Gallery of Australia
Quilt No.959NGA - National Gallery of Australia
"This is not a true quilt, but a pieced coverlet with a lining. The entire front face of the quilt is of pieced hexagonal and part hexagonal printed cotton patches. Pieces are joined with hand sewn over casting stitches of many different coloured cotton threads. The joining of the patches forms a 'daisy' pattern in some areas and in others it is random. The edge of the front face of the quilt carries a 40mm strip of cotton Chinoiserie which is then folded to the reverse of the quilt and becomes part of the lining. The template for the hexagon patches remains in many of the patches: writing paper and news print." [NGA]
The work is not padded "The lining at the edge of the quilt (for approx.175mm) is a plain weave fabric of a Chinoiserie design. The centre field of the lining is a rectangular panel of a twill weave brushed cotton fabric with a striped floral design." [NGA] 2215 x 2070mm
Patchwork, Mosaic, Hexagon
Mrs. L. M. Chick
Quilt No.477LC - Mrs. L. M. Chick
Hexagon quilt made by hand from a wide variety of cotton materials. There is no padding and the backing is calico.
2286 x 915mm
Patchwork, Mosaic, Hexagon
Barbara McCabe
Quilt No.200BM - Barbara McCabe
Patchwork quilt made of rectangles of woollen fabrics from dressmaking projects. Pieces have been stitched together in no particular order. Colours are predominantly dark red and light grey, with some green, pink and blue. Fabrics are plain, checks and weaves. No padding or quilring. Backing is yellow curtain fabric.
2200 x 1100mm
Patchwork, Mosaic, Rectangle
Annette Gero
Quilt No.841AG - Annette Gero
Hand pieced frame quilt with centre frame of hexagons and radiating borders of cotton and chintz. There is a heart at each of the 4 corners on the second border. It is hand quilted. There is no padding.
1900 x 1900mm
Patchwork, Frame
National Gallery of Australia
Quilt No.960NGA - National Gallery of Australia
"A medallion or framed quilt in design. There is a central field of small patchwork diamonds, and from this radiates plain stripes of fabric bordering areas of patchwork panels. The edge of the quilt carries bands of red cotton, which are slightly larger at the top and bottom edges, and here the band is additionally decorated with appliqué diamonds. The fabric of the patchwork is cotton in fine plain weave of pale coloured florals and small geometric designs. The framing and border stripes are of bright red twill weave cotton. The small diamonds of the central field are hand sewn, with more use of machine stitching around the outer edge of the quilt.
The quilt is not padded. The patchwork is fully lined with a printed plain weave cotton fabric with a design commemorating Queen Victoria's Jubilee. The design is based on a repeated grid of circles. In the centre of each circle is a cameo of Queen Victoria, surrounded by images of the national flowers of England, Scotland and Ireland: the rose, the thistle and the shamrock. The edge of the front face of the quilt is trimmed with a red and white cotton braid." [NGA] 2380 x 2220mm
Patchwork, Frame