Quilt No.648NG - Norma Gilchrist

Norma Gilchrist
Owner: 
Norma Gilchrist
Location: 
NSW Riverina
Maker
Maker: 
Sylvia Schliebs
Made in
AUSTRALIA NSW
Date: 
1941 - 1970
Description: 
Quilt entirely made of hexagons joined to make 'flowers', 6 hexagons form the petals and one in the centre. The quilt is all cotton in a wide variety of colours in plains, checks and florals. The hexagons are all hand stitched using stranded cotton. There is a plain blue border of headcloth machined around the edge to the backing material. It is not quilted The materials were almost all from the scrap bag. Brown paper templates were used. This arrangement of hexagons is one variation of a pattern commonly called 'Grandmother's Flower Garden'.
2040 x 1720mm
History: 

The quilt was made by Sylvia Schliebs and her daughter Norma in the Temora district NSW c.1845. It is now owned by Norma (Gilchrist). It is still used.

Story: 

Sylvia Schliebs (1898-1995) and her daughter Norma sewed this quilt in the wintertime after tea at night. They lived on a mixed farm, 'Spring Valley', and Sylvia's life was like that of many farmers' wives with farm jobs to do including milking cows and looking after many chooks. She sold butter and eggs and bunches of violets and made most of her own and Norma's clothes. She was thrifty, practical and a good cook.

Sylvia Violet Schliebs c.1946
Sylvia Violet Schliebs c.1946

Related Quilts:

Meg Orr
All over pattern of rows of hexagons with each unit made up of 4 hexagons each 45mm. Patterned and plain materials thought to date from the 1930s including cotton and linen dress materials, synthetics and synthetic crepe. It was an unfinished top and Meg Orr, the present owner, finished it by machine stitching some of the hexagon rosettes to the red twill background and stitching on a backing. There is no padding.
1740 x 1210mm.
Arlene Crane
Cotton patchwork quilt in double wedding ring pattern in pastel prints. Quilted in a design of geometric flowers. Padding is probably cotton wadding, backing is cream calico. 2270 x 1970 mm.
National Trust of Australia (QLD)
Quilt made of tailors' swatches, machine constructed around a central frame that is mainly mid brown pieces. This is surrounded by rectangles of mainly charcoal greys and the outer border is navy blues. The backing is a heavy cotton with random green and cream and grey stripes.
1651 x 1220mm
Alyce Wright
Cotton scrap quilt in a pattern known as 'Grandmothers Fan'. It is hand quilted. The padding is hand carded cotton and the backing is muslin.
2235 x 1880mm
Margery Smith
Patchwork quilt made from hexagons 63mm across in a variety of cotton prints and plains. The bright coloured patches came from children's clothes and dressmaking scraps. The 'set included a large cot cover, a pillow cover and a circular stool cover. No padding. Backing of unbleached calico. Hand sewn.
2300 x 1840mm
Marion Coleman
Quilt made of Tailors' wool samples in stripes, checks and plain,, rectangles in different sizes machined together in strips. Colours are grey, navy, brown, light grey and cream. Lining or backing is of patterned cotton, in three layers as it has worn and been replaced. Machine and zigzag quilting.
1626 x 1271mm