Quilt No.696SM - Susan Mathews

Description:
Cotton quilt machine pieced from 64mm squares in blues, aqua and white, arranged in a straight furrows set. Machine quilted on the seam lines. The padding is cotton and the backing is cotton poplin. Bias binding has been used on the edges.
2260 x 1385mm
2260 x 1385mm
History:
The quilt was made by Elsie Roberts in Box Hill Melbourne around 1965. It was made for her daughter Susan when she was 12 or 13 and the colours were to go with the wallpaper that Susan had chosen for her new attic bedroom. Susan (Mathews) has always been the owner.
Story:
This was the first patchwork quilt Elsie Roberts made and was followed by an applique quilt made from a kit. After this she didn't make any until the mid 70s when her daughter was deeply involved in quilt making. Elsie then made quilts spasmodically until the early 90s when it became her main creative interest.
Related Quilts:
Patchwork quilt of multi coloured silks and brocades. Crazy patchwork borders, mainly rectangular fabrics pieced together in diagonal patterns, radiating from a central frame embroidered with flowers. Many pieces are extensively embroidered in a great variety of stitches and motifs; butterflies, sunflowers, cats, daffodils, crown, pawn broker's symbol, 'money to lend', 'good night', the initials of family members and 'mater 1890'. The quilt has a deep border of maroon sateen. There is no padding visible but it is possibly a blanket. The backing is green/gold silk with a self stripe with red cotton damask showing underneath, possibly an earlier backing.
2165 x 2165mm
2165 x 2165mm
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
1651 x 1220mm
Quilt made from furnishing materials, mostly velour type or uncut moquette. The colours are dusty pinks and beige/camel/blue. It has been put together by making wide strips of various sized rectangles sewn together and any missing piece in a rectangle added by using another piece of material to complete the shape. There is no padding and the backing is winter cotton.
2000 x 1650mm
2000 x 1650mm
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
Quilt made of Suffolk Puffs or flattened circles, in different bright colours in cotton and silk. Large single bed size.
This utility quilt is mainly constructed from long strips of cotton seed sack material. It is machine pieced and quilted by hand in a diagonal pattern. There is a red border. The backing is cotton flannelette and the padding is cotton.
1601 x 1525mm
1601 x 1525mm