Quilt No.734MF - Maria Finlayson

Maria Finlayson
Owner: 
Maria Finlayson
Location: 
NSW Sydney
Maker
Maker: 
Margaret Smith
Made in
AUSTRALIA Sydney
Patterms
Patchwork, Pieced Random, Crazy
Date: 
1921 - 1940
Description: 
Crazy patch with frame centre set on point; worked in silks. Surrounding area pieced mainly in velvets and corduroys, with some more silks. A wide border of bright turquoise corduroy. Seams are covered with feather stitch. Quilt includes boy sout badge, union jack badge, Indian type medallion and initials 'IOR' in metallic thread. There is no padding and it is backed with green gingham.
1730 x 1325mm
History: 

The quilt was made by Margaret Smith (1857-1950) probably in Sydney and probably in the 1920s or 1930s. The quilt was owned in the past by Victoria Caines (maker's daughter) then Walter and June Caines (maker's grandson) and now Maria Finlayson, great-grand-daughter of the maker.

Story: 

"My Father (maker's grandson) was in the Boyt Scouts, so I suspect the Scout badge on the quilt was his. Margaret Smith was the generation that was devoted to the royal family and thought of England as the Mother country, though they were born and bred in Australia and had never been there. This could explain the union jack.
She had a hard life. She returned to Australia with her only child (my grandmother) after some time in New Zealand. Her husband was supposed to meet her on the wharf but her didn't show up and was never heard of again. She worked as a cleaner to support herself and her daughter. She was a strict Methodist and a very gentle person. My father had very fond memories of his tiny grandmother."
[Maria Finlayson 28.4.00]

Margaret Smith c.1940
Margaret Smith c.1940

Related Quilts:

Helen Sparkman
Quilt No.936HS - Helen Sparkman
Hexagon quilt made from dressmaking scraps from one neice. The quilt top only is complete and a few papers are still attached.
2250 x 2000mm
Patchwork, Mosaic, Hexagon
N.S.W. Parks and Wildlife Service
Quilt No.559NPW - N.S.W. Parks and Wildlife Service
The top has a segmented circle in the centre surrounded by a border of small rectangles. The circle is featherstitched on to the background. Materials are wools and cottons and it is hand pieced. The other side appears to have been originally men's suiting materials strip pieced. It is now covered with a children's print in light cotton joined in long rectangles. The padding is coarse heavyweight cotton.
1410 x 1080mm
Patchwork, Frame
Marjorie Treasy
Quilt No.689MT - Marjorie Treasy
Machine sewn quilt made from 125mm squares of scraps left over from dressmaking joined in strips and then the strips joined. There is a border of fawn cotton and the backing is the same material. The padding is an old blanket and the border is padded with sheep's wool.
1400 x 925mm
Patchwork, Mosaic, Square
Win Adcock
Quilt No.904WA - Win Adcock
The quilt on longer exists, just the label, but the quilt was squares of flannelette shirt material, velvets and woollen pieces. The backing was calico. The label was sewn to the backing and it reads: 'Red Cross Killarney Manitoba'. It is embroidered in red and is on a white piece of sheeting.
Patchwork, Mosaic, Square
The Pioneer Women's Hut
Quilt No.600PWH - The Pioneer Women's Hut
Machine pieced top of squares of part jumpers, most hand knitted. The padding is a blanket. The backing is an old curtain.
1735 x 1350mm
Patchwork, Mosaic, Square
National Gallery of Australia
Quilt No.979NGA - National Gallery of Australia
" Reversible patchwork quilt of woollen suiting/upholstery fabrics in khaki, greys, blues and browns. Both sides have different designs. The front of the quilt has 13 rows of 12 vertical rectangles flanked on either side by a column of 22 horizontal rectangles. The reverse has a more interesting and complex design of small and very large rectangles, squares and triangles; with khaki contrasting with the duller greys and blues. The patchwork layers are joined at the edges with machine stitching and the quilt is machine quilted along 3 horizontal lines following joins in the patchwork; therefore not being totally straight. These lines are more noticeable on the reverse. The reverse face has been on display at the NGA." [NGA] There is a cotton blanket used as padding. 2054 x 1451mm
Patchwork, Mosaic, Rectangle, Typically Australian, Tailors' samples