Patchwork Quilts

Crazy patchwork quilt made from silk, cotton and velvet in pastels and rich dark colours with a wide border of dark burgundy silk velvet. Decorative embroidery stitches including straight, herringbone and feather edge each piece. Most pieces have embroidered motifs including crown, flowers, horseshoe and Australian motifs of wattle and emu. Date '1891' worked in cross stitch on one piece. The padding is wool and the backing dark red satin and these are joined by diagonal machine stitching in yellow thread.
1750 x 1100mm

Repeat block in Dresden Plate pattern using various cotton fabrics from the 1920s. Quilted with a flower in the purple/pink centre and squares elsewhere. Border is furnishing fabric. The padding is cotton that is disintegrating and the backing is calico. 1980 x 2100mm

"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

Small rectangular bed cover, probably child's or even doll's, made from rectangles of cream linen stitched together with hand sewn french seams. The top surface is decorated with small squares and rectangles of coloured silk, velvet, wool and cotton attached approximately 25mm apart, with 3 stitches in centre of patch to attach to background. Bright pink wool patches stand out.
935 x 635mm

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.

Quilt, single bed size, made from reused clothing roughly handstitched on to a backing of a wool/linen blanket type fabric in green, cream and brown stripes. Clothing is fronts and backs of old jumpers, vests etc as well as opened out sleeves in red, brown and grey. They are stitched together in several layers with long stitches. Another top may have been intended to cover the stitched down layers of clothing.
1500 x 1040mm

Quilt top, all cotton. Center frame is 600mm square of calico on to which is appliqued red material in an elaborate cut out design. Radiating rows of mainly red and blue triangles. Other materials include, white with abstract plants scattered across it, pink with pin print white dots, white and maroon herringbone with small white flowers with maroon leaf sprays spread 25mm apart. The border is a strip of red not hemmed but with selvedges on the long sides. The quilt is all hand sewn with small back stitch, running stitch and hemming.

Hand sewn patchwork quilt with a pattern of blue stars. Each star consists of hexagons in the centre with part diamonds forming the star shape. The quilt is made from scraps. It is not padded and the backing is cotton and has a hexagon star border. 2660 x 2470 mm

Machine sewn reversible quilt. Side 1 is rectangles of men's suiting samples in mainly grey, navy and black, stripes and self patterns. Side 2 is men's suiting samples but also includes woollen rectangular pieces in plain blue and deep pink. There is a hand sewn binding of fine orange-brown wool. The padding is hessian and cotton.
1460 x 1100mm