Patchwork Quilts

Utility quilt, machine pieced from mainly squares of dress materials in many different patterns. The backing is a wholecloth paisley print. The padding is pieced used clothing and materials including chenille and plush.
1950 x 1270mm
Patchwork quilt made of hexagonal patches of variously patterned cottion chintz. The fabrics are printed with floral, geometric and striped designs in brown, blue, pink and cream stitched together by hand in no fixed pattern. There is a cream cotton backing.
1940 x 1410mm
" This quilt is in the Suffolk puff tradition. The quilt consists of 1,518 white plain weave 'puffs'. Unlike some quilts where the puffs have been made from blue bags, here they are from circles of fabric with the edge turned with a gather stitch, which has been pulled and secured. The quilt is entirely hand sewn. The edge of the quilt is decorated with a 35cm band of crochet; producing a net with scalloped edge. The crochet is executed in a thick cotton thread." [NGA] There is no padding or lining. 3230 x 2120mm
Helen Sparkman
Patchwork quilt made from very large pieces of cotton material on one side, with a 100mm yellow border, and on the other side it is almost entirely blue flannelette.
1660 x 1400mm
Quilt made from suitings and cloth patchwork, hand stitched with blanket insert and pieces of knitting from garments.
1900 x 1190mm
Patchwork quilt made of gathered circles stitched into a square shape. Made of scraps of fabrics from the depression period. The maker called the shapes 'squirkles'. No padding. Quilt is lined.
2100 x 1400mm
Jean East
Doll's quilt of crazy patchwork of cotton fabrics including handkerchiefs, mainly in checks and stripes, in pinks, yellow, blues and black, stitched to a cotton backing with herringbone stitch in embroidery thread in brown, light brown, and white..
327 x 320mm
Large cot size or single bed quilt with the top of different size and shaped pieces arranged in a random fashion. The padding is old blankets stitched together and the backing is floral cotton.
2100 x 1400mm (approx)
Quilt/rug of show ribbons. 40 woollen 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th prize ribbons sewn together. Colours are blue, red, yellow and white. Backing is blue cotton.
1600 x 1600 mm
National Parks & Wildlife Service of SA
Child's cot quilt of crazy patchwork, with patches of velvet, silk brocade and satin, all seams embroidered with feather stitch in different coloured threads. There is a wide border of peach-brown velvet. Backing is a floral cotton. Has been in poor condition, conserved by Artlab SA.
1490 x 1000mm
Utilitarian quilt made from roughly square patches of tailors' samples and men's suitings. The backing is calico and a border has been formed by turning the top under. The padding is ticking and pieced reused clothing.
2000 x 1400mm
Val Bensen
A scrap quilt constructed in blocks, each block pieced differently and all linked by the same printed cotton. Machine pieced and hand quilted with thread saved from 'feed sacks'. The padding is cotton and the backing is brown checked cotton twill.
2033 x 1677mm
Quilt, Grandmother's Flower Garden pattern, has hexagon flowers with plain centres and floral material for 'petals', and paths of mid to dark blue. Cotton fabric. No padding. Backing is of unbleached calico.
Hand sewn frame quilt featuring appliqué. There is a centre square surrounded by two wide borders. The design consists of a large basket in each corner of the square with leaves and buds scattered at random. The 2 borders have flowers and leaves and the outer wide border has a small basket in each side. Colours are pale and strong pinks, blues shading to indigo, browns-beiges and dusty red. The centres of the flowers are all reverse appliqué. There are signs that there has been a backing but it is now one layer. 2700 x 2700 mm.
Patchwork quilt with centre frame of 4 pointed starwith radiating borders of pieced squares and rectangles. Materials are cottons and some linen and it is constructed using the English hand piecing method. There is no padding and it is backed with cotton sheeting joined by machine so it is a later addition.
1400 x 1050mm
Silk patchwork quilt top. The all over pattern is of part octagons and black four pointed stars in the centre of small squares. When joined together, the effect is rows of octagons. All the seams are outlined with embroidery.
1600 x 1430mm
National Parks & Wildlife Service of SA
Patchwork quilt of square and lozenge patches of silk, taffeta and ribbed silk patches in purples, greens, blues and reds, and pastels, in brocades, stripes, checks and plains. The block pattern is four lozenge patches around a centre square patch. A group of these patches in the dark bright colours form a central diamond, with pastel groups around. The darker colours are used to form the border of 'square' patches. Hand sewn, machine quilted. Backing of [silk], padding is cotton.
2450 x 2100mm
Patchwork quilt made in Log Cabin blocks from silk velvet and grosgrain. The pattern variation is known as 'straight furrow'. No padding. The backing is made from cream silk with a floral monogram embroidered in satin and stem stitch, featuring the letter 'M'.
1620 x 1620mm
Unfinished patchwork quilt in the pattern known as 'Grandmother's Flower Garden'. Hexagons are pieced over papers in the English tradition and most papes are intact some with pencilled numbers. 6 hexagons and one in the centre form the 'flowers'. There are 49 fabric samples of varying prints and sizes.
The quilt is made from dark coloured tailors' samples. There is no padding and the backing is pieced scraps of cotton.
1950 x 1650 mm

Pages