Wednesday, August 17, 2011

The Whirligig Quilt

Here is a vintage quilt that we are featuring this month. The name of this block pattern is called whirligig, although it has several other names including a swastika block. It is interesting to note that this pattern and its popularity in quilts came into existence long before the symbol was politically exploited in the mid 1900's.

In this project, the blocks are 8.25 inches square, and they consist of flying geese units which are about 1 inch by 2 inches. The layout of the quilt is 6 blocks by 6 blocks. The size of the finished quilt is approximately 80 inches square. This quilt was hand pieced and quilted, which is quite the accomplishment considering the size of the project! When this particular quilt was purchased, it appeared as though it had never been used, and is estimated to have been created between 1890 and 1900.

Here are some close-up photos of the blocks. Can you imagine all the time that someone spent to create this beautiful piece of art? The maker of this quilt is unknown.




Happy Stitching!

No comments:

Post a Comment