Quilts

About Vintage and Antique Patchwork Quilts

Quiltmaking and patchwork have been popular pastimes in the U.S. since the 1700s, and today quilts are highly collectible as works of folk art with historical significance (or just nice to look at). Antique quilts vary widely in design and materials, and can be hard to date definitively because they may have been assembled in phases from older quilts or blocks.

Made from a variety of materials, from elaborate fabrics to scraps of old clothing and sometimes even old feed bags, quilts have both a functional and social significance. Groups of women often gathered to create quilts together, and the finished result was sometimes given as a gift for a special occasion (like a wedding) or as a symbol of friendship. Quilts can also document a family’s history as the pieces sewn together can come from baby blankets, old clothes, etc...

Antique quilts are typically categorized by style (broad classification) and pattern (of the individual blocks). Some notable styles include central motif, log cabin, album, circular, star, patriotic, thematic, representational, whole-cloth, charm, utility, signature, medallion, redwork, appliqué small block, applique 4-block, strippey, Colonial Revival, Amish and crazy quilts, among others.

Some notable patterns (of individual blocks) include Sunbonnet Sue, fan, log cabin, Rose of Sharon, 9-patch, Lone Star, Whig’s Defeat, Pot and Flowers, hole in the barn door, bowtie, and so on. There are some situations when the pattern (block) name was also used as the style name (this was common in the 20th century), such as Sunbonnet Sue, Grandmother’s Flower Garden, Dresden Plate and Double Wedding Ring.

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Interviews & Articles

The History of American Quiltmaking: An Interview with Merikay Waldvogel, Part One

I always wondered why I was so fascinated with the quilts. In the early 1980s, when I was the executive director of… [more]

Collecting American Quilts: An Interview With Merikay Waldvogel, Part Two

The beauty of quilts is you can live with them. You can sleep under them. I have a quilt library, too. I not only c… [more]

American Patchwork Quilts

The antique quilts which collectors admire today for their colorfulness and variety of design represent two of the … [more]

Guest Column: An Introduction to Identifying and Collecting Antique Quilts

Many antique quilt collectors think of themselves as caretakers of historical documents, made at the hands of the n… [more]

An Interview With Tramp Art Collector Clifford Wallach

My first book, "Tramp Art, One Notch at a Time", was self-published in 1998. At the time we started to do the book,… [more]

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Best of the Web (“Hall of Fame”)

International Quilt Study Center

International Quilt Study Center

This University of Nebraska affiliated site showcases a spectacular collection of over 1800 colorful quilts from th… [read review or visit site]

Antiquequiltdating.com

Antiquequiltdating.com

Though not an actual online dating site, the subject here is certainly love... of quilts. Kimberly Wulfert has put … [read review or visit site]

The Quilt Index

The Quilt Index

This collaborative project provides a visual index of almost 2,000 antique quilts across multiple museums and colle… [read review or visit site]

American Folk Art Museum

American Folk Art Museum

The American Folk Art Museum's website showcases current and past exhibitions along with their permanent collection… [read review or visit site]

Anonymous Works

Anonymous Works

This blog combines American primitive folk art, vintage vernacular photography, outsider art, and other interesting… [read review or visit site]

The Outsider Art Pages

The Outsider Art Pages

A modern look at folk and outsider art with a focus on what people are doing to keep these traditions alive. The si… [read review or visit site]

Folk Art in Bottles

Folk Art in Bottles

Whether you call them Bottle Whimseys, Whimsey Bottles, Puzzle Bottles, or Whimsies, this site showcases great folk… [read review or visit site]

Index of American Design

Index of American Design

The Index of American Design project (1935-1942) was an effort to catalog American decorative arts objects from the… [read review or visit site]

Stoveburner.com

Stoveburner.com

A stunning collection of 162 images of stoveburners, those corroded cast iron elements that power stoves, broilers,… [read review or visit site]


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Natural Silk Has Been$1,059 Ends in 21 hours 4 bids 3 watchers
1800's Multicolor Cherry Basket Quilt *delightful*$462.88 Ends Sunday 6 bids 22 watchers
Vintage Floral Applique Handmade Quilt Unused Mint$399.00 Ends Sunday 14 bids 60 watchers
1893 Dated Appliqued Quilt **kentucky Rose** Excellent$394.00 Ends in 12 hours 35 bids 36 watchers
Fabulous Civil War Era 8-point Star Quilt - 102" X 102"$350.00 Ends Sunday 3 bids 19 watchers
Antique 1850 Floral Applique Rose Quilt ~ Crisp Sturdy$312.00 Ends Sunday 9 bids 56 watchers
1800s Tiny Triangles Handpieced Great Scrap Quilt Mint$307.00 Ends in 10 hours 3 bids 19 watchers
Mid1800 Quilt Top Chintz, Cadet, Exc Prints- A Treasure$305.00 Ends Monday 3 bids 44 watchers
Mid-1800's Beautiful Bright Scrap Quilt -gorgeous!$300.00 Ends in 9 hours 13 bids 27 watchers
Beautiful Vintage Applique Quilt Pink Handstitched!$276.71 Ends Sunday 17 bids 20 watchers
Fine Antique Geometric Red/green Quilt Vines Leaves Nr$255.99 Ends Thursday 11 bids 39 watchers
Exceptional Grandmother's Flower Garden Antique Quilt$227.50 Ends Sunday 7 bids 13 watchers
Antique Vintage Dresden Plate Quilt Hand-sewn Beautiful$227.50 Ends Monday 17 bids 46 watchers
Vintage Double Pink Chimney Sweep Quilt $225.00 Ends in 8 hours 1 bid 4 watchers
Antique Cathedral Window Quilt 1930's$202.50 Ends Sunday 6 bids 10 watchers
Antique 1850 Wagon Wheel Red Hershey Museum Quilt$202.50 Ends Sunday 10 bids 51 watchers
Antique Early 1900's Drunkards Path Quilt Blue White$200.00 Ends Monday 2 bids 9 watchers
Wonderful Amish Type Lone Star Quilt_very Fine Estate $197.50 Ends Tuesday 2 bids 7 watchers
Vintage Hand Sewn Quilt Great Pattern Rare Beauty!!! A+$173.85 Ends Tuesday 10 bids 14 watchers
Fantastic Vintage Applique Iris Quilt-excellent$152.50 Ends Tuesday 9 bids 22 watchers
Vintage Primitive Antique Quilt 1860s-1880s Wonderful$150.00 Ends Sunday 1 bid 17 watchers
Antique Fabulous Triangle Scrap Great Quilt Unused$140.50 Ends in 6 hours 7 bids 22 watchers
Antique Handmade Quilt 86 X 81 Very Pretty Quilting$125.00 Ends Wednesday 1 bid 5 watchers
Antique Victorian Crewel & Linen Coverlet - 108" X 100"$125.00 Ends in 8 hours 5 bids 9 watchers
Vintage 1930's Red Orange Yellow Star Quilt Mint Huge$104.10 Ends Sunday 6 bids 7 watchers
Vintage Americana Hand Quilted Red & White Quilt 1930's$102.52 Ends Wednesday 7 bids 14 watchers
Antique Tulip Quilt - Pink, Green And White 1950's$100.00 Ends Sunday 1 bid 5 watchers
Vintage Chenille/vntg Embroidered/southern Belle Quilt$99.00 Ends Sunday 1 bid 10 watchers
Handmade Queen Dream Garden Pattern Quilt Butterfly$90.99 Ends in 8 hours 13 bids 12 watchers
Star Quilt Antique Vintage Feedsack Patchwork Old 91x80$89.00 Ends Sunday 8 bids 32 watchers
Sage Green Quilt Pattern Lightning Rod Pendant Ball$81.00 Ends Tuesday 7 bids 17 watchers
Vintage Hand Quilted Flower Garden Quilt$80.50 Ends Sunday 5 bids 15 watchers
Antique Bright Pa Quilt--unused & Pretty$80.00 Ends in 11 hours 3 bids 17 watchers
Antique 1870 Embroidered Silk Crazy Quilt 1,100 Pcs$80.00 Ends Sunday 6 bids 18 watchers
Antique Vintage Blue & Red Double Irish Chain Quilt$80.00 Ends Tuesday 3 bids 6 watchers
Exceptional Vintage Lone Star Quilt Top Never Used $79.99 Ends in 8 hours 1 bid 6 watchers
Handmade King Size Serenity Pattern Quilt, Embroidiery$77.88 Ends in 8 hours 7 bids 12 watchers
Vintage Applique Yellow Rose Quilt-no Reserve$75.50 Ends Wednesday 9 bids 14 watchers
Friendship Quilt Stitch And Bitch Group Hand Quilt '83$75.00 Ends Wednesday 1 bid 1 watcher
Vintage Grandmothers Flower Garden Quilt$75.00 Ends Thursday 1 bid 5 watchers
Antique Amish Wedding Ring Bed Quilt Handquilt Piece-nr$74.99 Ends Saturday 1 bid 4 watchers
Antiq Applique Quilt Top ~ Red, Cheddar,green Smashing!$71.00 Ends Monday 4 bids 43 watchers
Wow!! "something To Crow About" Red Rooster Quilt$70.00 Ends Tuesday 5 bids 2 watchers
Beautiful Vintage 40's Applique Princess Feather Quilt$70.00 Ends Tuesday 5 bids 24 watchers
Antique Quilt Log Cabin$69.99 Ends in 11 hours 1 bid 11 watchers
1800's Quilt Top$69.86 Ends Sunday 3 bids 21 watchers
Welsh Woven Tapestry Blanket/reversable$68.61 Ends Sunday 2 bids 13 watchers
Beautiful Early 1900's Amish Quilted Lone Star Quilt$66.00 Ends Thursday 3 bids 6 watchers
Beautiful Early 1900's Amish Quilted Lone Star Quilt$65.89 Ends Thursday 3 bids 7 watchers
Vintage Handsewn Flower Garden Quilt$63.00 Ends in 2 hours 2 bids 12 watchers
Vintage 1940s Pink & White Irish Chain Quilt Top$61.05 Ends Sunday 9 bids 8 watchers
Beautiful & Vibrant Hand Sewn Wedding Ring Quilt Top$61.00 Ends Sunday 6 bids 10 watchers
Wonderful Vintage 1930's Dresden Quilt Handstitched! $61.00 Ends Sunday 7 bids 10 watchers
Romantic Cottage Green & Floral Vintage Quilt$60.00 Ends Tuesday 8 bids 5 watchers
Antique Wedding Ring Quilt --very Old --80x80$60.00 Ends Wednesday 5 bids 4 watchers
Antique Quilt Top Seven Sisters$59.99 Ends Sunday 1 bid 34 watchers

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Recent News: Quilts

Source: Google News

Final stitch sewn in The Quilt
The Beacon Herald, March 19th

The charity's website has a section about the "Comfort Quilt Collection" which says the proceeds from the sales will benefit those living with breast cancer...Read more

Free quilting classes Saturday in W. Richland
TheNewsTribune.com, March 19th

Call 967-2555 to register. The center, at 4034 D W. Van Giesen St. in West Richland, will also have a trunk show of the museum's historic quilt collection...Read more

COASTAL BEND — FRIDAY
Corpus Christi Caller Times, March 18th

QUILT COLLECTION: Rockport's Piecemakers by the Bay Quilt Guild will sponsor an exhibit of 46 quilts made by art quilters from Kentucky, southern Ohio and...Read more

Fine fabrics
Illinois Times, March 18th

Besides a display of junior and antique quilts and the featured work of 2010 Marian Brockschmidt Quilting Achievement Award recipient Barbara Olinger,...Read more

Dentist displays quilt marvel to Celina Fidelis Inter Se members
Star Community Newspapers, March 17th

The Lockes also brought with them a few quilts from their antique quilt collection. Marilyn had a few tips of advice for quilt collectors...Read more

Historical society holds antique quilts 'show and tell'
Anderson Independent Mail, March 10th

Wilhelmenia Nesbit, left and Margaret Ayers, right, hold up a silk quilt in the log cabin pattern while Ruth Davis shares about how long she has had the...Read more

Vintage quilt will be raffled at luncheon to raise funds for Delta Doves
Delta County Independent, March 4th

A vintage quilt has been donated to the Delta Doves by well-known North Fork quilter Lois Fritz. Made by her mother, Violet Ray, in the early 1960s,...Read more

Tiburon couple's extensive quilt collection: Bold, modern and Amish
Marin Independent-Journal, February 24th

Faith and Stephen Brown have amassed an extensive collection of Amish quilts, which are on display in the exhibition 'Amish Abstractions' at the de Young...Read more

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