Monday 15 July 2013

Sewing in the shade . . .


The Christian work ethic is a hard one to ditch.  I find it very difficult, when I have a long list of jobs "still to do", to give myself time off to just sit out in the garden with a good book, much as I would like to.  Anyway, I justified some garden time yesterday once it got too hot to paint in the attic, and took out this old Welsh quilt to mend.  It has some missing quilting stitches, and a couple of bits needed darning, so I spent a couple of extremely pleasant hours outside with my needle.  Bliss . . .


I am trying to date the materials used.  Any suggestions?


A close-up of the quilting design (a very basic one, worked in green and red stitching.)  It has a well-worn blanket as the lining.


All SENSIBLE cats were in the shade.  Here's Alfie . . .


And his mum Miffy . . .


Fluff likes the sunshine though.  With her rusty coat, she is looking more like her mum every day . . .


And finally wee Banshee.  She is out all the time at the moment - she loves hot summer nights for hunting.  But sometimes you have to catch up on your sleep . . . This windowsill is one floor up - reached via the scaffolding, which is STILL HERE!!!  Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

8 comments:

  1. What a beautiful quilt :) And what an idyllic way to spend the afternoon :) Love the photos of the cats snoozing!!

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  2. I enjoy seeing your old quilts. My friend is Welsh and she just finished a quilt with a blanket lining. I understand it's quite a traditional way of working.
    Urg! scaffolding. I have a permanent head ache due to the constant bangs on the head. It's low over every doorway.

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  3. I am going to take a wild flying leap on the quilt material but I would say a possible anywhere from 30's to 40's and maybe a possible 50's material?
    Love all of the kitties. Cats are sensible, when its hot, they crash where ever and enjoy the day, but people work themselves to death in the heat. I am all for napping and enjoying the day, when ever I get a break to do so.
    Love all of your photos you are showing, especially on the header, just stunning views.
    Take care and have a wonderful week.
    Hugs

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  4. Trust a cat to find a way up on scaffolding. Banshee looks lovely - I had a tabby (Max) who I loved dearly. He got run over when he was about eleven years old - I was so sad.
    Not sure about the date of that material but I agree it looks around mid twentieth century I would think.

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  5. My feeling was probably 1950s but then apparently that large polka dot material was popular earlier. Unless she had a "stash", probably not 1940s because everything was rationed. I will have to do some more research.

    Scaffolding chap "very busy" so Lord knows when it will be taken down. We may have to go back on the market complete with scaffolding . . .

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  6. I would have said 1950's too. The Banshee picture is absolutely gorgeous. I'm wilting here too....

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  7. Your cats all look very 'chilled'! I look forward to seeing your quilt when it's fully restored. I went to the Welsh Quilt exhibition in Lampeter last year and am now a real fan. Jx

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  8. How like a cat to go up the scaffolding to a lovely private perch!
    The red-flowered fabric has a familiar look--I had a pinafore in the late 40's of a similar 'feed sack' material. I have a photo to prove it--I was about 4 years old!

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