A Family Treasure

Today I am going to share with you a quilt that I am very proud of. My grandmother (Memaw Peggy) was so sweet to ask me if I wanted to have this lovely quilt that her grandmother made. She wanted to ensure it was passed down in the family and well taken care of. (I do not normally keep the quilt on this bed, it is way too fragile to be in use)

She and a group of her friends each made a block and embroidered their name or initials on their block. She hand pieced and hand quilted it. She was very proud of this quilt and never used it, but loved to show it to others.

This is her block and her name was Lou Daisy Barns and later Thompson after she was married. I love how she added the daisies to her initials. She made this quilt around 1902 or 1903 and she was married in 1903. She is in the center of this picture along with her sisters, Willie and Bawnie. Later in life she was called Granny Thompson.

Each name is embroidered differently depending on each lady's preference. I especially like these beautiful scrolling capital letters. I wonder whose these belonged to. If you look at the initials close enough you can still see pencil marks beneath the stitching.

I am sorry to say that this quilt has gone through a rough patch in its life. My grandmother can remember when Granny Thompson would get this quilt out often and share it with her. She was so proud of it. Many years later after she passed away, my grandmother tried to find it, but couldn't.
Sadly the quilt ended up in one family member's possession who did not care for it and as you can see it received a lot of damage. Many years later my grandmother found it again and took care of it. She shared this story with me last year. This year she asked me if I would continue to care for it.

I wish I could have seen how it looked in 1903. When you look close you can tell that the olive green used to be more of an emerald green. This picture of the quilt back does not do the hand quilting justice. The stitches are so little and pretty.

There are so many generations touched by this quilt. Not just in my family, but in the families of each lady that made a block. It is fascinating to think how many people have a tie to this work of art. There is so much history here and I am so honored to be the one to care for this quilt until it is time to pass it down to the next generation.
Have a wonderful weekend!
Candace