The whole reason this blog got started years ago was to showcase antique quilts and particularly those quilts unearthed through Quilt Documentation Days.
A documentation day typically starts with lots of greetings and "Get yourself a cup of coffee and a doughnut-" and "Oh my-that's a big pile of quilts you have there!" People line up with their treasures and as the volunteers hit their stride, the quilt owners move through the line and on to the documenters quickly.
Some volunteers might listen intently to the quilt owner and record an oral family history about the quilt at hand. This is an important step in the documentation process. As everyday objects, made-at-home quilts are usually taken for granted and treated as insignificant detritus once the maker had passed. But in recording its story, we are reinforcing to the quilt's owner that her quilt (and the person who made it) was and is important. Often a woman's quilts, besides her children, were her most enduring physical legacy.
Other volunteers are busy measuring and recording statistics such as the size of the quilt and noting its condition. Someone else has her head stuck in Brackman's Encyclopedia of Pieced Quilt Patterns trying to best name the variation of Churn Dash-Log Cabin-Grandmother's Fan that just walked in the door. Someone else is taking pictures. It is folk scholarship at its best and we love doing it here in North Carolina.In a little less than two weeks, there will be another Quilt Flap event. It's up the road a piece from where I live but if it's near you, you are welcome to come. This event is centered in Wayne County, North Carolina and the poster follows here.
Lynn Gorges is the main speaker at this event but I get to pet all the quilts! For more information, call the Wayne County Museum at (919) 734-5023.
What a great way to celebrate the first full day of Spring!
5 comments:
Hi
Is this done in all states? And how do you find out about it?
Kind regards
Sarah
Check out AQSG (American Quilt Study Group) and see about joining. Different regions do their documentations days differently. Lots of like-minded people and maybe an event near you!
Oooohhh - petting the quilts! You are so lucky! I walk around with my hands in my pockets to avoid touching vintage quilts. They have such a nice feel to them. I was at a quilt show where the doors were open because it was quite warm. There was an Oregon Trail quilt on display. A big fat fly landed on it so I decided it was OK to touch - I was not as dirty as that fly!
What fun that would be!
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