Today I’m showing a quilt I bought at a block sale a couple of weeks ago.
It’s Amish style, but not Amish made. It’s a Chinese import quilt, but one of the nicer ones that are sold in high end stores. It’s made by American Pacific Enterprises.
The quilt is machine sewn with 3″ nine patch blocks set with 3″ squares and alternating solid red squares.
The quilt came with two matching shams. I don’t use them..they just don’t “float my boat” and a true Amish quilt wouldn’t come with shams.
I paid $5 for the set.
It has some “issues”, which is why the seller was getting rid of them.
A polyester batting was used and the fibers are bearding out of the quilt.
Bearding is when tufts of the fibers come through the fabrics and form “beards” on the quilt.
I don’t like Polyester batting for that reason. Years ago it was all we could get and some of my early quilts which were used pretty heavily no longer have any batting in them.
A few years ago I had another quilt like this which I bought on ebay. I’ve always been fond of Amish style quilts.
My DIL asked if I could make my son a robe from an old quilt. He had a habit of walking around the house with a quilt wrapped around him and she thought if he had a robe it would leave his hands free to do things. My pics aren’t the best…they are pre-digital camera and before I knew I might blog it some day.
I used the quilt I had, which was a twin size and had to add a bit to the length. The blue and black stripes at the bottom weren’t original. I have to admit, that even though I hadn’t made the quilt it was hard for me to cut into it!
The quilting is pretty standard Amish style designs.
There are feathered wreaths in the solid red setting blocks, and straight lines quilted through the double nine patches.
There are pumpkin seeds quilted in the squares of the inner border, with echo quilting in the setting triangles of the that border.
The corner squares of the inner border have a flower design. In my pic of that red corner square you can see more bearding. It’s really a shame that Poly batting was used.
The outer border has a feathered vine design. I took a pic from the back side because the black quilting on the black border didn’t show up very well in my pics.
A true Amish quilt would have a little more quilting added. There would be quilting in the ditch around all blocks and borders. They usually fill all of the spaces in the design with quilting.
Tags: Amish quilt, bearding, Chinese import quilt, Double Nine Patch quilt, hand quilted, Polyester batting, robe made from quilt, solid fabrics
Thanks for sharing this Ann and am sorry I haven’t responded yet to your answer to my question about the quilting on this. As you know I’m nearly ready to quilt one using this same “pattern” – I’d like to stay in the Amish style but don’t want it “girly” because it’s for my master bed. The seeds are a great idea. And wreaths – boy, not sure I want to quilt that many but may have to. Sadly, I agree about the shams. And on a polyester note – there’s a well-known Mennonite quilter (originally from the US but now in Germany) who promotes polyester batting. Ew – cotton is the way to go if you ask me.
Two things that I love – Amish style and 9-patches!
Iove this whole post. The quilting with the black thread is great. I also really like the wreath with the cross hatching.
Thanks for sharing all these great pieces.
The robe is really great. What a fun idea, especially if he is a quilt snuggler. I’ll bet it was hard to cut!
I’m with you on the shams…
I love the visual impact of this quilt. Polyester batting should never have been invented. The quilting looks like it could be freehand.
What an interesting robe! Perfect for someone who likes to walk around snuggled in a quilt (I do that sometimes too :0)
What a great quilt, this is the one I commented on, you had something sitting on it in a photo. Very graphic. This would be a great one to reproduce….so many ideas! Hope you are feeling better and better.
Really too bad about the polyester batting, because it’s a very nice design and I like the colors a lot. My first quilt (in the 70s) was made with polyester batting, and although it didn’t beard, it is completely flat and limp now. I normally use Quilter’s Dream Request.
I love the idea of the robe — so clever!
Amish is one of my favorite styles of quilt. i’ve made a few tops but only have one finished (i made for my dh). it is a nine patch and has the large outer borders . . . i used my own hand dyed fabrics and was pleased with the results. maybe i should think about blogging it before it’s worn out~!
libbyQ
I like the deep bright colors of this quilt.
I have made one quilt from poly and it will be the last too. The quilt is lovely and wow on the robe, what a fine job.
Love Amish quilts too. Poly battings are responsible for the demise of many early quilts. None of the quilts I made in the 1990s have survived, but they were well used and loved, so that makes me happy!
Five dollars for the set?!!!! Astounding. It is a lovely quilt and I hope it can be rescued somehow despite the bearding.
Hope you are feeling better.
I also love the Amish style quilts for their simplicity and color combinations. Despite it’s issues, this one is still quite pretty! I love the robe, sounds like just what your son needed
Thank you once again for sharing your quilts and stories!
Very interesting post! I think you solved this task brilliantly. You did not have to cut up a good quilt, and the one in question has a new life. That is a very special robe! Quilts may be high fashion, one of these days! Thank you for sharing!
What a wonderful way to repurpose a quilt. The robe is brilliant! I do LOVE the colors and simplicity/complexity of the (real) Amish quilts. : )
Hi Ann, I love this quilt, I really lean strongly towards traditional type quilts and this one has such a great story. That’s amazing, $5!!! Trust you to find a bargain like that. Lovely job on the robe, Ann. You always come up with such wonderful solutions to any quilty problem. I pray that you’re feeling better these days. Sending you great healing (((HUGS))). Take care, my friend.
Linda
Sounds like a deal that couldn’t be passed up. I strongly dislike poly batting and not only because it beards, but because of the way it feels.
what a novel idea to make a robe!!
I too purchased this quilt many moons ago. Don’t remember how much I paid for it but I’m sure it wasn’t more than $10. I bought mine at an outdoor swapmeet in Orange county, California. Although it was made overseas, I was drawn to the colors with just that bit of pink. Mine didn’t come with pillow shams. So I’d say with your $5 price, you got a great deal.
Mine lays over a quilt rack in my den and is used by the grandkids or whenever someone is feeling a bit cold.
Terry in So. Calif.
I have to admit this caught my eye. Sparkly. Then I read on and thought “well, huh… Chinese import?” Ironic. I’m not actually into Amish style. I’ve never had the chance. The woman my father married did some fairly nice quilting in the earlier years of her life and now, with her aging alcoholic self, can’t shut up about what she did (read: karen’s work doesn’t count this way) and the only quilts that matter are Amish quilts. So now… I know this is childish but… she’s ruined them for me. Not fair. I know. But I did have visions of beauty when I looked at this one and saw it sparkle!