Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Types of Ephemera in my Collection

Here are some of the items that are in the collection:

- Ladies Art Company catalogs (1897-1930’s)
- Briggs & Company and Wm Briggs & Company (Transferring Pattern Catalogs,
Monogram Patterns)
- J.F. Ingalls (Booklets, Stamping Pattern Catalogs, Home Magazing, Home & Art
Magazine, Fancy Work Magazine)
- Other Stamping Pattern Company Catalogs & Designs (T.E. Parker, Bentleys, H.
Duff McDonald and others)
- Ruby Short McKim / McKim Studios (Kansas City Star, 101 Patchwork Patterns,
Designs Worth Doing, Patchwork Patterns)
- Newspaper Series Quilts (McKim Studios, Eveline Foland, Nancy Page/Florence
LaGanke, Margaret Techy, Nadine Bradley, C. Mullen, etc.)
- Pioneering Quilt Books (Marie Webster, Ruth Finley, Ruby Short McKim, Carrie
Hall & Rose Kretsinger, Florence Peto, Carlie Sexton, Mrs. Danner’s, Anne Orr)
- Batting Supply Companies (Mountain Mist, Lockport Batting, Rock River, Taylor
Bedding, Union Wadding Company)
- Pattern Companies: Grandmother Clark, Alice Brooks, Laura Wheeler, Aunt
Martha / Colonial Patterns, Aunt Ellen's / Workbasket, Virginia Snow Studios /
Grandma Dexter, Home Art Studios / Hubert Ver Mehren
- Magazines (Woman’s World, Child Life, Better Homes & Gardens, Home Friend,
Successful Farming, others)
- Quilt / Quilting Patterns (Kansas City Star, Omaha World-Herald, Cleveland Plain
Dealer, etc.)

This is a partial list - I keep adding to the collection as I find new things of interest.

Why I Collect Quilt Ephemera

Quilt Ephemera from the late 1800's to the early 1900's

I am dedicated to the preservation and documenting of quilt ephemera. As the old quilters leave us, many leave behind their prized collections of clippings, batting wrappers, pamphlets and booklets. These are often found in tattered old paper-board boxes, sometimes tied together with ribbons. In many cases, these are discarded and lost forever. It is important to future generations of quilters to be able to identify these old patterns to help date the quilts made from them.

Once I rescue them from estate or garage sales, or purchase them from vintage paper dealers, the patterns are placed in acid free plastic sleeves, ready to be shared with my fellow quilters. I have several vintage quilts, tops and blocks that correspond to the old patterns.

Friday, June 15, 2007

Greetings!

Hello, I have been collecting quilt related ephemera for over 5 years and want to share with you my findings. My collection dates from the late 1800's to the mid-1900's. My main focus areas are: series quilts (and their designers) published in newspapers across the country from the mid-teens to the mid-1949's; the Ladies Art Company and early redwork embroidery. I have blocks, tops and quilts that correspond to many of the series quilts and early redwork.

I guess my fondness for needlework started when I learned redwork it at my mother's knee when I was six years old. My paternal grandmother taught me to sew on the machine when I was eight. By the time I was ten, I had mastered knitting, crocheting, embroidery and sewing.

As time permits, I will post information regarding my research. I hope you enjoy it.