Textiles and the Triplett Sisters

The “stay-at-home” orders have officially ceased in many countries as well as all 50 states in the US. Which seems like a good time to mark an end to something horrible by celebrating what quilt art was accomplished. I want to call on everyone who is willing to share what quilts were created during the quarantine. A quilting friend of mine had made 7 quilt tops, as well as quilted and bound 2 quilts, a wall hanging and a table runner. She has also cut out a new quilt with 48 blocks and started an applique block for another quilt. She probably has both of those projects done too, as well as 3 others because that was the tally 2 weeks ago. What have you accomplished during the quarantine? It can be that you completed a...

Miniature Quilts don’t seem to get the acknowledgement they deserve. Any work of art should be appreciated, but I’ve noticed miniatures are rarely featured in magazines or blogs. In fact, I’m guilty too, I’ve never written a blog about miniature quilts. So now is the time to make up my deficit with a showcase of the miniature quilts from the Houston International Quilt Festival. Now, I agree that making full size quilts is an amazing feat, but so is making quilts that look full-size in a photo yet smaller than a ruler. Blocks in full size quilts that are 12 inches can be the entire size of a mini. If you think paper piecing with an inch size is a tiny block, try a ½ inch. Smaller is not easier, except maybe in the basting process....

The 45th anniversary of the Houston Quilt Festival occurred this year and was very memorable for multiple reasons. The multi-level display of beautiful blue and white quilts was an amazing way to honor the accomplishments of all those workers, vendors, and quilt artists who have contributed to this event for 45 years. The two founders of the festival Karey Patterson Bresenhan and Nancy O’Bryant Puentes continue to be involved in the festival and share their love of quilts. I was pleased to teach 8 classes, 2 demos, and provided 3 gallery talks for our special exhibition. “Antique Quilts from the Poos Collection” exhibited 25 quilts from our newest book “Hidden Treasures, Quilts from 1600 to 1860.” Besides our special exhibition, there were many other special exhibitions, which will be our focus in an upcoming series of...

The history of Dutch Costume includes chintz. The costumes of the Netherlands vary by region, but the folk costumes have an explosion of colors and designs. Did I also mention that it includes wearing chintz? Bright beautiful bold prints, perfect for interior décor or quilts or clothes. Chintz that can’t be missed and should never be forgotten. The costume museum also preserved the stories told through the costumes worn. For example, the fisherman sweaters in which each village knitted a pattern common to the town. Then, when a man went overboard and washed up on shore, they knew in which village the man had resided. In Spakenburg, each woman makes her own the handmade bonnet, creating a self-invented pattern. The crocheting of these bonnets is very labor intensive requiring about a hundred hours to create a...

Prior to the Van Loon family settling in Amsterdam, the family (one of the founders of the VOC known in the US as Dutch East India Company) traces their origins to a small village in the Netherlands. In the middle of the 17c part of the family moved to Amsterdam where the family would become “regents of the city.” The canal house turned into a museum was bought by the family in 1884 and it is still owned by the family. For those quilters who enjoy Dutch Heritage fabrics or glories of Chintz in quilts, you will certainly understand the fascination of our visit to the family house turned museum. The family had access and dare I say the pick of the crop of the fabrics they imported to the Netherlands and the house remains decorated...