Textiles and the Triplett Sisters

This year the Triplett Sisters made the momentous decision to carry Dutch Heritage reproduction fabrics in our shop. There are extra challenges and expenses when carrying imported fabrics. However, Kay and I have always loved these fabrics from “first sight.” We appreciate the quality, the brilliant color, and the design which is true to 17th and 18th century fabrics in both scale and pattern. I have designed more quilts with these Dutch fabrics than I will ever be able to assemble. (Note: I will continue to try making all of them!) The Dutch have a long history of textile manufacture starting with wool and linen, with major textile production taking place in Leiden, Amsterdam, Utrecht, Delft, and Haarlem. In fact, the textile industry was so vibrant that linen merchants from other areas of Europe sent their...

As I write this, it was 100 years ago today August 18, 1920 that women got the right to vote in the US. The 19th Amendment was ratified by enough states, the three-fourths required. However, the push for women’s right to vote started about 100 years before the right to vote was passed. It wasn’t until the 1848 Women’s Right Convention in Seneca Falls that a coalition was formed. The Seneca Falls Convention also known as the first women’s rights convention advertised the event “to discuss social, civil, and religious condition and rights of woman.” After worship on Sunday July 9th, 1848 Lucretia Coffin Mott (a well-known orator), Mary Ann M’Clintock, Martha Coffin Wright (Mott’s sister), Jane Hunt, and Elizabeth Cady Stanton met for tea and began discussions about the convention. The convention would be held...

We are pleased to announce the first in our Jewelry of the Month series: Golden Amour. This jewelry project uses paper piecing which in England and America is sometimes called English Paper Piecing. It really should be known as Italian paper piecing, since this oldest known example of this technique is an Italian pillow known as the Impruneta Cushion which dates from the 15th century. If you’d like to join us on the Jewelry of the Month journey and make your own version of this necklace, bracelet, or earrings, then check out our YouTube video to see instructions. Or we have detailed instructions and kits available in our Etsy shop at this link. I’ve love to see the pieces of jewelry that you make, so please post photos in the comments on our Facebook and YouTube...

I was all set to continue the open access discussion with a look at the Los Angeles County Museum of Arts. They have more than 20,000 images available, with hundreds of quilts from 16th century on to the 21st century. The majority of these quilt images are available for free use in either publication quality or presentation quality. However in the middle of my exploration of these quilt images came several revelations. For those who have a bias toward the east coast for quilts, you may be astonished to see the early indigo resist quilt, not only one, but yes a matched set. The quilt originated in Connecticut, but clearly has found a home at LACMA. LACMA houses the Betty Horton Collection from a woman who wanted a comprehensive collection of American and European quilts. In...

If you’ll recall, The Triplett Sisters were fortunate enough to have research time at Winterthur Textiles. However, that doesn’t mean there isn’t a lot to see just by visiting the Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library. The Galleries showcase the permanent collection as well as highlight themed exhibitions. The textiles in the galleries were amazing and are worthy of multiple blogs. I’ll try to restrain myself to two articles. One Chintz quilt is worthy of a blog by itself, simply filled with wonderful fabrics. You’ll notice this article is filled with multiple images from the quilt. Sadly, neither my sister nor I took photos of the title card. We were simply captivated by the fabric contained in the quilt. However, to learn more about it, here is the link to the info about the quilt made by...