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Working on hidden stitches in this month's block and found the stems
on one side of the block stopped before they reached the center stem.
The ends are finished so it must have been done for a reason but why???
I am so intrigued by these old quilts. I wish I could find the plug on them, and sit back and listen to what the woman was thinking while she made them. Like, did she have a pattern or make it up from memory or just cut the pieces to please herself. I wonder if the stems are “imperfect” section of the quilt, so as not to be vain. I wonder if Barbara Brackman would know. Now I will go crazy trying to figure this one out too, lol! I love this quilt so much, so wonderful. Thank you so much for sharing. Oh, and tell Clutch there is an older blonde in Texas, Jami, who says woof!
Probably she pulled an oopsie like I did. The other day, started sewing my stem down from the top and accidently ended up cutting it too short! I on the other hand, threw the project down,walked away,came back and proceeded to unstitch and remove the now too short stem and start again! But I’m thinking that when that quilt was made money,fabric and TIME was not wasted.So she decided to leave it. This is a very interesting quilt the stories it could tell….
Why, because some “helped” and did not start at the stem end but the bud end. And sometimes done is better than perfect.
And I notice there are some leaves that didn’t quite make it to the stem! My guess is that she decided that these were problems she could live with it! I think these kinds of problems just add to the charm of the quilt!
I’d bet that when she prepped the blocks, she thought she’d put enough fabric on the ends but in actuality had not. I think it’s an intriguing solution to a problem that crops up every now and then with applique. I’ve done it myself, though I corrected it. Or maybe she just didn’t have enough fabric!
Maybe she was trying it out.
My first applique project had all the leaves seperate from the stems, and the wreath stem had breaks in it (my pattern). When she saw it, my applique teacher said – well, next time you’ll attach the leaves.
I am not sure that I will:)
It’s funny how we strive for perfection with our applique, yet we are drawn to the vintage quilts and their uniqueness. Maybe if we were less consumed with perfection and more relaxed, our work would reflect this. It’s challenging for me when I quilt. Is it good enough? Is good enough good enough? Usually it is!