Textiles and the Triplett Sisters

The large central star pattern in a quilt is usually associated with American patchwork, according to the V & A. Although the pattern has been found in other countries, so it isn’t exclusive to America. This pattern is considered one of the older quilt patterns. At this time, no date inscribed quilt using the large central star has been found in the early 19th century. However, dating quilts using the fabric provides many examples after 1820. During the early period of the star pattern, the most frequent name used was Star of Bethlehem which was used throughout the United States. This name of course relates to the large star guiding the wise men to the town of Bethlehem to see baby Jesus. Mathematical Star was the early name used in England and the eastern coast of...

I’ve always loved the idea of making quilted postcards to send to fellow quilters, but I always had excuses. It takes too long and I’m behind on my sample quilts…the post office will just tear it up…I already see these ladies regularly so why take the time to make a postcard. Then almost a year into the pandemic, I don’t see my quilting bee regularly because the facility we meet at is closed to strangers. Our guild is meeting via Zoom, the list goes on. I realized; it is the perfect time to send a quilted postcard to bring a little joy to someone’s world. Of course, you could choose to piece, or applique a 4 x 6 block. However, I thought I’d look through some of my pre-printed textiles, that way I could make more...

As I was researching multiple antique Chintz fabrics, I was surprised to see two Chintz quilts that looked alike but were not in the Center Medallion style with lots of negative space. The Center Medallion Style is frequently credited to Charleston/Baltimore Area with Ascah Goodwin Wilkins et al receiving a lot of design credit.  It got me wondering if there was another design style for Chintz Quilts located in Philadelphia, PA and New Jersey. The Ladies of the Third Presbyterian Church created the two quilts that started my thought process. Both used the chintz fabric to create blocks of a consistent size and included a presentation block. Sarah Lawson Flickwir also made hers in Philly in the same style and time frame of 1840-46. The Ladies of the Second Presbyterian Church agreed with the ladies at...

As I was auditioning some fabric for a new quilt inspired by a 19th century quilt, I considered some animal print fabric. It made me wonder when pre-printed textiles in animal prints were first used and when did these prints begin appearing in quilts. It was my hope to find research done by a diligent expert to answer my questions. Sigh, no such luck! Society’s fascination with animals in art, can be traced back to cave art. As our early “culture” grew, we used animal skins for clothing, so no pre-printed textiles were needed (or available for that matter!) As the textile industry began, we see birds and animals depicted. Early Palampores show all manners of creatures including birds, mongooses, lions, tigers and…feet. (Yes, one Palampore even features feet, the human animal, because the Palampore was...

Okay, so I may be rushing the announcement of the new year, but really, I think 2020 has been a year most of us would like to forget or at least move forward. However, I don’t want to ignore the holiday season. Happy Hanukkah or Kwanza depending on what you celebrate. Merry Christmas to all, which is what we celebrate. Because Christmas is close to my heart, naturally my thoughts went to red and green quilts, which I’ve featured in the blog! In about a week, we will celebrate the new year with a new Triplett Sisters Block of the Month: Bird in a Lace Cage. If you haven’t already purchased the pattern to join us, please do! We’d love to have you working together with Kay Triplett and Cynthia Collier as our leaders. Here is...