HISTORY OF THE ANTIQUE QUILT USED TO CREATE THIS TREE:
An
antique quilt with colorful pinwheel blocks, cut into two
different-sized pieces, was gifted to me by a dear friend a while back.
She had rescued it from an 1800s farmhouse in Vermont & knew, as a
quilter, I could probably do something with it. Alongside the quilt
pieces she had found diaries spanning a few decades, a bible inscribed
1874, an old doll cradle with the name "Emma" painted on the top rim,
among other wonderful finds. After spending weeks reading the diaries,
my friend informed me that she had learned more about the history of the
quilt. It had been made by a girl named Emma Taylor Fisher in the mid
1800s. It had been one of her earlier, novice quilts & not well
done, so she cut it to have a piece that would fit into her doll cradle.
The smaller piece of the quilt fit perfectly into the cradle, &
explained why the quilt had been cut into two sections! I kept the
bigger section & re-worked it into a lovely quilt I now hang in my
home every spring. I held onto the sweet, smaller section for a long
time, not quite knowing what I should do with it just yet. This holiday
season, I suddenly felt inspired to begin repurposing old quilts into
beautiful decorations & I remembered this quilt piece I had lovingly
saved for something special. It is this smaller section of quilt Emma
used in her doll cradle that I used to create this Christmas tree
decoration. It is an amazing feeling to finally give new life to Emma's
quilt and to know her story continues....& a new one begins for you!