I sit on a bench in the Blennerhassett Museum trying to figure out why the quilt hanging in front of me has so captured my attention. I'm generally attracted to quilts displaying eye-catching colors, fine piecework, and delicate stitching, but this is a crazy quilt with big, uneven chunks of heavy fabric, possibly wool, in muted colors. The embroidery seems to be telling a story, but whoever encoded the message failed to pass on the key. I see the number 40 surrounded by flowers, an owl on a branch, a peculiar horned circle inscribed with Mom, a butterfly surrounded by more flowers, a large DAD hovering above what looks like a fenceline, more birds and flowers. Someone put an immense amount of love and care into creating this quilt--but who? Most of the quilts on display are marked with the names of their makers and dates of creation, but this one says Maker and quilter unknown.
Other quilts demonstrate more skill and artistic merit; I'm particularly drawn to one that resembles stained glass and another called Beautiful Day dotted with medallions designed to evoke sunrise. Cheerful colors and delicate stitching--my kind of quilt.
Taking an afternoon off to visit a quilt show isn't everyone's idea of a good time, but that's my kind of me time. One of these days I'd like to go on a textile tour and visit quilt and costume and historic clothing museums all over the place, and a close-up look at the Bayeux Tapestry would keep me floating on air for ages. For now, though, I have to content myself with viewing beautiful things close to home and wishing I could thank the people who made them, even if some names will never be known.
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| Beautiful Day |
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| Crazy quilt, unknown maker. |
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