Tuesday, May 24, 2016

Hold the Presses ...

I was wondering what to blog about considering how little actual quilting has been accomplished on the home front, but then this:

An incredible gift today, from a new friend at our quilt ministry - a huge group of about 35 hand embroidered, hand-crocheted vintage runners and tablecloths, made by my friend's now deceased mother's neighbor's mother.  Trusting you can follow that genealogy - just suffice it to say since my friend and I are both 70, these pieces are probably at least that old!  Most are in excellent condition, some probably never used, others with just a bit of staining that will probably soak out.

The best part is, these were all created by a Polish immigrant woman from the same general neighborhood my grandparents lived when they were first married.  While some are made from store-bought embroidery patterns, many of the pieces are hand-drawn folk-art authentic Polish embroideries in traditional colors.  With all hand-crocheted lace borders on nearly every piece. Love!!!!!   So, without further ado, here are some of these new treasures.










I think this next one, the largest tablecloth, may also be the oldest, it has certainly seen the most wear, but the gorgeous heavy 4-inch wide lace is still in perfect condition.

Feeling very blessed today!

9 comments:

Kyle said...

What incredible workmanship. The colors are so vibrant and I especially like the more whimsical looking flowers. What a sweet group of linens to treasure

Lee said...

Beautiful! What a neat treasure. I have a handful of older embroidered cloths like these, but unfortunately, most I have no idea of who did the work.

Chantal said...

Beautiful needlework. Such variety in style and shapes. The first and third pictures look familiar to me. I think Mother had something similar sooooo long ago. She used to do the lace around everything too. thanks for sharing these gorgeous little gems from the past. ;^)

Janet O. said...

Wow--such an amazing and thoughtful gift. A great connection to your heritage, in a rather circuitous way.

Dana Gaffney said...

You really are blessed, they are beautiful and an amazing gift.

Ruth said...

Those are lovely. I love vintage linens!

Barbara said...

Beautiful stuff. I have tons of it (literally, tons) in my cedar chest all made by my grandmother. One of these days I'm going to make a quilt from it. It's been sitting in the dark long enough.

Teresa in Music City said...

Wow - those are so beautiful! What a treasure trove and obviously made by a talented lady. So nice to know that they have landed in the hands of someone who will value and care for them as they deserve. Those crocheted borders are simply amazing!

Lara B. said...

What a treasure trove! So glad that someone preserved and cared for them, because her work is lovely!