I have been interested in vintage quilts for a very long time. Along with the vintage blocks that I have been blogging about, my collection includes vintage quilt tops and vintage quilts. Some are in good shape; others had outlived their usefulness as quilts, but were purchased for a purpose. Thirty years ago I got caught up in the trend of using old, worn out vintage quilts for clothing, bears, dolls, and other decorative items. That is when I first heard the term "cutter quilts".
Cutter quilts have damaged areas--holes, spots or worn places--but have areas that are still in good enough condition to use for smaller items. As with other aspects of quilting, cutter quilts are once again being talked about. All kinds of ideas for using them can be found online. Just search for "cutter quilt crafts".
Recently I pulled out some of my cutter quilt scraps to make Christmas ornaments.
All were made from simple shapes--"three tiered" snowmen; angel heads on hearts; stockings.
The snowmen are a single layer of the quilt; the edges finished with the buttonhole stitch all around. After the faces were embroidered, the shapes were stiffened with a 50/50 mixture of Elmer's glue and water. Once dry, the scarves were tied around their necks and held in place by stitching on a button.
Both the hearts and stocking are lined--placed RST on the lining fabric; stitched around leaving an opening for turning. The angel heads are lined circles, hot-glued in place. Raffia creates their hair. A bow is tied under their chins; a small charm is stitched right under the bow knot.
The stocking is topped with vintage crochet edging which was basted in place before stitching the stocking piece to the lining. A bow is tacked to the upper right corner.
Because I did not know the makers of the cutter quilts that I bought, it was not difficult to cut them up. These small vintage quilt pieces have found new life in items that will (hopefully) be cherished!
