Wednesday 3 August 2016

Melbourne magic

Last week my daughter and I met up at Sydney airport and zoomed interstate for a few days to Melbourne. A highlight for me was to be a visit to the National Gallery of Victoria, to their exhibition  The Making of the Australian Quilt. It did not disappoint - exquisite antique quilts, beautifully displayed!

The Mary Tolman quilt 
And here's what I'm gazing at ...divine fabrics and tiny stitches!




No I don't know the lady - she looks mesmerised
Have a look at Miriam's post for her favourite quilt. I couldn't pick one I liked best - loved so many of them! There are also some great pics at The History Blog. If you click on their photos the detail is amazing. It was a great opportunity to get up close and examine the detail of the quilters' work. 

We had fun reading all the 'words of wisdom' on The Westbury quilt: 






Wonderful fussy cut paper piecing (above) in an unfinished hexagon quilt made by the wife of the Governor of NSW around 1846. Sadly she never completed it as she was killed in a carriage accident in 1847.

The old recycled printed papers still in unfinished work makes for a history study in itself - and there's me squinting to read them. 


Inspirational borders that caught my eye:
Quilt by Mary Jane Hannaford

 









It was very exciting for DD and I to see the original Auntie Green coverlet 

Such a variety of beautiful colours. Quite a masterpiece - especially considering the limitations of lighting at the time.


This was the version I made as a wedding gift for DD in her choice of neutral shades. It was made from the pattern by Irene Blanck (with some little variations).




I do love it and the colours she chose ...but now I am seriously tempted to make a more colourful version for myself. Add that to the 'To Do' list ...

Some momentos from the NGV - including a beautifully illustrated, heavy publication, a cloth tote bag, magnet, book mark and card.  

Sadly the Auntie Green does not feature in the book.  Good thing I took a lot of photos!

And what else did we do in Melbourne? We also enjoyed the exhibition of Australian Fashion through the Ages (also at the NGV) 
I was fascinated by the hand stitched detail in some of the older pieces - so many buttonholes stitched by hand! No sewing machines till 1850's. 

And then there were a lot of more colourful modern creations. Which would you rather be wearing, given a choice?! 
The pant suit looks comfortable and she must be a busy sewer - just look how many threads she's picked up!


I popped in to the Melbourne Quilt Show to see the Victorian Quilt Showcase. There were some lovely quilts - especially some expert broderie perse and hand quilting. Unfortunately no photo sharing allowed - sorry. If you click on the link there are pictures of a few of the quilts that won ribbons. One of them is a lovely machine quilted Caswell quilt (Threadbear pattern by Corliss Searcey) but there was also another Caswell that was beautifully hand appliqued and hand quilted - just gorgeous. 

We caught up with Melbourne friends, caught a musical (Mathilda), a movie (the new Ghostbusters), a few delicious meals at little eateries, and explored the shops - perfect!
Now back to quilting with renewed energy...

39 comments:

  1. Thank you so much for sharing the story and photos! I love your blog so much - it is inspiring in every post :-)

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  2. Wow, what a feast for the eyes! I was particularly interested in the Auntie Green's garden story (and to see your rendition again). Thanks for sharing.

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  3. I'm not surprised when you wrote you're very inspired by so many beauties.... I can't wait to admire your new and future quilt !
    Thank you for these wonderful photos ! The one with your DD in front of the Auntie Green's quilt is beautiful !

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  4. a friend has one of the antique quilts in the exhibition..........would love to see it.........

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  5. A lovely post Hilda......it made me more excited about my trip to Melbourne next week! I'm looking for inspiration for my next quilt and I think I might find it there.

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  6. What a treat to see these amazing quilts in person. Thank you for sharing them with us! Auntie Green's quilt with your daughter is wonderful and it was great to see yours again!

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  7. I would like to see that red quilt with all the words in person. What an interesting quilt.

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  8. These wonderful exhibits changed my gloomy morning to bright. Great quilts, a wonderfully thoughtful variety and a splendid display. Thank you so much for sharing.

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  9. what a wonderful day you had. I would have been able to spend hours looking at all these old quilts. It is amazing the work done in years back without all the modern tools so many consider necessary to make a quilt when really all it takes (besides fabric) is needle, thread, & scissors and paper! thank you so much for sharing I will check out the links you gave - I do believe the Miriam you mention at the top is a blog I used to follow and lost address for

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  10. Thanks for sharing. I will have to come back and see this post again.
    I also need to check how long this exhibition will be on.
    Beautiful women, you and DD.
    Cheers.

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  11. Oh my, what a wonderful time you had. Thank you so much for sharing your adventure. I would love to see some of these in person. I would like to add that your version of the Auntie Green quilt is my favorite. So subtle and sweet. Of course if you do one with color it will be equally as stunning!

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  12. What beautiful quilts. All those hexagons take my breath away! I am glad you had a fabulous time with your daughter. Can't wait to see what you create with all that inspiration you have received.

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  13. thank you for sharing, much appreciated.

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  14. Thanks for sharing, beautiful quilts. I love hexagons.

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  15. What a great opportunity to actually see original quilts. So inspiring, thank you for sharing.

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  16. What a wonderful show! Thanks so much for sharing them--so lovely and inspiring!

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  17. Oh my! Such incredible work. Thanks much for sharing!

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  18. Oh my! Such incredible work. Thanks much for sharing!

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  19. What a treasure trove of beautiful quilts. So many ideas floating around in my mind. It's amazing that a little red diamond repeated throughout the quilt made it sparkle so. I loved the crochet trim between the hexagon border points. Thanks so much for sharing.

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  20. Wonderful trip and great pictures to share your adventure. LOVED seeing and reading about Auntie Green's Garden. I also enjoyed seeing you trying to read the newspaper print on the back of the paper pieced blocks. When I get a packaged stuffed with newsprint I always try to straighten it out and read even if it is current just from a different place.

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  21. What beautiful pictures of some gorgeous quilts!! I love the white on red quilt - so interesting! I am sorely tempted by Auntie Green too - it looks like such a fun project with lots of variety of flowers to appliqué. How lovely to enjoy the day with your daughter 😀

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  22. Such a wonderful post.I enjoyed it so much. Thank you so much for sharing. Aunty Green is on my dream list too!

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  23. Thanks for all the beautiful pictures. Especially Auntie Green!....and for another chance to see yours. Mine is on hold right now til probably October...can't wait to get back at it!

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  24. Wow! They look like wonderful and amazing quilts to see up close and personal. Thanks for the lovely photos.

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  25. What a wonderful trip you had! So many gorgeous quilts to "ooh and aah" over. Enjoyed seeing the original Auntie Green. Yours too, it's a masterpiece!

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  26. Thank you for taking the time to share such wonderful photos of those beautiful quilts. It was so great to see the original Auntie Green quilt, but yours is also a masterpiece. I'm sure after seeing such inspirational pieces I'm sure you are anxious to get going on another awesome piece. Glad you had a wonderful holiday.

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  27. What a wonderful time you had! Thank you for sharing. I'm hoping to get to the quilt exhibition before long.

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  28. How wonderful to be able to share this exhibition with your daughter so that she could see the original Auntie Green. I am so excited about being able to see this quilt next weekend, I can't wait! Thanks for including pics of your gorgeous neutral version to see again.

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  29. thank you for the sharing
    Marianne (belgium)

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  30. Thank you for sharing these wonderful works of art!

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  31. Great photos, thank you for sharing. I hope to go to the exhibition with a friend in the near future, when she has recovered from a recent op.

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  32. Dear Hilda it such a long time since I dropped in and what a day to drop in!!!! How lovely to have these days with your DD this kind of time out is so special, and for her to see the original quilt her beautiful Wedding quilt was made from was very special. I feel like I went on the trip with you seeing all these photos; I have also dropped in to the links my goodness that red quilt that won best of show is incredible. Would love to see the crazy quilt all those tiny beautiful embroidery stitches around the patches, hrs and hrs of fine stitches. Thanks so much for been so generous taking the time to do this huge write up, its almost as good as been there. Cheers Glenda

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  33. Thank you much for sharing this, it is awesome to see such lovely items that have survived.

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  34. I've never seen borders like those before. Lace and fringe? Interesting...

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  35. Great share, thanks for the exhibition photos.

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  36. Did they lay some of the quilts over the lace? Or was the lace part of the quilt? Quite interesting. So many beautiful quilts, so inspirational thanks for sharing just what I needed to inspire me now that our move is over. I was having a bit of difficulty getting back in the groove.

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  37. Oh I forgot to mention, your quilt looks quite at home with all the beauties in the show! Bravo!

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  38. Would be much more comfortable in the gorgeously made gown (if my waist was smaller!). Thank you for sharing such lovely images of the exhibit - a great presentation showing the hexie backs too.

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