Patchwork of the Crosses

One of the fun things to do in Paducah during the AQS Quilt Show is to visit the Rotary where there is always a special exhibit of quilts, an exhibit of the Hofmann challenge quilts, and, of course, more vendors!  This year, the special exhibit featured Hexagon quilts from the collection of Mary Kerr. None of the quilts displayed were Lucy Boston quilts, but I thought you might enjoy seeing them anyway.
Some of the quilts were very old and fragile, but, they were really, the "stars" of the exhibit.

Often times, in days past, a quilter would display her prized quilt as a back drop for a family picture.  

I thought this vintage quilt was special because I've never seen this setting before in a hexagon quilt. Don't the chevrons give the quilt an interesting look?

This was a fairly large quilt done with small hexies - lots of work in this one!

This old quilt was in very good condition for it's age.  As you can see, it was constructed in 1842.  All four borders were the same with the embroidered initials and date.  It's great to see such an old quilt that has been so well preserved.

This was one of my favorites.  Imagine the amount of work that went into piecing all those stars!

Of course, the nice thing about hexagons is the unlimited number of patterns you can design.  While we tend to think of Grandmother's Flower Gardern patterns first, diamond patterns were also very popular.

This was an example of an older quilt with flower rosettes, but pieced into a diamond setting.

I was really amazed that so many of the old quilts were made with really small hexagon shapes making the designs look very intricate.  They almost made my 1" honeycomb shapes seem "jumbo"!

What a fun exhibit!  My mind is just over-whelmed with the unending possibilities with English paper piecing.  I see more new projects in my future!

We have an extensive seclection of English Paper Piecing supplies.  Check out our website to order.  If you don't see the size of templates and papers you need, just call us and we'll get them for you.

Check our Pinterest Board to see pictures of the lovely Lucy Boston blocks sent in by our customers.

Check out Inklingo if you prefer to hand piece your hexagons without using the paper templates.  Inklingo will print out cutting and stitching lines on your fabric using your computer printer.