Doily Quilts

 Many quilters and crafters have been making "doily quilts" the last decade.  There's a variety of them on google that you can view. Doily and crocheted items are abundant in antique stores, flea markets, and yard sales.  

In the Martha Washington book that I discussed yesterday, there was also a notation about them:

Clearly this idea meant embroidered doilies.  Doilies as many of us realize, were made using a variety of techniques.  My great-grandmother was known for her cut-work doilies and table squares.  No matter what the younger generation thinks of doiles and table squares now, these were made to protect furniture because back then, the table, chair or sideboard you bought was to last a lifetime.

Although I haven't found many references to doily quilts in books, I did find a local newspaper that referenced one:

1928 Allentown PA

In my own collection of quilts, I have a quilt that I love:

Back when I purchased it, I still had a bed in the sewing room and used it on the twin bed.  The roses featured in the center went well with my rose wallpaper and I liked the old pink color; I think the color is called "ashes of roses" and was popular during the Victorian era and the early 20th century.

The piece features cutwork roses.  

Note the embroidery also on the piece!

Actually this piece could have been one or two table squares.  When you follow the seams (difficult to see on this photo) it's a large four patch:

It's hard to know or if the maker just loved doing cutwork or--if she loved pink roses as much as I do!  I would date this quilt "first half of the 20th century" because it's difficult to know when it was made.  

Have you ever seen anything that resembled a doily quilt?  Have you made one yourself?

Have a safe and happy day!