This is the first of a series of bookmarks I'm going to make in the style of American Civil War quilts. (Civil War: 1861-1865)
These bookmarks will show all the beautiful traditional elements of quilts of that era:
the typical rich patterns, fabrics with a traditional design of flowers and diamonds and blocks and stripes, the autumn-like colors of quilts of that time:
gray, olive, beige, a pale blue, brown, auburn, a warm yellow.... They should also have a certain "rural touch", represented by rough quilting stitches and a durable quality, that means for me: they shouldn't feel too soft or delicate.
Here is a picture of a typical Civil War quilt, it is from an exhibition at the New England Quilt Museum in Massachusetts:
(http://images.patronmail.com/pmailemailimages/1886/325649/articles_19.jpg)
An incredibly rich source of information on American Civil War quilts and many wonderful instructions can be found here:
http://civilwarquilts.blogspot.de
Also: here is a very good article on Civil War quilts:
http://www.kellybutterbaugh.com/completecwquiltarticle.html
I think that the concept of "war" equals a declaration of bankruptcy and is a betrayal of all accomplishments that culture and civilization have given to mankind -
so I want these bookmarks to be reminiscent of that time but also in a way transcend the cruelty of war, so I give them the shape of a leaf....
My bookmarks will all be 21 x 6 cm (8,26" x 2,36"), they are sewn and quilted by hand, and they are filled with rough sackcloth (I love the smell of sackcloth: it reminds me of horses!). The back is a one-piece of a fitting fabric. I do each bookmark only once, and there is a small "M" stitched in on the back.
This is the one I started with, I will show the next ones here soon:
Here are more:
"At the foot of their bed , she threw open the lid to the steamer trunk Uncle Jacob had bequeathed her and withdrew a quilt she had packed away for the summer. She draped it over the bed, sparing only a glance for the painstakingly arranged triangles and squares of Turkey red and Prussian blue and sun-bleached muslin, some scraps carefully saved from her household sewing, others shared by a dressmaker friend and others among her sewing circle. She folded the quilt in half length-wise, quickly rolled it up into a tight bundle, and tied it off with a wide length of ribbon she had been saving for her hatband. When she returned outside, Thomas had the horses ready and waiting. He watched, silent and perplexed, as she placed the quilt into the back of the wagon with his pack and provisions.
...
He shook his head. "It's too fine to take on the road. It could be soiled or torn or lost. Likely the army will issue us sturdy blankets with our uniforms."
"And if they don't, or if those blankets are delayed?"...
"I am thinking of the conditions you'll face." She felt wretched, helpless, but she fought to keep her voice even. "Take the quilt...."
... "Very well." He chirruped his horses. "You're right. If I don't take it, I'll regret it later."
(from the WONDERFUL book "The Union Quilters", by Jennifer Chiaverini, 2011)
