A Turkey Red Embroidery Friendship Quilt ~ Dated 1896

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Years ago when I first started to sell antique and vintage textiles I fell in love with pieces embroidered in the turkey red floss (redwork is another term used today). Although there are many types of household items embroidered in this beautiful shade of red thread, and although I love them all, quilts are my favorite. Many of them are very graphic in designs and styles. Some elaborately embroidered.

Red embroidered quilts were in favor from the later Victorian era with the heyday in the early 1900's. By the 1920's the redwork quilts started to wane. Many of these quilts are dated with one of the latest dates I have had was 1931.

Here is a very unique quilt which I acquired some time ago. A turkey redwork friendship quilt dated 1896.

There are many blocks in this quilt in the array of farm animals, flowers, cats, dogs, birds, horseshoe, children, with one delivering the "Herald" newspaper. Now this is neat! Probably the best block and unique to the quilt is "Grandma Bear Aged 86 in the center of the quilt. The signatures are as varied as the blocks themselves with one signed "Your Sister Iva".

Several dates appear on the quilt with the last date of 1896. The two other blocks are dated 1894 and 1895. I assume the quilt was finished and presented in the year 1896.

Please visit here for more details on this quilt or to view other items in turkey red embroidery work.