Expert unravels secrets of heirloom quilts

Want to go?

Who: Twin Rivers Quilters Guild free annual quilt exhibit

What: ‘Teaching and Demonstration Day’ to show non-quilters techniques of the craft

When: Saturday, March 20 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Where: New Bern-Craven County Public Library

Mary Lou Kirby unfolded a patterned, multi-colored quilt onto a table at the New Bern-Craven County Public Library that had been made by her husband’s grandmother.

The New Bern resident brought the quilt along with two others to the Twin Rivers Quilters Guild free library quilt exhibit on Saturday to find out when the family heirlooms were made.

Lynn Gorges, a textile conservator, restoration specialist, quilter, and owner of Historic Textiles Studio, dated Kirby’s quilts and the family treasures of other local residents as part of a “Dating of Quilts” event held during the guild’s annual show.

She told Kirby that her quilt was most likely made in the 1930s to the 1950s, and noted the vibrant blue and red colors in the bed spread. She said there were lively colors used in quilts during that time because of the dyes that came from Germany after World War I.

“People were just really tired of everything being dark and depressing as they headed out of the Depression,” she said. “By the ’30s, the colors just exploded.”

The Dating of Quilts event was held only on Saturday, but the free library exhibit will continue through March 30, said Diana Rezab, the guild’s membership chair.

The show is a display of about 30 quilts made by club members. Rezab said that some of the bed spreads, wall hangings, or lap robes on display were hand-quilted, while others were done by individuals on machines.

The centerpiece of the show is the quilt depicting homes, buildings and landmarks in the city in recognition of its 300th anniversary.

 “It’s just beautiful art,” Rezab said, explaining that guild members enjoy having their work enjoyed by others who can appreciate the “hard work that goes into each individual quilt.”

She added that on Saturday, the guild will hold a “Demonstration Day” to teach non-quilters techniques of the craft.

“Anybody who has wanted to know about quilting, how to get started, or ask questions, that would be a good day to come in,” she said.

The Kirbys said they brought in their quilts on Saturday because they don’t have a place to display them in their home, and they were hoping to find out when they were made before giving them to their granddaughters.

Robert Kirby said his grandmother was born in 1871, and lived on a farm in Missouri. The quilts were used on the beds at the time, and one was possibly made from a sugar sack material.

Kirby said he can remember her going to quilting sews at her church.

“I think in those days, the bed clothes were all homemade,” he said.

Fairfield Harbour resident Jackie Allen brought in four quilts to be dated by Gorges, and found out some of them were made in the 1870s. She said she was hoping to get some ideas about how she can put the quilts to use.

She said the quilts had belonged to her grandmother, and she, too, remembers going to quilting sessions with her.

“All these little stitches, they did by hand,” she said. “They’d sit around the frame and quilt.”

Laura Oleniacz can be reached at 252-635-5675 or at loleniacz@freedomenc.com.