Around 12 years ago you could buy dozens of UFO’s from the 1930’s in all stages of a quilt for a few dollars. I bought several of them as I hated to think they would just end up in the dump. Most of the ones I bid on only a few others added a bid so they were only around $25.00 at the most, below is one lot I received. I was rather surprised as in the photo’s the hearts looked like 2 hearts not one heart with part of a heart, I had not made hearts up like this before, but there is always a first for every thing, the other stumbling block was the quilter had only aloud just over 1/16th for the seam?????? May be she was going to do a black blanket stitch to appliqué the blocks but I wanted to needle turn appliqué the blocks SO I cut my templates from the freezer paper smaller than the template supplied.
Around 12 years ago I brought these shapes from the USA they are a quilters from the 1930s UFO ?????? Nearly all the shapes had been cut out and penciled marked with a 1/16th seam allowance??????
I finally put them together like this but felt there was meant to be more to this block and went searching the net. I found lots of Rose of Shannon blocks but nothing quiet like this one 12 years ago on the net. But the below were the closest I could find. Most I found had some green leaves in them.
Another 1930s block in pink and green, but small points that were in my collection were dark pink not green. So I then decided that may be they were to be buds and I needed a green shape for the tip of the bud to be showing??????
Pinks and green 1930 block May be this is how it was to be but I just did not like the shape of the green and how it stuck out of the heart!!!!!!!
So I finally designed this shape for my green. I was sure green was in the original block but it was not with the pieces any more.
One completed block. I did not like the bud sticking out of the hearts so set them like the above. I also added a little yellow to my centre. Now to finish some more why haven’t I????? because I can not find the fabric I used for the backing 5 years ago!!!!! sound familiar LOL I use to say There are not enough hours in a day to do all the things I want to do, and a friend said to me “yes there are, BUT there are is not enough time to do the things YOU want to do and the things you NEED to do” very very true so now I just get one and do what I can. 
I cut out all my shapes in freezer paper ready to make some more but could not find my material for the backing, so glad I did loose it as now as I will use wash away freezer paper and will not have to remove the shapes so it will give more body to this very very fine cotton material. It is a very tight weave but ohhh so fine.
I have been quilting my sample quilt I’m repairing the last week so there is really nothing to show there, many hours of quilting by hand but nothing much to show. SO decided to show you the above instead this week.
Update 12.30pm Wed
My snow white cacti is about to burst in to flower another week and it will be beautiful.
My front porch is almost back to normal after the septic problems
He was in my bedroom last night his body is about 1 1/4 inches long, all though he is missing 4 legs one side you can see one is growing back and the other 3 will also, when I released him just now he scurried off like a piece of greased lightening so is has not slowed him down at all. Yesterday I found a nest of ants in one of my quilting draws, these ants are about 1 1/4inchs long but very docile so was able to carry the draw out side with out them swarming over me, I guess they didn’t want to spend the winter outside in the cold !!!!!!
Off to link up with Esther now on her WOW I love her designs and have enjoyed linking up with her every Wednesday now for 5 years or more.
http://www.estheraliu.blogspot.com/
Thanks for dropping in Cheers Glenda
I have never bought any antique quilts or pieces as I have always preferred to do my own – I have read on another blog though of this quilter who almost exclusively buys tops and then at times takes them apart to make them better (less uneven etc) and puts them back together again and quilts them – he does almost 12 of these a year! has quite a collection.
Morning Karen, I use to buy them as I hated the thought of some quilters dream been destroyed rather than been completed so I rescued several of them and I have so enjoyed finishing them and wondering about the original quilter her dreams her family and learning so much from the way she sewed and chose fabrics, most of the ones I purchased were in Feedsack fabrics. timquilts.com in the USA also buys lots of old quilts and restores them, he gives wonderful step by step instructions on how he restores them , I learnt about putting in a tuck before quilting as I’m doing at present from Tim’s blog. He also designs his own quilts which are very beautiful and different. I must admit I have many of my own designed quilt tops that need to be quilted but I just want to finish these tops so one day some one else may find the time to quilt them. Mine can all be quilted by machine but I think these old 1930 feed sacks really need to be hand quilted as the fabrics are so soft and to me fragile. I’m off to see if I can find some flowers or some thing in the garden to photograph for my blog. Hugs glenda
What an interesting story – and a lovely block you made of it! Hope you get some more suitable backing as it will be a lovely quilt.
Hi Hilda lovely to hear from you and that you liked the end results. I’m looking forward to working with it now that I have wash away freezer paper. I have ironed several of the freezer paper templates I made together and this has given me some firm templates to use when I draw out my new wash away ones. So not a lot of waste any where really. I have start another search for the backing fabric????? But I honestly think it is too soft and flimsy so may be I will unpick the first block and find a heavy backing like a 100% cotton cream calico I think it will be worth it. Love what you a re working on at present so so many leaves and all in red but WOW what a lovely border. (For those who read this reply Hilda has a lovely blog were I like to stop and visit, much like buying one of your favourite magazine.) Cheers Glenda
Your persistence with the design made a lovely block in the end. It may not be exactly as originally intended but now it is finished and it is truly yours!
Thank you Catherine, I do love a challenge and this one was trying to find more information on it. Now if you type in Shannon Rose Quilting there are 100’s of photo’s of different blocks but all called Rose of Shanon LOL. There is even one that looks very very like the one I have ended up with now!!!!! Cheers Glenda
How interesting to hear about the journey of those cut out pieces from somewhere and someone else to their final place in your blocks. Thank you for sharing!
I laughed about the ants in your quilting drawer – not really what you want to find, is it?!? Glad that they seemed friendly though.
Hi Plum, these ants are really strange we only see them once in a blue moon, and yes they are so so docile. Not like the fire ants that are now invading our beautiful rainforest and towns around here, the first sighting was 3 or 4 years ago and now they are spreading so quickly. I tis believed they come from Brazil originally. If you have them your children can not go out side and play as the attack and leave very very nasty bites. This is one of the down sides to living in this beautiful area of Australia, but there are so many good things to make up for the bad ones. LOL so we stay here. Hugs Glenda
This is going to be a beautiful quilt when completed, I look forward to seeing your progress. Your white cactus is pretty too. I can’t imagine being able to leave plants like that outside all year round.
Morning Gretchen, thanks for dropping in I’m sitting here having a coffee be fore going to work one of the managers is sick so I’m helping out today. We use to grow many of the plants that grow in our garden in glass houses in NZ and then still loose some in the winter due to it been to cold. It still amazes me when I see them blooming on our trees and in hanging out door pot plants too up here in Far North QLD . Our temperatures really get below 10C. it has been below that only once since we moved here 20 years ago. 80 years ago when the loggers dropped all the trees in this area they had frosts but now the rain trees have all grown back we don’t have them. Our winter is only about 6 weeks????? yes true, we have a cold snap around August when it may get down to 12C at night time but our day temps are around 25C-27C a beautiful climate from April right through till end of Nov. Cheers Glenda
I just loved this post…all the variety ! 🙂 Bugs and Blooms and Blocks! Who could ask for more! 🙂