Rekindled Pleasures

08/29/2026

I am tickled pink that the colors in this quilt did not bleed. After its bath in the tub, I put it in my washing machine to soak and spin out because this quilt is SO well made and “sturdy”. That’s when I threw in three color catchers just in case it were to bleed. I opened up the machine after a couple minutes of soaking and the water was definitely turning navy blue from the indigo fabric on the back. I decided to quickly push it to the spin cycle. ☺️ it came out fine and my color catchers were a dingy blue grey. 🙌🏼

Because of a few stains in areas, I will be repurposing this piece of Americana art, so others can enjoy the vintage fabrics from circa 1890-1920s.

08/29/2026

Saturday bath time 🛀🏼!
I’ve been hanging onto this quilt since beginning of summer. With the dark colors and the possibility this quilt has never been washed before the fear of the fabric bleeding, had me worried. The back of the quilt is an indigo blue fabric, notorious for bleeding.

So I dipped one edge of the quilt into cool water mixed with a cup of vinegar. No bleeding!! 🙌🏼
After soaking for a little bit in this water I will give it an OxiClean bath and try to spot clean some areas with Dawn dish soap (great name 😉)

Look how dirty the cool water/vinegar is!

Pattern:
Fabric appears to be late 19th century

08/10/2026

The prints on the 1930-40s feed sacks will always be my favorite. American way of life.

07/20/2026

Christmas in July S🅰️LE🎄

If you love history, I have a quilt with a story to tell from long ago.

Embracing this quilt made in the mid 1800s with madder-dyed fabrics means appreciating not only its beauty, but also the story behind its wear.

The uniform deterioration (see all pics) found in all the brown print is due to the dyeing process itself. 😳
Fabric dyed from Madder roots required a mordant—a metal salt—to bond an additional color to the fabric.

Over time, the iron in the mordant oxidizes, weakening the fibers and causing the fabric to become brittle and worn. This process was no longer used after the Civil War to add additional colors to fabric.

These worn areas aren’t simply signs of use; they’re reminders of the materials and techniques that the textile industry relied on nearly two centuries ago to add print to fabric.
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Each stocking -$30 plus ship
Heel to toe - 10”
Opening - 7”
Hanger to toe-18”
Color - Barn Red, primitive red
Lined & same quilt is used on back

07/19/2026

You never know what you might miss if you rush through your day! 🍓❤️

07/19/2026

07/16/2026

After purchasing this quilt online, my feelings went back-and-forth on whether I could use it for my initial plan.

Pictures can be deceiving and I thought this was going to be a red and white quilt perfect for Christmas stockings! 🎄

After receiving it, I didn’t think it was going to be a red shade desirable for stockings and it uniformly had “dye rot” on every single motif. (See last pic)
Well, that got me curious and I have been reading and reading about what was going on with this quilt.

The red reminds me that of… barn red, primitive red, paprika or Turkey Red. I pulled back a couple seams to see how much fading had occurred on the visible red fabric. None. The hidden seams were the same as the outer fabric. That led me to believe it is a natural dye from madder roots.

That type of dye is very colorfast and does not bleed onto other fabrics. However, to change or add color designs to that fabric they used an iron mordant (metallic salts) which eventually after exposure to light and washing would eat away at the fabric.

They quit using this dying process technique shortly after the Civil War.

So the fabric on this quilt may not be a Christmasy red, but it’s definitely a historical red! (1840-70s)

Be on the lookout for Christmas stockings from this quilt in a few days! 😍
Christmas in July.

07/13/2026

My eye candy! Give me all the old textiles. Just a few of them on display in my home.

07/10/2026

The family was all here for the Fourth of July, so that means the grandkids sleep on the floor. I pulled out this quilt that my grandma Ollie made from the 70s. It is thick with the woven polyester fabric top and polyester packing so once it was folded in half it made a great place for our grandson to sleep on.

I know I saw many from her generation wearing outfits from that heavy polyester. 🥵
It was such a warm quilt, that when my husband had a basement apartment in college, I let him use it as a cover. It saved on the electric bill. 😆

07/07/2026

While I was cleaning up the house after the grandkids and their parents were here for the Fourth of July, 🇺🇸 I found Bluey had hijacked my 1970s Barbie camper. 😆