The Seascale Quilt: A Conservation project

by Celia Eddy
published: 04/04/2006
printer friendly version

PROVENANCE
This project was undertaken on behalf of a client who wished to have the quilt restored to as good a state as was reasonable in view of its condition. The quilt has strong sentimental value and her ultimate aim was to be able to exhibit it to members of her family and other interested parties. Although there is no date on the quilt, it has some provenance to the extent that it is known to have been in the owner’s family from at least the beginning of the 20th century. The family concerned were farmers in Seascale in West Cumbria and it is almost certain that the quilt was made in the farmhouse which was occupied continuously by them over many generations. Some of the fabrics are clearly very the old and would appear to date from the mid-to late19th century.

DESCRIPTION OF THE QUILT
The quilt measures 95 in. by 97 in. and is pieced entirely in printed cotton fabrics. It is pieced in the conventional English medallion style, with a centre surrounded by a series of pieced borders,mainly triangles and squares. The centre, however, is entirely UNconventional,being in the form of a square comprising 36 Log Cabin blocks arranged in checkerboard style. The backing is calico, pieced in three 29 in. wide strips, which is in good condition apart from being much stained and very dirty. The quilt contains cotton wadding and is pieced and quilted by hand throughout.

Layout of quilt- shown after cleaning and restoration

Edges of the quilt are finished by the ‘butting’ method, which is characteristic of traditional English quilts. This involves simply turning the backing of the quilt over the wadding and then turning the front of the quilt onto it and stitching together. The quilt is hand quilted in the Allover wave pattern, a utilitarian pattern which is found mainly on the North Western seaboard of the British Isles and in adjoining regions, including the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland. See my article Pattern and Place for information about this pattern and an illustration of the back of the Seascale quilt.

All areas of the quilt were heavily soiled.

IDENTIFYING THE PROBLEMS
The condition of the quilt when it was brought for conservation was poor. It appeared never to have been washed and was extremely dirty. About 36 of the triangle patches were so badly damaged that they had virtually disappeared, leaving the wadding exposed. Other areas showed severe wear and tear and were very weak.Discussions were held with the owner and it was agreed that it would be necessary to wash the quilt before any repair work could be undertaken. Tests were carried out on the dark red patches to check if they were likely to bleed into adjoining patches; this was done by dabbing the patches with damp cotton wool and as no dye came off them the decision was made to go ahead with the washing.

REPAIR AND RENOVATION
Washing was carried out in a large washing machine using a pure soap washing product, the gentlest programme and the least amount of spin. The quilt was then dried outdoors on a sunny, breezy day. Happily, this process was entirely successful, the fabrics suffered no further damage and were then in a condition to be worked on. [N.B. This method of washing is not recommended for very old or historically significant quilts, which should always be sent to professional restorers who have large tanks and specialist handling equipment for washing large textile objects.]

For the patches which had completely disintegrated, an extensive search was made for reproduction fabrics which were as close as possible to the originals and the owner was consulted about this and her approval sought for introducing new fabrics into the quilt. These were stitched invisibly over the exposed wadding. In other areas, it was possible to stitch down loose fabric and attach it to more stable surrounding fabric, again with invisible stitches. Larger areas of frayed or unstable patches were covered in fine conservation grade netting which was also invisibly stitched to stronger surrounding fabrics. Where new fabrics or netting were used, the continuity of the quilting pattern was preserved by adding new stitching using thread which was carefully chosen to match the original.

Damaged patches with wadding exposed.

CONCLUSION
The owner is delighted with the outcome of this project and has proudly displayed it to other interested members of her family, some of whom recall that this was not the only quilt in the family; sadly, it seems to be the sole survivor. Although, obviously, this quilt is never going to be put on a bed for everyday use, it is robust enough to be kept on a spare bed, covered with a plain cotton sheet, and displayed whenever desired. It is a fine example of a typical English medallion-style patchwork quilt, probably pieced from dressmaking remnants, old pyjamas and shirts. The conservation and repair work carried out on it has truly given it a new lease of life and, as well as standing as an instructive example for quilt historians, is bringing pleasure and much nostalgic reminiscence to the owner and her family.

Detail showing section of quilt cleaned and repaired.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT AND FURTHER INFORMATION
Conservation work on this quilt was undertaken by Debbie Woolley of Workington, Cumbria. You can contact her for further information or for consultation about conservation and repair of old quilts through me:Celia Eddy

© Celia Eddy