QUILT INDEX RECORD

14-10-250

Where are the records for this quilt housed?

American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Who documented this quilt?

Lands' End All-American Quilt Collection

American Folklife Center, Library of Congress Documentation Number:

AFC 1997/011: Folder 8957 P1

Alternate inventory number for this quilt. This might be a museum accession number.

afcqltle le010

Person filling out this form is:

Quiltmaker

Describe the relationship to the quilt's maker:

Quiltmaker submitted information with quilt.

This is a:

Finished quilt

Quilt's title:

Living a Dream

How wide is the quilt?

72 inches

How long is the quilt?

96 inches

Quilt's condition:

Excellent/like new

Time period:

1976-1999

When was the quilt started?

May, 1991

When was the quilt finished?

February, 1992

Describe the quilt's layout:

Pictorial

Fiber types used to make the quilt top:

Cotton

Piecing techniques used to make the quilt top:

Machine Piecing

Applique techniques used to make the quilt top:

Hand Applique

Embellishment techniques used to make the quilt top:

Embroidery

What kind of filling is used in the quilt?

Polyester

Features or notes about the quilt's appearance, materials, or construction:

The following information was supplied by the quiltmaker: The quilt pattern is "my own design." How did you choose the materials used in your quilt? "Very tiny bit of 'metallic' fabric for sun's reflection of light on the water." "I chose cotton because it handles easily and lasts, plus it's a natural fiber. I chose the colors and prints for their appropriateness in my design altho I did hand-dye some of the shades of blue (called periwinkle blue) because I couldn't find exactly what I wanted in the stores. (The nearest quilt/fabric shop is 120 miles away)" Commemoration of achievement, "move to Upper Peninsula of Mich." How long have you been making quilts? "Since 1970. My 1st quilt was an all-over cross-stitched top I bought in a kit from a mail-order catalog. It was a Double Wedding Ring pattern and I bought it to give myself something to do while I worried the time away when my husband of 7 months was sent to Vietnam." How did you learn to quilt? "Altho I was born and raised in an Old Order Mennonite family (my parents were ex-communicated from the church when I was 3) and I always loved the quilts my aunts and grandmothers made, I never learned to quilt from them. I taught myself yrs. later." What was your primary reason for entering the Lands' End contest? Do you frequently enter your quilts in competition? "I had drawn a sketch of this quilt several years before the contest. It had been inspired by my husband and I building and moving to a tiny log cabin in the isolated woods of the Upper Peninsula of Mich. When a friend gave me the information on the contest I just had to make it. Yes, I have entered many quilt and art competitions in the past. So far I have received over 42 awards." Has being a winner in the Land's End contest made a difference in your life? Has it changed the way you look at your work as a quilt maker? "This quilt was my largest and most time consuming project as of yet in 1991. Before it, I'd been designing and making one art-quilt each year along w/ making hundreds of wall hangings for sale in my business. After I finished 'Living a Dream' I decided I had a major case of burn-out and didn't finish another one til 1995. I still make hundreds of smaller wall hangings every year in my business w/ my husband making frames for them in his woodworking business. Right now I am working on another large quilt for myself in my spare time again. Altho I sell small quilts and duplicate many of them, I have kept my original, one-of-a-kind art quilts for my own collection. They are so much a part of me, they are like a journal of my life."

Quilt top made by:

Harbison, Edna

Where the quilt was made, city:

Ontonagon

Where the quilt was made, state:

Michigan (MI)

Where the quilt was made, country:

United States

Why was the quilt made?

Challenge or Contest entry; Commemorative; Art or personal expression; Memorial

The quilt was made to be used for:

Artwork/wall hanging

Contests entered:

This quilt was part of the Lands' End All-American Quilt Contest. 1992 Michigan State Winner

Related items such as diaries, obituaries, wills, household inventories, or pictures of the quiltmaker:

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/qlt:@FIELD(DOCID+@LIT(le010))

Ownership of this quilt is:

Private

Quilt owner's country:

United States

Description of quilt:

This quilt is part of the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress "Quilts and Quiltmaking in American: 1978-1996 exhibit. It was winner in the Lands' End All-American Quilt Contest.

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

Copyright holder:

American Folklife Center, Library of Congress. Email: folklife@loc.gov