jeanharville

Ditto that and that is a beautiful quilt pattern and colors. Do you know what the name of the pattern is? Thanks for sharing your before and after pictures with us.

charsuewilson

I agree with prism99 as well. I have replaced 9patches in a quilt that frayed much like shown. For the other block I might just try to pull it together and whip stitch (or ladder stitch) in place. But adding a little interfacing to stabilize the edge of the fabric isn't a bad idea. I'm just not sure I would have thought of it.

just_the_scraps_m'am

Thanks for sharing those pix of the repaired quilt, QuiltingHaven. Seeing it on the bed, it's prettier than I imagined! I have the pattern for that & I guess it will move to the top of my list. thank you!!!

AliKat

Also, there are people who specialize in repairing old quilts and have the actual fabrics available. I know because in one of my guilds we have two quilt historians and one of them does the repair work for others.

ube quilting

I would leave the 9P alone and reproduce it in similar colors. Just from the few pictures it looks like most of the quilt is in a fragile state and once you start working that material it is just going to get worse. Keep the original for display.

It is a cool quilt.

The other looks fine but once again, I would not want this to be used regularly but as a display.

Very nice quilts.
peace

lclang

If there are a LOT of bad spots I would cover with fine mesh tulle making sure all edges of the patches are secure by hand sewing or gluing or using a wonder under like product before covering with the tulle and then stitching the tulle down pretty closely. If it is only a few blocks I would replace them.

BettyB

I have restored several quilts this way.

MargeD

I totally agree with Prism 99 (love that name by the way), I would applique squares over the deteriorating squares, as it looks like it's the same fabric that is deteriorating, then quilt over them. I think they are a treasure and I would at least try to repair them, by appliqueing squares and using fusible interfacing to repair the rough patches. Then I would suggest soaking them in the tub, gently agitate them, squeeze as much water as possible out and then I would spread them out on a sheet in a shady area of your lawn to dry. I have used the applique method to repair a quilt I'd made, the first one I did on commission, where some of the black fabric developed small holes. Since it was a Roman Stripe Quilt, I appliqued the black triangles on, then quilted over them, following the SID of the other blocks. What a treasure you have and I would try to keep them in the family.

Jean45

When we repair old quilts we need to remember it will be an ongoing project. I repaired one for a gentleman and told him when I saw it that if he planned on using it that maybe just to cover it with a reproduction print and tie it. The quilt had been tied. He said no he wanted it repaired. I shopped for fabrics similar, trying to match prints as best I could. It was 4.5 inch blocks. I replaced 92. When I started taking out the irreparable blocks I could see underneath that it had been pieced and quilted. She had been an elegant lady in her day. Those fabrics had totally disintegrated except for the shreds held down by the quilting. He was thrilled with it. Now, 5 years later, he is asking me again to repair it and now saying that maybe it should be covered with a whole piece of fabric as he wants to continue using it. Those are tough decisions.

sewbizgirl

On old quilts the fabrics are usually very thin and soft. So you don't want to patch in new thicker fabrics... kind of like putting new wine in old wineskins! I would recommend finding some vintage hankies and using them for the repair patches. They look as old as the original fabrics and aren't any thicker. They can blend in nicely. Looks like you will have to patch in some cotton batting in places, too.