One of my spring cleaning projects has been to organize the linen closet. There is a treasure trove of handwork from Mr. Smith's side of the family -- specifically the maternal side -- that takes up several shelves. When my mother-in-law passed away nearly four years ago, we inherited twenty-some quilts to add to the six or seven that we already had been given.
When our Smithlings were very young, their grandmother made sure that each one had a quilt of their own from her collection. We have used these quilts a lot! The edges are frayed, and some of the pieces are missing, but how blessed we have been to be able to get all wrapped up (quite literally) in family history. I firmly believe that quilts get more beautiful with years of use.
Practically every colorful quilt is made from old clothing and rags. Several of the family heirlooms were stitched together in the late 1800s and early 1900s. They are still rich in color, yet the fabric is very fragile. There is much love quilted into these works of Americana art. A few of the pieces have blue and red ribbons attached to them from the Garfield County Fair. Yep, these are prize-winning creations!
Many years ago, my dear mother-in-law wrote notes containing the details of when, where, and who made each item. I am so grateful for that, as it makes it a lot easier to be the keeper of the family history when it's already labeled. These yellowed strips of paper are carefully safety pinned to the corner of each quilt.
I am certain that we have at least one quilt representing each decade from 1890 to sometime in the 1970s. A few of the quilts are ones that Mr. Smith remembers helping with. As a young boy, he would go over to his grandmother's house after school where she would have him cut out scraps of gingham and calico. Grandma Krueger must've seen that her grandson had the engineering knack at an early age. I'm sure his squares and triangles were oh, so precise!
As I was folding and organizing the quilts, I decided to take pictures of my favorites to share here. I hope you enjoy peeking into my linen closet. (FYI, there are no skeletons in THIS closet.)
