A Quilt Show at Bulloch Hall - attic

On Saturday March 16, 2013, we visited a quilt show at Bulloch Hall, an antebellum mansion in Roswell, Georgia.  I already described and showed the quilts on the ground floor and second floor of the mansion.  Today we are visiting the attic for the last post on the quilts.  On that Saturday, before we left the second floor, I took my husband back to the Sewing Room to see a quilt I liked a lot and that he had missed.  It was quilt #128 by Jane B. Broaddus of Dahlonega, Ga.  It is called "The Cat" of course.  She says that in a workshop in Pacific Grove, California, students were asked to bring a picture of a friend.  She brought a picture of her cat "P.T."  (Click on collage twice to enlarge.)

As we went back in the hall to reach the stairs to the attic we passed quilt #104 which was hanging there.  It is called "Hugs and Kisses" by Holly Anderson of Cumming, Ga.  She designed the blocks based on the red and green blocks of the 1850s.

We climbed the steep stairs to the attic and found ourselves in a large room where many quilts were displayed.

There were some old spinning wheels and an antique bed as shown below next to quilt #156 entitled "Curve Every Which Way But Loose" by Diane Berdis of Alpharetta, Ga.

I slowly walked along the quilts to get a better look.

I took some close-ups of red quilt #151 named "The Pilot's Wife" by Diane Knott of Cumming, Ga., (above on extreme right) and black and white quilt #150 named "Black and White and Red All Over" by Anne Crowe of  Mableton, Ga.  I did not see much red in it but Anne says "I made this quilt in celebration of my thirteenth birthday... I chose the name because of the black and white fabric and a nod to the red thread used for quilting."  I looked closely but could not see the red thread - the stitches must have been tiny.

The series of "Diva" quilts were fun.  I liked quilt #165 "Home is Where the Suitcases Are" by Patricia Caffrey of Roswell, Ga., - bottom right quilt below.  She says that she added the names of all the cities in which she lived.  I tried to read them on the photo, but they are not very distinct (around the sides of the quilt.)  I read "Raleigh, Madrid, Santiago" but could not read the other towns.  Here below are four of the Diva quilts.

 I would love to have such an attic in my house, so large and bright.  I would fill it with all our books and add some easy chairs ... The sun was shining through a couple of large windows.  It must get pretty warm here in summer.

We walked back downstairs.  We saw the quilt below in front of the cellar stairs - quilt #48 by Jan Antranikian of Alpharetta, Ga., called "El Taco Suave."  She says "My venture into 3-D quilts.  (Please put on 3-D glasses!)" It did look appetizing even without 3-D glasses.

We thought we might find more quilts in the cellar, but there were none.  The cellar looked so empty from the last time we saw it a Christmas.  Then it was decorated and bright.  Below you can see how it looks now and last Christmas.

There are some informative panels explaining the running of the "Open-Earth Kitchen" way back then.  "A fire was built in the oven and allowed to burn for about one and a half to two hours before the interior bricks held enough heat to bake."  And also "The cook has to be able to read the fire to know which coals are the hottest."  - "Meat was often served at the table with the feet and head attached."

On the table were more panels, one read - "The Open-Hearth Kitchen   Maum Rose was the Cook of the household "... and such corn muffins as she made - they linger in ones memory and like other beautiful things are a joy forever."  Another panel explained laundry chores "The Open-Hearth Kitchen set up for ironing  "I think Maum Charlotte must have done the washing" and possibly the ironing.  The Bulloch's clothes would have been washed (soaked, scrubbed, boiled and rinsed) in a big kettle outside the kitchen.  The clothes were then hung on fences, lines or placed outdoors on the grass to dry."

Outside, the sun was shining and it was now around 75 degrees F (24 C.)  It did not last though as in the following days it was cool again.

But that Saturday it was a joy to walk in Bulloch Hall garden and look at some of the spring flowers.

The forsythia shrubs were in full bloom, the flowering quince was showing some pretty red flowers but I was surprised to see a lavender bush already showing some flowers too.  Of course periwinkles were all over the grass.

We walked back to the front porch of the house and sat in two rocking chairs thinking about the artistry we had just seen adorning the walls of Bulloch Hall - a visual feast of vibrant colors and imagination.

A Quilt Show at Bulloch Hall - 2nd Floor

In my last post I showed quilts that were exhibited on the ground floor and the hall of Bulloch Hall in Roswell, Georgia.  Today it will be the quilts exhibited upstairs, on the second floor.  As I walked up the stairs I had to stop and take a look at the quilts against the wall.  One appeared very western to my eyes.  It is called "El Glows" by Ellen Lott of Roswell.

Another quilt, next to it, was also very striking - called "Serengeti at Twilight" by Leona Harden of Lilburn, Ga.  Quilt #100 below.  (This one is for sale too.)

So many quilts - on the walls, on doors, on furniture... (Click on each photo and collages twice to enlarge.)

Some of the fun quilts below would look just right in a child's room.

We entered "Irvine's Bedroom" and even the toy bed on the floor was covered with a miniature quilt.

On a side wall was Meg Latimer's "Sixteen Stars" - a machine quilted piece from an antique design (shown on the bottom left side below.)  Quilt #113 was made by Gail Straub of Kennesaw, Ga., for the back of the couch of her neighbors as a 50th wedding anniversary present - but they have it hanging on the wall for all to see.

The "Sewing Room" contained quilts with some spool designs.  They were so bright - on a sunny day one would have to wear sunglasses to have a closer look...

I liked this little whimsy quilt called "Ants" by Jan Antranikian of Alpharetta, Ga.

There were more quilts on the other side of the Sewing Room, including a pink and red star type one near the window called "Round Robin" by Diane Knott of Cumming, Ga.

Upon entering the "Wing Room" I immediately was mesmerized by a quilt exposed on a marble Victorian table in the corner of the room.  It is called "Old Block - New Life" by Betty Alonsious of Cumming, Ga.  She says that the center block was started as a guild project many years ago.  It really was stunning.

I looked at the above quilt for a while, but there were more quilts on another wall to admire. (Don't forget to click on collage to see better.)

In this room there were also information panels explaining the building of Bulloch Hall and biography of its owners.

Miss Martha (nicknamed Mittie) Bulloch (1835-1884) married Theodore Roosevelt, Sr. on December 22, 1853 (there is a re-enactment of the wedding at Bulloch Hall every December.)  They had four children: Anna, Theodore who became the 26th President of the United States between 1901 to 1909, Elliott - who had a daughter Eleanor who became first lady when she married her cousin Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Corinne.  Unfortunately Mittie died of thyphoid fever on February 14, 1884 when she was 48 years old.  Her daughter-in-law, Alice Lee Roosevelt, the wife of Theodore, died on the same day in the same house of Bright's Disease, two days after giving birth to a daughter.

President Theodore Roosevelt visited Bulloch Hall on October 20, 1905, as part of a Southern United States tour.

A half brother of Mittie Bulloch, James Dunwoody Bulloch (1823-1901) was the chief foreign agent in Great Britain for the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War and was based in Liverpool, England.  There are many tall information panels explaining his service.

James Bulloch later wrote a book at the insistence of his nephew Theodore Roosevelt.  It was a 2 volumes set entitled "The Secret Service of the Confederate States in Europe."

James Bulloch trained his nephew Theodore on the operation of wind-powered ships and naval warfare.  James died in 1901 in Liverpool.  On his headstone in Liverpool's Toxteth Cemetery was inscribed "An American by birth, an Englishman by choice."

There was one more quilt in the room - a memory quilt.  It is called "Enjoy Life!" by Elisa Woods of Atlanta.  She says "This bookshelf quilt represents a 40th birthday gift for my brother Mervell Woods.  Growing up he felt the family did not take enough photo of him.  Now he has been immortalized in fabric. In 2009 he suffered a heart attack at 47.  Our family misses him dearly."

The last room we visited on the second floor was Mittie's Bedroom.

I slowly walked around the room, reading the information on each quilt.

The quilts near the chimney were so colorful with vivid colors and many flowers.  Quilt #123 by Betty Duff of Milford, Michigan, was made to remind her of the rich colors of her native South Florida.  Quilt #124 by Linda Johnson of Sharpsburg, Ga., was started in 2007 and finished in 2012.

I'll end up the tour of Bulloch Hall second floor with this luminous quilt below.  It was quilted by Helga Diggelmann of Johns Creek, Ga., and is called "Roses are Red" - they definitely are.

We still have the attic to explore.  When we came to Bulloch Hall at Christmas time the attic was not opened so it will be interesting to take a look at it ... in my next post.

A Quilt Show at Bulloch Hall - ground floor

It was starting to snow as we arrived near Nashville, Tennessee to vist our daughter and her family on Friday 1st March 2013.  It was the first snow we had seen in two years.  The next morning the snow was still there, but barely, and by day's end it had melted.  We never had a chance to play in the snow with our three grandsons.  We stayed for the week-end and on Monday we drove to Memphis, TN, to visit our other daughter.  Next time we drive to Nashville there will hopefully be a new grand-daughter as our daughter is expecting in the next couple of months.

During the rest of our stay in Tennessee the weather kept getting warmer.  By now many trees are in bloom in Tennessee and Georgia.  It has been a warm winter here - one of my annual plants from last year is blooming again - it did not get the message that winter had come.  As I was driving near the post office yesterday I saw a tree with lovely deep pink buds.  Luckily there was no one driving behind me so I took some pictures from my car.  One of my Georgia blogging friends told me that this lovely pink-mauve tree is a magnolia x soulangeana.

After we returned to Georgia last week I caught a bad cold which kept me weak, feeling miserable and away from the computer.  Last Saturday was warm and sunny and since I was much better we drove to Roswell, Georgia, to see the Quilt Show at Bulloch Hall.  It is called the Great American Cover-Up Quilt Show and this year is its 31st annual show.

I have written three posts on Bulloch Hall in the past, but they were around the Holidays.  The first one was "Bulloch Hall in the Festive Season" on 22 December 2010 - click here to read it.  The second was "Christmas at Bulloch Hall with US Presidents, part 1" on December 13, 2012 - click here for this one.  It was followed by Part II on December 20, 2012 - click here. This time it was much warmer in Roswell - 75 degrees F (25 C.)

 I had only been to one quilt show before and that was back in 2009 in Columbus, Ohio.  I wrote a post on it and showed some of the beautiful quilts exhibited there in "Quilt Show in Columbus, Ohio" on July 18, 2009 - click here to see them.   The theme of the Bulloch Hall's quilt show this year was "My Favorite Things."  Close to 200 quilts were on display throughout Bulloch Hall.  I took many photos as usual and won't be able to show them on only one post.  Today I'll concentrate on quilts on the ground floor of this historic antebellum mansion.  As we entered we saw large quilts hanging on the walls.  (Click on collages to enlarge.)

Smaller quilts were shown at the end of the hall.

The brochure given to us contained information on each quilt and some biographical notes on Laura Davidson who is the Special Exhibitor at the show this year.  Laura Davidson is a Canadian award-winning quilter from Oakville, Ontario.  Her quilts were exhibited in the Parlor.  This beautiful room with antique furnishing was a wonderful setting for Laura's exquisite quilts.

The quilt below is called "Stars in my Garden" and is stunning in neutral tones.  I took a close-up picture to see its stitching.

Quilt #9 is Laura's "From Sea to Shining Sea."

Quilt #10 is Laura's "God Sheds His Grace on Me" to celebrate the Millennium.

Quilt #8 is called "Canadian Cottage."  It incorporates provincial flowers and the beauty and calm of a country cottage.  Quilt #12 is called "Mardi Gras."

Behind the piano was quilt #15 "Peacocks in Bloom" by Laura Davidson.  A stark quilt inspired by Amish quilts.

#14 is "In My Garden."

Quilt #13 is called "Canadian Quilt" by Laura to revisit Canada's history.

A Bonus Quilt called "Nature's Trail" was bright and colorful.

It was well worth a closer inspection to look at all the cute animals.

We saw more striking quilts in the dining-room made by local quilters -

Quilt #18 below is called "Happy Faces" by Teresa Utz of Acworth, GA, with fun pictures of fellow quilters.

 

So many gorgeous quilts ....

 

  Quilts on the outdoors -

Quilts with stars, triangles, squares and other lovely shapes -

Quilts with meaning, such as quilt #28 called "Ykes" by Jan Antranikian of Alpharetta, GA.  She says "Making this quilt helped me deal with the fear and darkness and brought a bit of hope in my life after the loss of my daughter."

and  some more attractive quilts to admire -

Below are some close-ups from several quilts.

More quilts were in the Warming Room -

Marie Wood of Alpharetta, GA, called her quilt, #77, "My Favorite Things" - same as the quilt theme for this year.  My favorite things are very similar - ships, the sea, lakes, mountains, trees and looking up at the sky.

There were more quilts on the ground floor of Bulloch Hall but I'll end with the lovely quilt below.  This is quilt #20 by Ellen Lott of Roswell, GA., called "Peace."

In my next post, we'll go upstairs to look at more quilts.