Jane and Susie were not just cousins. They were first cousins. They were not just first cousins, they were double-first cousins.
Their mothers were sisters, their daddies were brothers. They were two years apart in age, and shared not only all their relatives, more than the average common DNA, but many experiences. This early photo (about 1940) conveys the closeness they shared.
This photo was taken at the home of their paternal grandparents. Many family photos were set on this porch, on these steps, actually. Imagine a Sunday afternoon after church, adults visiting on the porch; maybe other cousins playing in the yard, neighbors dropping by. These two almost sisters (later, they would have other siblings, but not yet), forging a lifelong bond.
I printed the photo on vintage linen, and added red French knots as buttons on Janes dress. The bow in her hair is a found earring.
Layering the photo on wool batting before densely quilting the background adds dimension to the girls. The oval mat is a vintage linen embroidered placemat layered on commercial quilting fabric. Beneath all this assembly is a layer of thin cotton batting. Shells (repurposed from an old necklace found in a thrift store) were attached using red seed beads to anchor them. I hand quilted all the layers together using a seed stitch with tatting thread. This thread is a new discovery for me (found in a bag of sewing supplies from an estate sale). Ive never tatted nor made lace, but the size 80 cotton thread created for these crafts is perfect for a lot of the hand stitching I do.
Note to quilters: that seed stitch leaves a messy backside, so when I use it, I dont have the final backing on the quilt. I attached another layer, the piece with red cross stitch on it, using the invisible baste stitch I learned from Jude Hill. Thats really a seed stitch, too, with just a dot of thread showing on the top, the longer stitch on the back nestled in the batting, not coming through to the other side.
That backing with red stitching is a section of an old tablecloth. I found it on an antiquing plunder and was drawn to the cross stitch, of course. The tablecloth has some stains and had a hole in it – making it less than desirable as a tablecloth. But I rescued it and put it to work. Its very desirable as a component of art quilts!
The final quilt measures 16″ x 23″.
I had double first cousins. My father and his brother and my mother and her sister.
It’s fun to share all the relatives, isn’t it?
Lovel and inspiring! These family art quilts may be the ones passed from generation to generation! We hope anyway!
Marilyn
At least the visual imagery should trigger memories of stories! My hope is that the stories live on, too.
Beautiful work and such a sweet story. Susie loved Jane and I know Jane loved Susie.