Cabin Wall Hanging--Documentation

This wall hanging was not a pre-conceived plan but evolved over time with each step. Originally, it had been my plan to hang a small quilt over the sofa, but I found none I liked. I then was influenced by some nine-square art I'd seen and thought of making a simple nine-patch quilt. I looked over the internet images and found one similar to the one I made, but without the crochet. I planned to have four muslin squares but to embellish them with outline stitches much like a stencil pattern and a type of Japanese stitching. This reminded me of crochet and thus began my new vision using 3 pieces of old crochet. I am relatively certain that Bill's mom crocheted the middle two identical crocheted squares. The upper, older and originally discolored crochet was found in her belongings too, but we can't be sure who crocheted it as it may have been simply a pattern for her. The quilt is indeed a simple pattern, but the 2" x2" squares took a lot of time to piece together with accuracy. The large Olfa rotary cutting mat, given to me by Will many Christmases ago, was invaluable with the project to keep it all square.

I still had the problem of needing another crochet piece and of one piece being a far different shade of ecru. I was lucky to find a similar piece of crochet (and for less than $2!) in the antique district of Walterboro, SC. I could not find Rit Ecru dye locally but was able to find some on the internet (the small-size boxes have been discontinued). Through trial and error I managed finally to be satisfied with the color.

I also wanted to use old buttons for the tabs, but did not have any suitable. I located a shop in Havana, FL, Cindy's Chapeaux, which carries wonderful vintage sewing needs of all types. These are French, Bakelite I think.

The crochet pieces were added last, centered, and hand-stitched with ecru thread through the upper layer only. Hand tacking the corners and centers of each square completed the job.

Unable to find the proper rod, Bill and I made this one with a dowel rod and finials and brackets that we had on hand. We finished the mount with black "hammered metal" spray paint.

One of the French buttons purchased from Cindy's Chapeaux.