Auction Haul: My New Collection Obsession of Antique Quilts

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I recently participated in an online auction. Scoring 5 beautiful antique quilts which have now started yet another obsession and antique quilt collection. Today I wanted to share my finds with you all!

I love thrift stores and antique shopping, and I’ve been attending estate sales for years now. Nothing is more thrilling to me than a good deal especially on antiques and vintage items.

It’s a bit of a problem actually.

I’m not sure I’d use the term hoarder but I love starting collections on antiques.

As I said I LOVE estate sales and auctions. I actually got Tom hooked on the auctions recently after attending one in our small town this past summer. When we were living in Fort Collins we’d check the estate sale listings nearby every week.

Our date days consisted of hopping around from sale to sale seeing what goodies we could score. 

About Online Auctions

Unfortunately, since the pandemic, the estate sales haven’t been happening understandable. However, estate sale companies started to do online auctions. Online estate auctions are just like they sound. A combination of an estate sale and an auction combined.

The company having the sale lists everything like an estate sale and you bid online like a regular online auction. The difference is you have to physically go and pick up the items at the designated address.

This is nice because you’re likely not competing against people from all over the country. That being said, it’s dangerously easy to hit that bid button and get carried away at an auction. Be it online or not.

Anyway, this last weekend we participated in an online auction that had a lot of antique quilts. I don’t know why but I’ve recently become really interested in antique quilts. 

Our Heirloom Quilts

Tom’s mom quilts he has one she made for him years ago. She’s currently making me one too, which I’m really excited about!

I myself have an heirloom antique quilt made by my Great Grandma which is very near and dear to me.

Both stays tucked away safely in one of the built-ins in the hallway, nice and safe. Never really used in an attempt to preserve them.

There’s something very special to me about handmade things.

Sadly it seems handmade items are slowly becoming a thing of the past. Our current world values time heavily and making things by hand has become inefficient in many ways.

But there are things that just can’t be done the same when done automatically.

Antique & Vintage Collections

Like I mentioned earlier I like to start antique and vintage collections. You may know of my vintage depression glass collection I’ve talked about in a past post. But one of my other more recently started antique collections is vintage hats and antique linens. I especially love the ones that have hand embroidery and cutwork. 

Maybe I start these collections due to childhood memories because I have some of my Great Grandmas embroidered hand towels and her hats. 

I remember going to visit my Great Grandpa every weekend. In her old room were all of her little gloves and hats and folded neatly in boxes, were her embroidered towels.

I’d carefully play pretend to dress up in her things and picture her stitching those quilts and tea towels. As I’ve gotten older the thought of the hours spent to make these things is so romantic to me.

These collections remind me to slow down and remember the beauty of things like this.

Although the quilts and linens I’ve started collecting may not all be made by someone I know and love personally. They are still special to me. 

I’ll sit and study the little hand done stitches and subtle tears in the fabric from years of use. Thinking of the hours someone put in to make these quilts. I can’t help but think they are worth so much more than the dollars they are sold for now!

Our Auction Haul of Antique Quilts

So here are the ones I got from this past weekend’s auction. It’s amazing the different designs people come up with and it inspires me to try my hand at quilting.

We bought 5 total.

However, one is actually a topper. Meaning it still needs to be finished with a back and binding.

There are so many little hexagons that were all sewn together to make the top that I just had to buy it.

I’ll either learn how to make the back and binding and finish it myself or hire it out.

Cutter Quilts

Each quilt is very different, two are cutter quilts, so they have damage but are still very pretty. 

Don’t know what a cutter quilt is (I didn’t)?

A cutter quilt is simply a vintage quilt that has significant damage such as stains and tearing.

Colors and Patterns

The one in the best condition is the finished hexagon one with purple binding.

I love all the different fabric prints the hexagons are made of. I think from the prints it was made in the ’80s or ’90s.

My favorite one though was one that surprisingly but lucky for me was not being bid on as much.

Maybe it’s because it’s a pretty simple design compared to the others. Coincidentally that’s what I love about it, it’s simplicity.

Its body is white, with several identical light blue and red geometric designs. The back has a simple but still pretty heart-shaped embellishment stitched design likely made by a machine.

I found I tend to like the simpler quilts. Usually white ones with one or two accent colors thrown in for fun.

Do you guys have any fun antique of vintage collections? I’d love to hear in the comments below!

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