A Flurry of Feathers!
When it comes to quilt repairs, one of the best practices is to expect anything.
That’s what happened when Susan G brought me her duvet. It was in need of repair as the cording around the edge had been worn through. As a result, one corner had a fist-sized hole that spit feathers whenever the duvet was handled. The site was rather amusing, reminding me of a snow blower, however, the feathers billowed all around my studio.
Susan requested all the feathers be removed and the blanket (which she called it) be remade into a quilt. “Is this possible,” she asked with great hope.
“Yes,” I told her after examining the duvet closely.
Susan was beyond thrilled and mentioned it took over a month of calls and research to find someone willing to fulfill her request. I was pleased that I could confidently fulfill her quilt vision. As I outlined my plan for her, I shifted from calling it a duvet/blanket to a quilt.
Here’s my reason:
A duvet is a large casing stuffed with feathers or a synthetic material to give it loft and lightness. A blanket is a single layer of material, often made from cotton, fleece, wool, or synthetic fibers.
A quilt is made of three layers – backing, batting, and quilt top – which are stitched together and finished with a binding to enclose (and protect) the layers.
When Susan introduced me to her “blanket”, it was in the form of a double-decker duvet (Wow! Say that three times fast!) The main duvet was as described above. It was layered with a beautiful woven linen and double-stuffed with more feathers. The entire “blanket” was finished with cording wrapped in black polyester. My plan was to first remove all the feathers between the linen and the duvet. Next I would remove the cording and the backing (the same black polyester as the duvet). Lastly, I would reuse the top, replace with a new backing (black quilter’s cotton), and machine-stitch the entire “quilt”. To finish it off, I would add a binding and a label.
Two snags occurred:
1. How do I effectively and neatly remove all the feathers? Luckily, I chose to experiment with methods outside! It didn’t take long to discover this was a very good idea! My partner, Tom, and I first tried a wet/dry vac, which clogged the filter immediately. Then Tom suggested a leaf blower! We got a laugh out of this method as it turned out to be most effective.
The second part to this snag was how to remove all the pin feathers that were embedded in the linen fibers. Tom and I experimented with a number of items:
Lint remover, hair brush, duct tape, sandpaper, vacuum, wire brushes, scrub brushes, leaf blower, air compressor, cat brush, nit comb, and curry brush! The curry brush was the best choice. And it still took over three hours to remove the majority…not all!
2. The second snag was the best method to machine-stitch the quilt. I spoke to longarm quilters and they both declined, saying the linen would distort with the longarm needles.
Luckily, the quilt shop owner suggested tying the quilt.
Here is how tying a quilt differs from machine-quilting:
Tying a quilt is a traditional method of finishing a quilt by connecting the quilt top, batting, and backing together with knots or individual stitches. It’s a simple hand-stitched process that uses yarn, embroidery thread, or any strong thread and uses appropriate needles for the fiber chosen. The ties are spaced evenly across the quilt and can be a great way to add a personal touch or contrast with the quilt’s design.
Machine quilting involves using a domestic sewing machine or longarm sewing machine to stitch through the quilt’s layers, creating patterns and designs that can range from simple to complex.
With tying in mind, I contacted my hand-stitching friends and got Susan’s quilt scheduled for tying. They meet at their church each Tuesday and hand-stitch quilts as a fundraiser for their church. They are excited to tie a quilt as this is something no one has done in a while.
Stay tuned and I’ll share more news and pictures as the quilt is tied!
Staying in stitches!
Kristen