Wednesday, May 24, 2017

What is this mysterious fabric????

 Here my two blocks from today, made all from batiks, with an added contrast fabric.  One with high contrast!!  and one with low contrast.  I like them both...just different, aren't they??  I am having great fun with these!  The quilt planned has twenty blocks, and I have seven made.
 I am making pinwheel blocks from the cut off corners, and you know I love that!!
 But...my other cut off corners that have sat patiently in their box for years got upset!  "Make us into pinwheels too, they cried!"  So, I am doing that too...only one zillion to go!
OK.  I  got to go to a quilt guild meeting, and it was pretty darn fun!!  I brought a bunch of goodies for the free table, and they were snatched up...yahoo! On the free table was this piece of blue fabric.  It is a fun stripe, so I tucked it in my bag to take home.  THEN!!!

I unfolded it.  It is about 28 inches, selvage to selvage, which I think may tell some of you the age of the fabric.  I threw it in the washer, and washed and dried it.  Modern quilt fabrics are 44-45 inches wide.

It feels so funky!!  I cannot get a pin through it easily!!  I cannot iron it flat, even though soaking it with spray starch and water!!  It is slippery and squirrelly!!  What is it!!?  I love the subtle stripe and love the soft blue...but I will be darned if I know what it is.  It looks like the end was cut on the bias, like someone used it for binding?  LOL! It is FUNKY!!  Do you know what it is???  I still like it, however...Hee!!!



Have a super day!

Julie



8 comments:

Kimme said...

Julie have you done a burn test? It sounds like an early polyester. Good luck

---"Love" said...

If the burn test doesn't tell you, could it possibly be seer-sucker? I really don't think so, but..... ---"Love"

Janet O. said...

Before reading the other comments, I was also going to suggest the burn test. But I know nothing about the history of what fabrics were ever made 28" wide.
Your blocks are really fun, Julie. It will be a great quilt--have I said that before?
How large are those finished "leftover" pinwheels?

Peggy said...

It might be pillow ticking, even though it is not a traditional ticking design. That would account for the very tight weave and the width.

Connie said...

Beats me what that fabric might have been for. I don't think I've ever seen any of that size.

Lori said...

My thought is the fabric is some type of poly decor.
What cute blocks!

Chantal said...

I don't know what the fabric is but I do know that those blocks are awesome! :^D
Good luck with the one zillion to go. ;^)

Kyle said...

Do you have a university close by with a textile department? Someone there might solve the mystery.

Hexies, rainbow quilts and plaids!

Good morning to all!!!  Above is a hexagon, for English paper piecing.  My kitten Lucky has discovered them, and decided that they are great...