Sunbonnet Sue Restoration

I began this project last year. This quilt belongs to my dear niece and she asked if I could try to revive some life into her. It was made, most likely during mid-twentieth century, by ladies in her hometown.

As you can see, she was in great need of repair.

I painstakingly removed the old, frayed pieces and traced with tissue paper the better parts of Sue for making new patterns. Pictured below you can see the worn condition of some of these Sues. (clicking on any picture will enlarge it for better viewing)

And take note of the tiny stitches used to "applique". I have not seen a running stitch as a method of applique before. But it works, and maybe I will try this method in the future on some of my quilts. It is certainly a faster technique than the traditional needle turn method.

After tracing on tissue paper, I carefully glued these tracings onto heavy paper. Once dry, I cut them out to size. Dresses, bonnets, shoes, sleeves and hands were made. When tracing these new pieces onto fabric, I would remember to add seam allowances when cutting them out because these paper patterns were of the exact size. 

More than a few evenings were spent turning under raw edges and basting to prepare for applique. This method works best for me and I also have the benefit of laying them over the originals as a final measure that would ensure I got the size and placement correct.

My main goal was to make my footprint, or should I say, handprint small in working on this quilt. I used 30's era fabrics of the same colors of the original Sues, and only replaced what was absolutely needed to be replaced. Many of the fabrics were beyond hope (frayed, deteriorated, and/or missing).

 

She had a black embroidered band on her bonnet which I removed from most of the Sues because they were badly worn and frayed. I tried to leave a few that were in the best condition as an example of what was there.   

Total stats were as follows: 

Four Sues were completely replaced. (Bonnet, dress, sleeves, hand and foot)

Seven Sues' dresses were replaced but her shoes, sleeves and bonnets were kept from the original. 



Summarily, out of 20 Sunbonnet Sues, 11 were partially or completely replaced. And now for her new and improved debut...

I would never recommend her to be washed or used other than for display purposes. Much of the background fabric is thin and nearly worn through. That repair is beyond my abilities. 


My recordings here are just part of her long history. I hope I have given her many more years of enjoyment. She can be laid out over a spare bed for display. This is the best option as long as she is out of direct sunlight because there is less stress on the fibers. 

And she can be carefully folded at the foot of the bed as display too.

It been a pleasant time restoring this quilt back into some use. Many thoughts and ponderings were entertained as I thought of the ladies who made these charming blocks. Who were they? What were their families like being raised in that small town? What trials were they facing? We can only guess, but I imagine they weren't far from our own daily concerns and worries of today. 


And that is one reason we sew, isn't it? There is a therapeutic effect in the monotony of sewing with needle and thread. Many thoughts and prayers are exercised there.  


Would you like your own copy of this pattern? You can download it here. Please contact me if you do reproduce this quilt with your own creativity and share the results. I would love to hear about how you tackled this pattern and if you had any problems. This is really a simple and fun pattern with so many variations. 

Happy stitches!