A Close Look at Restoration

"Restoration" means to bring back to a former, normal, unimpaired state. In quilts, it means to repair damage in such a way that you do not see or notice the repair. This can be interpreted in many ways, by as many people. For example, an owner of a quilt may desire to have a bad binding cut away rather than covered over with Crepeline or another binding. This can be considered "restoration" if it makes the quilt usable or attractive once again.

On the other hand, a museum curator does not even consider cutting away or removing anything from the damaged object. This "restoration" would destroy the historical significance of the object. They see their mission as preservation, or preserving the artifact in the exact way it came to them. Whatever your particular persuasion, as a quilt collector, you should be able to identify quilt restoration when it has been executed on a quilt and if it has been done properly.

Restoration done poorly or without regard for historical provenance can devalue the piece. The following identifiers are just some of the ways you can spot "restoration" work.

1. Look for evidence of fabrics from the wrong rime period, color, value or scale (size) as compared to the surrounding body of fabrics. 1930 fabrics will look remarkably different from 1860 fabrics in each of these categories. You will have to do some homework to familiarize yourself with the differences, but it will be worth the effort.

 

2. Look for signs of blind stitching or applique on patches of pieced work. These would be overlaid patches to cover holes, "blown out" fabrics or faded patches. The same can be true of a difference in applique stitches if new appliques have been overlaid to older pieces.

 

3. Be on the look out for changes in threads or machine stitching on pieces that have hand work as the predominate feature. In machine pieced quilts, examine the stitches to detect a different machine at work or the skill level of a different sewer than the original artist.

 

4. Fabric textures have time periods as well. Rayon and synthetics will not be found in early quilts, so if you see patches that are overlaid or pieced into a quilt with these textures look for signs of the patches having been added at a later date.

 

5. Colors and dyes can be identified, with study, that are appropriate to the age of the quilt. If you find a 1939 era aqua blue peeking out from the surface of an 1880 Madder scrap quilt, look closely for the stitching clues of "restoration".

 

6. Battings can be replaced or added to older tops. Again, you would have to be able to tell the age of the top to know if a synthetic batting was original or added at a later date. Even with the new all cotton battings, they have a different "feel" and a practiced eye will be able to see obvious additions to older tops.

 

7. Less noticeable clues are found when an old quilt has been taken apart and the battings replaced, but the original top and bottom are re-used. Then you have to look for tell-tale signs of stitch marks.

 

8. Quilting that changes from top to bottom is also a clue that there has been a new back added and the quilting will penetrate only the back layer, not all three.

 

9. The use of sheer illusion or Crepeline that protects damaged areas is a simple but often overlooked sign of restoration. It can be so finely applied and so small that it can be missed when examining a quilt.

 

When examining a quilt for signs of restoration, if any repairs are too obvious or too crudely executed so that the original design or "normal" state of the quilt is compromised, then most likely the value will be reduced. Likewise, if the repairs are drastic and done in disregard of the historical importance a piece may have, then the object becomes no longer the object it was, and has no value.

 

It would be wise for the collector considering the purchase of a piece to have the opportunity to really look over the quilt with a friend before the sale is finalized. Reputable dealers and restorers will keep records of restoration work and they will happily show you "where" on the quilt the work was done.

 

Pamela Pampe is a quilt restoration specialist and an appraiser, certified by the American Quilters Society. For more information on restoration, you may contact Pamela at MiamiQuilt@aol.com.

 

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