STRIKING black 1900 antique BIRDS IN AIR block QUILT

1. This striking circa 1900 quilt features charming scrapbag Birds in Air blocks laid out over a crisp and unusual black and white stripe fabric. (click to enlarge)

2. The batting is thin to medium and that extra loft emphasizes the textural contribution of the overall diagonal quilting treatment. (click to enlarge)

3. The half-square triangles of the crisp little blocks feature a great deal of variety in terms of colors and degrees of dark-light values, but there's an overall rhythm that emphasizes that illusion of crisp little facets as in a classic Ocean Waves quilt. (click to enlarge)

4. The striped open block in the lower left quadrant of this image is the only one I note on the quilt running in the opposite diagonal orientation! (click to enlarge)

5. Examining a section of the quilt rotated 45 degrees underscores how distinctive that on-point arrangement of the blocks is. (click to enlarge)

6. The open blocks give the appearance at times of featuring a stripe with irregular spacing, but its really just the dimensional furrows creating by the linear quilting. (click to enlarge)

7. Let's explore these block and their lively variety of prints. Here the excellent red, pink white and black print jumps out, anchoring the block at opposite corners. (click to enlarge)

8. Here a wealth of prettily textured prints in black tones cozies up to a complement of subtler stripes in the light triangles. (click to enlarge)

9. Here again, that common choice to anchor the block at opposite corners with a featured red print. Two indigo bits make an appearance, here. (click to enlarge)

10. This block is packed with exciting prints. I love how the fizzy red print coordinates with a vaguely similar fireworks of a black and white print. The heavy use of undulating pinstripes in both black and green iterations is similarly charming. (click to enlarge)

11. Closer in on that same simple block, an entirely different complement of interesting prints jump out: a classic copper-toned madder paisley detail, a red-black-and-white classic circa 1900 print and best of all three different triangles of that otherworldly honeycomb, basket-weave and amoeba print! (click to enlarge)

12. Most of the prints in this section are getting familiar by now. (click to enlarge)

13. Here are a couple lovely little discoveries like that wonderfully elegant little leaf repeat. (click to enlarge)

14. Here some more lovely leaves and floral designs, and you'll note up close an example of the quilt's occasional flannels with their distinctly fuzzy knap. (click to enlarge)

15. A wealth of woven checks and plaids here. (click to enlarge)

16. Here are a few interesting textured weaves and an elegant rosebud print at lower left. (click to enlarge)

17. There's an utterly tiny snag visible here on the tan triangle, but much more interesting are those two bits of baby blue blossoms with raised stripes woven into the fabric. (click to enlarge)

18. Here are some familiar featured prints, plus a sweet pink rose print. (click to enlarge)

19. What an abundance of cool woven-in texture on the red and white stripe at left. (click to enlarge)

20. Only on this single triangle does this dramatically shaded black and blue on white anchor print appear! (click to enlarge)

21. A bit more fuzzy flannel, here. (click to enlarge)

22. Here's a really exquisite little print featuring, perhaps a very stylized pomegranate? (click to enlarge)

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24. Here are a couple instances of red prints cozying up to one another across the divide between adjacent blocks. (click to enlarge)

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26. Here's a dramatic leaf print in burgundy, alongside a classic, timeless green calico design. (click to enlarge)

27. The double black stripe unites background blocks and borders, but transition is crisply marked by the change in orientation. (click to enlarge)

28. The backing is a delightful small-scale check, (click to enlarge)

29. and the binding beautifully ties together both backing and featured front fabric, with its own twist on the black-and-white theme. That great little textured stripe runs the length of each side. (click to enlarge)

30. Although I found no flaws on three sides, the fourth shows lots of little edge holes, pops, splits and wear. (click to enlarge)

31. Also along that same edge, you see the worst instance of splitting along a black stripe, which actually is only 1 3/4-inches long. (click to enlarge)

32. Here is the single triangle I found with any damage: a black solid apparently suffering dye issues. Near it are the other two triangles I noted with even more minor imperfections (you can see the affected edge of one at lower right here), in this case two scraps of burgundy or claret that appear to be partially sun-bleached. (click to enlarge)

33. The quilt finds a natural affinity with both the Birds In Air quilt and the Ocean Waves quilt with their thousands of crisp little triangles in circa 1890-1910 small-scale prints. (click to enlarge)

34. The bulk of the featured quilts are united by a wealth of prints from that era. All are pieced, most are scrappy and the prints make for a delightful survey of the era's popular printed motifs and most popular colors. (click to enlarge)

35. In this shot of the full group, you can't miss another feature: the excellent hand-quilting throughout. (click to enlarge)