QUILT INDEX RECORD

12-8-1089

Who documented this quilt?

Michigan Quilt Project

Where are the records for this quilt housed?

Michigan State University Museum

Michigan Quilt Project Number:

03.0028

Quilt's title:

Pretty Posies

Names for quilt's pattern in common use:

sampler

Biography of the quiltmaker?

As a child, Sally Wolff learned sewing, embroidery, and quilting from her mother and worked on small projects for friends and relatives. She occasionally put a few quilting stitches in a quilt her mother was working on, but she always thought her mother removed those stitches after she went to bed. As she grew up and got married, In 1967, the Family Circle magazine published two quilt patterns and offered each to readers for $1.00. A friend of Sally's bought the two atterns and sent them to her. These were Sally's first two major quilts and they changed her life. The first quilt, "Circle of Flowers" is similar to her quilt "Wreath of Stars" shown on page 18 of Quilter's Newsletter Magazine July/August 2003. The second quilt, a Baltimore Quilt, served as the beginning of Sally's creative career. She changed many blocks in this quilt to be her own including a gorgeous bowl of fruit, collection of vegetables, and tree with birds. Her skill in designing these elements seemed to come naturally. After this, Sally created and made quilts for 10 to 14 hours per day (entirely by hand), and completed over 200 quilts.

Quilt top made by:

Wolff, Sally (officially Zelda)

Quilted by:

Wolff, Sally (officially Zelda)

If you are a relative of the quiltmaker, how are you related? The quiltmaker is my:

Quilt owner

If you are the quilt owner, how did you acquire this quilt?

Received as a gift

Where the quilt was made, country:

United States

Time period:

1976-1999

When was the quilt finished?

1987

Quiltmaker's gender:

Female

Quiltmaker's city:

Ormond Beach

Quiltmaker's state:

Florida (FL)

Quiltmaker's maiden name:

Cottrell

Quiltmaker's birth date:

4/21/1912

Quiltmaker's ethnic background/tribal affiliation:

European

Quiltmaker's educational background:

High School Diploma

Quiltmaker's father's name:

Cottrell, Owen

Quiltmaker's mother's name:

Cottrell, Zelda

Quiltmaker's spouse's/spouses' and /or partner's/partners' name(s):

Wolf, Elwood (second)

Quiltmaker's spouse's/spouses' and/or partner's/partners' occupation:

2nd, electrician

Number of children:

3

How many of the quiltmaker's children were boys?

3

How did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?

From Relative

When did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?

Under 10 years of age

Why does the quiltmaker quilt?

Pleasure

Other notes on how the quiltmaker learned, and how and why they quilt:

Sally made embroidery gifts and baby quilts for friends.

Estimated number of quilts made by this quiltmaker:

more than 50

Does/did the quiltmaker sell quilts?

yes

Does/did the quiltmaker teach quilting?

no

This is a:

Finished quilt

How wide is the quilt?

84 1/2"

How long is the quilt?

97 3/4"

Shape of edge:

Straight

Quilt's condition:

Excellent/like new

Describe the type of inscription:

Title

What is inscribed on the quilt?

Pretty Posies, Sally Wolff 1987, With love to Pat Olmstead

Method used to make the inscription:

Embroidery

Describe where the inscription was found:

lower right corner

Describe the quilt's layout:

Block pattern

Number of quilt blocks:

18 full, 100 border with applique, 4 plain corners

Size of quilt blocks:

17 1/8" x 17 1/8"

Spacing of quilt blocks:

Side by side

What is the shape of the quilt blocks?

Sampler

Number of borders:

1

Describe the borders:

Sides only 4 1/8" solid yellow

Fiber types used to make the quilt top:

Cotton

Applique techniques used to make the quilt top:

Hand Applique

Embellishment techniques used to make the quilt top:

Embroidery

Materials used to make the back:

Cotton

Number of pieces of fabric in the quilt back:

6

What is the width of the binding (measure on the top only)?

less than a half inch

What kind of filling is used in the quilt?

Polyester

How are the layers held together?

Hand quilting

Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 1:

6

Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 2:

6

Quilting designs used, overall motifs:

Outline

Quilting designs used, background fills:

Parallel lines

Describe the quilting designs used:

Hearts

Person filling out this form is:

Quilt owner

Source of the information on this quilt:

Friend of quiltmaker

Ownership of this quilt is:

Private

Quilt owner's name:

Pat Olmsted

Quilt owner's city:

Ypsilanti

Quilt owner's county:

Washtenaw

Quilt owner's state:

Michigan (MI)

How was this quilt acquired?

Gift

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

How did the quiltmaker participate in the creation of the quilt?

Made entire quilt

Copyright holder:

Michigan State University Museum