QUILT INDEX RECORD

12-8-7567

Who documented this quilt?

Michigan Quilt Project; Michigan State University Museum Collection

Where are the records for this quilt housed?

Michigan State University Museum

Michigan Quilt Project Number:

85.1624

If this quilt is owned by a museum, enter the accession number:

1998:53.13

Object label:

Clamshell
Mary Schafer
c1966
Flushing, Genesee County, Michigan
c1966
Collection of Michigan State University Museum acc.#1998:53.13

Essay:

The complexity of piecing the Clamshell pattern, due to the connecting of convex and concave edges, made this historically a quilt with a high level of difficulty. The National Quilt Association awarded two blue ribbons to this Clamshell quilt at their charter show in 1970. It is also the first quilt pictured in Delores Hinson’s book, A Quilters Companion.

Quilt's title:

Clamshell

Owner's name for the quilt:

Clamshell

Names for quilt's pattern in common use:

Clamshell

When was the form filled out?

2/18/1998

Quilt top made by:

Schafer, Mary Vida

Quilted by:

Schafer, Mary Vida

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

Purchased the quilt

Where the quilt was made, city:

Flushing

Where the quilt was made, county:

Genesee

Where the quilt was made, state:

Michigan (MI)

Time period:

1950-1975

When was the quilt started?

1966

When was the quilt finished?

1966

Why was the quilt made?

Art or personal expression

Quilt is presently used as:

Museum collection

Quiltmaker's gender:

Female

Quiltmaker's city:

Flushing

Quiltmaker's county:

Genesee

Quiltmaker's state:

Michigan (MI)

Quiltmaker's maiden name:

Vida

Quiltmaker's birth date:

4/27/1910

In which kind of environment did the quiltmaker live?

Urban

Quiltmaker's ethnic background/tribal affiliation:

Austria-Hungary

Quiltmaker's educational background:

9th grade

Quiltmaker's occupation:

Creamery worker; switchboard operator; book keeper; housewife

Quiltmaker's father's name:

Vida, Josef

Quiltmaker's father's birthplace:

Austria-Hungary

Quiltmaker's father's ethnic/tribal background:

Austria-Hungary

Quiltmaker's mother's name:

Zelka, Julianna

Quiltmaker's mother's ethnic/tribal background:

Austrian

Quiltmaker's marriage date(s):

6/22/1934

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

Schafer, Fred

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

Welder for Buick Mototors

Number of children:

1

How many of the quiltmaker's children were boys?

1

How did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?

Self-Taught

When did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?

Age 40-49

Why does the quiltmaker quilt?

Pleasure

Estimated number of quilts made by this quiltmaker:

more than 50

Does/did the quiltmaker sell quilts?

yes

Does/did the quiltmaker teach quilting?

only informally

Does/did the quiltmaker belong to a group? Name of the group?

Genesee Star Quilters

Where does/did the group meet?

Flint, Michigan

What are the main activities of the group?

Teach children quilting, make charity quilts.

This is a:

Finished quilt

How wide is the quilt?

81

How long is the quilt?

96

Shape of edge:

Straight

Shape of corners:

Straight

What color is the quilt?

Cream; Green; Lavender; Pink; Yellow

Overall color scheme:

Light or pastel colors

Quilt's condition:

Excellent/like new

Damage:

Fold marks or creases

Type of inscription:

Signature; Date

What is inscribed on the quilt?

Mary Schafer

What is the date inscribed on the quilt?

1966

Method used to make the inscription:

Embroidery

Location of inscription:

on border

Describe the quilt's layout:

Medallion or framed center

Arrangement of quilt blocks:

Straight

Spacing of quilt blocks:

Side by side

What is the shape of the quilt blocks?

Same block throughout

Number of different block patterns used in the quilt:

1

Fiber types used to make the quilt top:

Cotton

Fabric styles used in the quilt top:

Multiple scrap

Piecing techniques used to make the quilt top:

Hand Piecing

Can you feel or see paper on the quilt that was used as a construction aid?

no

Applique techniques used to make the quilt top:

Hand Applique

Embellishment techniques used to make the quilt top:

Embroidery

Embellishments used:

Cotton thread

Materials used to make the back:

Cotton

Number of pieces of fabric in the quilt back:

2

Describe the back:

Same fabric used throughout

Materials used in the quilt binding:

Cotton

How is the binding made?

Bias grain

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

less than a half inch

How wide is the binding (measure on the top only)?

1/4

What kind of filling is used in the quilt?

Polyester

How thick is the quilt?

Medium (3/16?)

How are the layers held together?

Hand quilting

Color of thread used in the quilting:

8

Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 1:

7

Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 2:

8

Can you see any knots on the front or back of the quilt?

no

Quilting designs used, overall motifs:

Clamshell; Outline; Single parallel lines

Features or notes about the quilt's appearance, materials, or construction:

Dolore Hinson, author of A Quilter's Companion calls this quilt "One of Mary's best"

Where did the maker find their pattern?

Another quilt

Commercial name of the pattern for the top:

Pictured in Ruth Finley's book, Old Patchwork Quilts

Related items such as diaries, obituaries, wills, household inventories, or pictures of the quiltmaker:

Prize Ribbons, oral histories, audio and video tapes, pictures of quilter.

Person filling out this form is:

Quiltmaker

Ownership of this quilt is:

Public- Michigan State University Museum

Quilt owner's name:

Michigan State University Museum

Quilt owner's city:

East Lansing

Quilt owner's county:

Ingham

Quilt owner's state:

Michigan (MI)

Quilt owner's country:

United States

How was this quilt acquired?

Purchase

Tell the story of how the quilt was obtained:

The quilt was purchased by the Michigan State University Museum in 1998 as part of the Mary Schafer Collection.

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

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

Made entire quilt

The quilt was made to be used for:

Bedding, special occasion

Describe any favorite patterns, tools, etc. used by the quiltmaker:

Handppiecing, applique and quilting.

Copyright holder:

MSU Board of Trustees