QUILT INDEX RECORD
25-21-54
Who documented this quilt?
Texas Sesquicentennial Quilt Association, Texas Quilt Search
Where are the records for this quilt housed?
Briscoe Center for American History, University of Texas at Austin
Texas Quilt Search Number:
tqs_0089
Person filling out this form is:
Quiltmaker; Quilt owner; Other
Source of the information on this quilt:
This quilt was reviewed and documented during the Texas Sesquicentennial Quilt Association's Texas Quilt Search, 1983-1986, and/or during the Association's Phase II of the Texas Quilt Search, 1986-1989. Karey Bresenhan served as quilt historian
When was the form filled out?
1983-1989
Choose the best description of the source to the quilt:
Quiltmaker
How did the quiltmaker participate in the creation of the quilt?
Made entire quilt
If you are the quilt owner, how did you acquire this quilt?
Made the quilt
Describe the relationship to the quilt's maker:
This quilt is owned by the quiltmaker.
This is a:
Finished quilt
Quilt's title:
Little Women Quilt
Owner's name for quilt:
Little Women
How wide is the quilt?
78 in.
How long is the quilt?
94 in.
Shape of edge:
Straight
Shape of corners:
Straight
What color is the quilt?
Blue or Navy; Pink; Red; White
Overall color scheme:
Multicolor; Light or pastel colors
Quilt's condition:
Very good/almost new
Damage:
Fading
Describe the damage:
slight fading
Time period:
1950-1975
When was the quilt started?
1951
When was the quilt finished?
1951
Family/owner's date for quilt:
1951
Describe the quilt's layout:
Block pattern
Subject of the quilt:
Little Women, scenes from the book by Louisa May Alcott
Number of quilt blocks:
30; 15 pictorial and 15 plain
Arrangement of quilt blocks:
Straight
Spacing of quilt blocks:
Alternating with plain squares; Side by side
Describe the quilt setting:
pictorial motifs on pink blocks alternate with plain pale blue blocks
Number of different block patterns used in the quilt:
15
What is the shape of the quilt blocks?
Squares
Fiber types used to make the quilt top:
Cotton
Fabric styles used in the quilt top:
Dotted; Floral; Multiple scrap; Print; Solid/plain
Piecing techniques used to make the quilt top:
Hand Piecing
Applique techniques used to make the quilt top:
Hand Applique
Embellishment techniques used to make the quilt top:
Embroidery
Describe the techniques used to make the quilt top:
embroidered details some some pictorial motifs
Can you feel or see paper on the quilt that was used as a construction aid?
no
Materials used to make the back:
Cotton
What color is the back of the quilt?
Pink
Describe the back:
Same fabric used throughout; Solid/plain
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
What kind of filling is used in the quilt?
Cotton
How thick is the quilt?
Thin (Less than 3/16?)
How are the layers held together?
Hand quilting
Thread type used for the quilting:
cotton
Color of thread used in the quilting:
white
Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 1:
7
Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 2:
9
Width between quilting lines:
2 in.
Quilting designs used, overall motifs:
Grid/crosshatch
Describe the quilting designs used:
crosshatch diamond grid, with 2 in. between quilt lines
Features or notes about the quilt's appearance, materials, or construction:
15 scenes from the cherished novel Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott are depicted on pink blocks, with alternate pale blue blocks in between.
Quilt top made by:
Huegele, Betty
Quilted by:
Huegele, Betty
Where the quilt was made, city:
San Antonio
Where the quilt was made, county:
Bexar
Where the quilt was made, state:
Texas (TX)
Where the quilt was made, country:
United States
How was this quilt acquired?
Made by owner
Tell the story of how the quilt was obtained:
This was the quiltmaker's first quilt effort; she had some help from family members on the quilting.
Describe anything about the history of the quilt that wasn't already recorded in a previous field:
Betty Huegele chose this quilt pattern as her first subject because she loves the Little Women story. The quilt is made using a pattern ordered from Ladies Home Journal in 1951. Today Mrs. Huegele makes baby quilts as gifts.
Why was the quilt made?
Art or personal expression
The quilt was made to be used for:
Bedding, special occasion
Quilt is presently used as:
Bedding, special occasion
Where did the maker get their materials?
Purchased new
Where did the maker find their pattern?
Commercial/Published source: Magazine
Describe the source of the pattern:
quilt pattern from Ladies' Home Journal
Exhibitions where this quilt was displayed:
“Lone Stars: A Legacy of Texas Quilts, 1936-1986,” 16th Annual International Quilt Festival, November, 1990, Houston, Texas.
Related items such as diaries, obituaries, wills, household inventories, or pictures of the quiltmaker:
Texas Sesquicentennial Quilt Association’s Texas Quilt Search Archives
Publications (including web sites) where this quilt or maker was featured:
Bresenhan, Karoline Patterson and Nancy O'Bryant Puentes, Lone Stars: A Legacy of Texas Quilts, Vol. II, 1936-1986 (Austin: University of Texas Press, 1990), p. 78-79.
Ownership of this quilt is:
Private
Quilt owner's name:
Betty Huegele
Quilt owner's state:
Texas (TX)
Quilt owner's country:
United States
Quiltmaker's gender:
Female
Quiltmaker's birth date:
1927
Quiltmaker's birthplace, city:
San Antonio, Bexar County
Quiltmaker's birthplace, state:
Texas
Quiltmaker's birthplace, country:
United States
Quiltmaker's educational background:
high school and nuses training
Quiltmaker's occupation:
registered nurse
In which kind of environment did the quiltmaker live?
Urban
Quiltmaker's state:
Texas (TX)
Quiltmaker's country:
United States
Number of children:
3
How did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?
Self-Taught
When did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?
Age 20-29
Why does the quiltmaker quilt?
Gifts; Pleasure
Notes on how the quiltmaker learned, and how and why they quilt:
creative outlet, makes crib quilts as gifts for babies
Does/did the quiltmaker sell quilts?
no
Does/did the quiltmaker teach quilting?
no
Any other notes or stories about the quiltmaker:
The quiltmaker today focues on making baby quilts, which she makes on a hoop while she watches television. She was always fond of the Little Women story, and she reports that when she "saw the pattern advertised in the Ladies Home Journal in 1951, I ordered it and went to work on it right away. I was working at the time, so did the sewing in my spare time."
Who photographed this quilt?
Sharon Risedorph
Access and copyright information:
Restricted
Copyright holder:
Assistant Director Winedale
Details
Cite this Quilt
Huegele, Bett. Little Women Quilt. 1951. From Briscoe Center for American History, University of Texas at Austin, Texas Sesquicentennial Quilt Association, Texas Quilt Search. Published in The Quilt Index, https://quiltindex.org/view/?type=fullrec&kid=25-21-54. Accessed: 03/29/24
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Essay
Lone Stars: A Legacy of Texas Quilts: ...
Bresenhan, Karoline Patterson