By Lessa SiegeleMade by Anita Fraser-Day
Quilted by Connie Potter
Join us on a TQS exclusive 12-month historic journey recreating the historic Rajah Quilt, sewn by women convicts on board the ship Rajah traveling from England on April 1841 to the penal colony of Van Diemen's Land-now known as Tasmania. The original quilt measured at approximately 128" x 128", but Lessa recreated it in quarter scale with fabrics from her stash. She used many different scraps, imagining that's what might have happened when the original quilt was being made. She followed the colors of the original quilt loosely, and tea dyed fabrics that didn't look old enough. You can obtain the same look with reproduction fabrics, or make a more contemporary-looking version like the one created for TQS.
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Available On: December 1, 2016
The journey is almost complete, with land nearly in sight. Before they arrived, they completed the top and bottom borders of applique, and so must we. Excitement and anticipation were in the air. What would life be like in this new land call Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania)? Would it be a new and hopefully better life for all of the convicts?
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Available On: November 1, 2016
This month you will be working on the Cross appliqué side borders. As placement of the motifs can be a bit tricky, we recommend finger pressing a fold into the border fabric strip to locate the center. Do you think that this method of marking by pinching fabric was used on the ship? Remember, the original quilt is 126" x 126." Think about how you would go about marking appliqué placement with a very limited number and type of tools.
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Available On: October 1, 2016
This month you will make the fourth of four Diamond-in-a-Square borders. As the various elements of the Rajah quilt were being stitched, do you think that they were assembled in rows the way we have chosen? Or do you think that all of the individual elements were collected before assembly?
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Available On: August 31, 2016
This month you will be making the second half-square triangle border. These little half-square triangles are gems, but very tiny. Imagine what it would be like to hand stitch by the light of a smoky oil lamp, with the constant rocking of the ship, AND without a pair of glasses. Did you know that women convicts, if it was deemed necessary, were given eye glasses as part of their donated items by the Convict Committee?
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Available On: August 1, 2016
This month you will be working on the second border of hourglass units. It is important to pay attention to the orientation of the units when piecing them together. Paying attention and keeping order was very important on the voyage. Imagine what a huge responsibility Kezia Hayter, at 23, had at overseeing 180 women and 10 children. With the journey over half completed, life must have settled into a daily routine, for the most part.
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Available On: July 1, 2016
This month you will be adding the first border of half-square triangles, as well as the print border. The inclusion of the printed border gives the eye a place to rest. Half-square triangles can be a challenge, but we have given you a foundation pattern to make the process much easier and more accurate Do you wonder if the women were able to rest on the journey? The constant rocking of the boat due to waves and storms would surely have made it difficult to sleep soundly through the night (let alone sew accurately!).
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