I recently posted here asking for referrals to a quilt cleaning service. There were many suggestions of what to do, but no one ever came up with a recommendation.
I've contacted, by phone and email, quilt shops, quilt appraisers, and many other people with some interest in sewing patches of different cloth into one piece. Finally, I located a place - a dry cleaning and laundry business - with experience in cleaning quilts. About an hour from my home in Eustis, Florida.
I took the quilt up there to drop it off for cleaning. The owner, who evidently is quite knowledgeable about quilts, took one look at it and declined to take it on. "Too old, too delicate, and too valuable" he said. He wasn't going to take something that might be worth over $1,500 and subject it to any type of washing process. He said, at most, I might vacuum it (using a screen between the vacuum brush head and the quilt) and put it in the dryer (tumble only, no heat) to fluff it out. However, he said, he wouldn't personally recommend the dryer step.
So, the quilt is down and the hanging tabs have been cut off. Those of you that pointed out that the quilt was hung incorrectly will be happy to know that it will go back up with a sleeve and rod. I'll just vacuum it and re-hang it.
I also stopped at a quilt shop in Mt Dora where the quilt attracted a crowd of ooohers and aaahers. The owner brought out a quilt made in
1832 that is the pride of the shop, and pointed out how the stitching on my quilt is far superior to hers. She especially liked the trapunto embellishments. She recommended having the quilt appraised this fall when an appraiser comes to Renninger's (a very large local flea market and antique center)for insurance purposes, but I'm not all that interested. I'd be interested in knowing the approximate age, but the value is of no concern to me.The opinion, by the way, of several people was that the yellowish color is the original color and the quilt has not yellowed from white. The color is too uniform and the back - which has not been exposed to sunlight - is the same color.
Just to add to the history of the quilt, I contacted the relative who gave it to us. He said that he doesn't think his mother or grandmother made the quilt, but that it had been in the family longer than that. He added that the quilt was not folded and stored in the trunk, but had been used a protective wrapping for some other objects in the trunk! One of the objects was "an ugly old lamp with a glass shade". The lamp was sold at a house estate sale along with "a bunch of other old stuff". Some picker had a field day.
The worst suggestion that I received was from one of the customers at the quilt shop who said that it was a "crime" to hang the quilt and expose it to light and dust. She said it should be carefully packed away and preserved.
Why in the world would anyone want to hide something to protect it, and not keep it out in view? Yes, hanging it will eventually cause some damage, but isn't the whole point of any kind of art or craftsmanship to be able to see and enjoy it?
In case you didn't read the original thread, pictures are at: