Anyway, for a couple of bucks, I got all of these...plus one more that didn't make it to the photo op....
Helen also has a quilt that my great grandmother made her. I would have paid her the bidding price for it if she would have offered it to me prior to the sale….but I let it go. I do think perhaps she should have given it to her granddaughter who asked if she could pull it from the stack of items out for sale, but perhaps she felt she had given enough. I did talk with several of the professional buyers who were upset by the notes on the quilts saying they were given to her by her grandmothers. They said these belonged in the family….I agree but someone will buy them and hang the 70+ year old quilts on their porch swing and hopefully enjoy them.
I did get this worthless tied quilt to use as a coverlet. It too is probably about 70 years old and made by one of her grandmothers. (the one I am not related to)
I also got a stack of sheet blankets. These got bidded up a bit more than I wanted to pay but these too are showing up in antique stores. Sheet blankets are a concept that needs to come back. I suppose the polar fleece is the new replacement but it is not the same as a soft cotton sheet blanket, which are perfect for a summer night. Besides I much prefer cotton to synthetic fabrics.
Still I got the stack for under $20 and with the stack came two regular blankets. One I sold to a dealer for a buck so he could wrap furniture in it….but the second one had a note on it and stopped me dead in my tracks from giving it to him. It is the beautiful white blanket you see in the photo of the couch, it had a note attached that said, “This is the blanket we took Mother to the hospital in.” and then the date she died. Helen’s mother was my most favorite aunt. Aunt Vi died shortly after we were married. She was a wise woman and had given me much good counsel when I needed it. She will always hold a fond place in my heart and was one of the two older women who did much to encourage me to be strong and diligent in my life.
Overall it was a successful day at the auction. We came away with good stuff for not a lot. Even Mom got a little something. She bought a mantel clock that she thinks might have been Aunt Opals whether or not it is actually it is hard to tell BUT we will just say it is so and it won’t make any difference if it is or not. One mantel clock is the same as any other despite who was the original owner. But I do have some vague memory of Opal’s mantel clock and something about this makes me think it is hers. Mom tells me there was a smaller mantel clock that was more cherished by Aunt Opal, a special gift from her husband (but I imagine it was sold years ago—by the same relative for more money.) Opal and Norman were a unique couple and had a story I wish I could tell but most of the details died with them. But that is a bit off topic, isn't it?