Buying Auction Quilts

Many collectors of antique quilts think of themselves as caretakers of historical documents, made at the hands of the needlework sisterhood before them. Their quilts speak to them and tell their story through clues in the style, fabric, pattern, quilt stitches and sometimes stitched or inked words, names, cities or dates.

The first time I went to an all antique quilt auction was in Southern California. One of those large Mid-western quilt dealer auction houses was holding an auction at a nearby hotel and I was very excited to go. I got there early and looked through their quilts as one is supposed to do, but I was rather new to quilt dating. It was crowded with people and I wasn’t able to get though very many stacks before the auction began.

With paddle in hand, I was ready. I believed every word the auctioneer said, big mistake. to read the rest go to my article in Collector's Weekly.

I would love to her about your auction experiences. What quilts did you miss and why? Which did you buy that you wish you hadn't and wouldn't have had you known then what you know now?

Ultimately I feel blessed for having the quilt auction experience I relate in my article "An Introduction to Identifying and Collecting Quilts. It taught me to take responsibility as a buyer and to learn everything I could as a collector. At that time I was hardly a collector, I was a quilt-loving shopper who became a collector because of all my shopping!

Everything that happens to us, I believe, happens for a reason. If we get the message and make the changes we don't get that experience again. If we don't hear or see it or don't choose to handle it, then the lesson comes again in another form. I prefer to "get it" as soon as possible so I can move on in my spiritual growth and development. How about you?

Piece,
Kim