Circa 1930-1940
Size: 75”x64”
Light Weight
Pattern: Grandmother’s Fan
Condition: Good. Minimal wear/tearing on fabrics.
Handwashed and line dried
Hand pieced and hand quilted, this cheerful Grandmother’s Fan quilt is arranged in a lively allover composition of open fans set on point across a soft white ground. Each fan is built from radiating blades of pastel and floral cottons anchored by curved quarter-circle bases, creating the effect of small hand fans scattered across the quilt in many directions. The maker used a delightful assortment of pinks, blues, lavenders, greens, peaches, and occasional brighter accents, giving each fan its own personality while maintaining a light, harmonious overall palette. Fine hand quilting in an allover diamond lattice adds gentle texture and movement across the surface, softening the geometry of the piecing. With its playful placement, sweet Depression-era prints, and airy white space, the quilt has a bright and whimsical presence while still feeling distinctly handmade and domestic.
Historical Period
Likely Depression era to early mid-20th century, circa 1930s–1940s.
About the Pattern
This quilt uses the classic Grandmother’s Fan pattern, a beloved American quilt design made from radiating wedge-shaped “fan blades” joined to a curved quarter-circle base. In many examples, the fan units are repeated in regular rows, but in this quilt they are set on point and arranged with more open spacing, allowing the white ground to become an important part of the design. The pattern became especially popular in the early twentieth century and remained a favorite during the 1930s and 1940s, when quilters often used small pieces of treasured dress prints, feedsacks, and scrap cottons to build colorful fan blades. The shape echoes both folding hand fans and rising sunbursts, giving the quilt a sense of motion and cheerful energy.
Fabric
The quilt is pieced from a varied collection of printed cottons typical of the 1930s and 1940s, including florals, feedsack prints, dots, novelty geometrics, and small-scale dress fabrics. The palette leans pastel—powder blue, pale pink, lavender, mint green, butter yellow, peach, and aqua—though a few stronger reds and blues add contrast and visual rhythm. The fan blades appear to be made largely from scrap and feedsack cottons, while the setting ground is a white cotton that allows the individual blocks to stand out clearly. The soft pink border frames the composition gently and reinforces the quilt’s overall lighthearted, feminine character.
Condition
Overall, the quilt presents beautifully and retains strong visual appeal, with crisp fan motifs and pleasing color throughout. It shows expected wear from age and use, including scattered fabric thinning, light fading, minor abrasions, and a few small areas of loss or fraying in some of the fan blades. The quilting and piecing remain clearly visible, and the quilt still reads as a lovely, well-preserved example of a Depression-era fan quilt made for everyday use rather than formal display.
—————————————————————————————————-
*Disclaimer: Please remember that you’re purchasing a quilt that is decades—sometimes well over a century—old. Signs of age are part of their story. I do my best to photograph and describe any condition issues honestly.
You may find:
• Fading or discoloration
• Small stains or age spots
• Light wear, thinning, or fabric repairs
• Minor imperfections consistent with age and use
Each of these are little piece of American history—stitched by hand from cotton, feed sacks, flour sacks, clothing, and treasured scraps by women who made beauty from what they had. Every quilt carries a story, and it’s been an honor to help preserve these heirlooms for the next generation.
ALL QUILT SALES ARE FINAL - NO REFUNDS OR RETURNS, QUILTS ARE SOLD AS IS.
Circa 1930-1940
Size: 75”x64”
Light Weight
Pattern: Grandmother’s Fan
Condition: Good. Minimal wear/tearing on fabrics.
Handwashed and line dried
Hand pieced and hand quilted, this cheerful Grandmother’s Fan quilt is arranged in a lively allover composition of open fans set on point across a soft white ground. Each fan is built from radiating blades of pastel and floral cottons anchored by curved quarter-circle bases, creating the effect of small hand fans scattered across the quilt in many directions. The maker used a delightful assortment of pinks, blues, lavenders, greens, peaches, and occasional brighter accents, giving each fan its own personality while maintaining a light, harmonious overall palette. Fine hand quilting in an allover diamond lattice adds gentle texture and movement across the surface, softening the geometry of the piecing. With its playful placement, sweet Depression-era prints, and airy white space, the quilt has a bright and whimsical presence while still feeling distinctly handmade and domestic.
Historical Period
Likely Depression era to early mid-20th century, circa 1930s–1940s.
About the Pattern
This quilt uses the classic Grandmother’s Fan pattern, a beloved American quilt design made from radiating wedge-shaped “fan blades” joined to a curved quarter-circle base. In many examples, the fan units are repeated in regular rows, but in this quilt they are set on point and arranged with more open spacing, allowing the white ground to become an important part of the design. The pattern became especially popular in the early twentieth century and remained a favorite during the 1930s and 1940s, when quilters often used small pieces of treasured dress prints, feedsacks, and scrap cottons to build colorful fan blades. The shape echoes both folding hand fans and rising sunbursts, giving the quilt a sense of motion and cheerful energy.
Fabric
The quilt is pieced from a varied collection of printed cottons typical of the 1930s and 1940s, including florals, feedsack prints, dots, novelty geometrics, and small-scale dress fabrics. The palette leans pastel—powder blue, pale pink, lavender, mint green, butter yellow, peach, and aqua—though a few stronger reds and blues add contrast and visual rhythm. The fan blades appear to be made largely from scrap and feedsack cottons, while the setting ground is a white cotton that allows the individual blocks to stand out clearly. The soft pink border frames the composition gently and reinforces the quilt’s overall lighthearted, feminine character.
Condition
Overall, the quilt presents beautifully and retains strong visual appeal, with crisp fan motifs and pleasing color throughout. It shows expected wear from age and use, including scattered fabric thinning, light fading, minor abrasions, and a few small areas of loss or fraying in some of the fan blades. The quilting and piecing remain clearly visible, and the quilt still reads as a lovely, well-preserved example of a Depression-era fan quilt made for everyday use rather than formal display.
—————————————————————————————————-
*Disclaimer: Please remember that you’re purchasing a quilt that is decades—sometimes well over a century—old. Signs of age are part of their story. I do my best to photograph and describe any condition issues honestly.
You may find:
• Fading or discoloration
• Small stains or age spots
• Light wear, thinning, or fabric repairs
• Minor imperfections consistent with age and use
Each of these are little piece of American history—stitched by hand from cotton, feed sacks, flour sacks, clothing, and treasured scraps by women who made beauty from what they had. Every quilt carries a story, and it’s been an honor to help preserve these heirlooms for the next generation.
ALL QUILT SALES ARE FINAL - NO REFUNDS OR RETURNS, QUILTS ARE SOLD AS IS.
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