Repro quilts - medallion quilt centre panel

One of the difficulties in making your own version of many early nineteenth century quilts is finding something appropriate to use for the central medallion.  Quilters back then often used specially printed panels, rather like the 'cheater' panels and cushion panels sometimes made today, as the focal point of their quilt design.  Finding anything that substitutes for these adequately is a bit tricky, even though there are plenty of attractive and authentic reproduction fabrics around for the rest of the quilt.

The 'Sidmouth' quilt is in the Quilt Museum's collection.  I love the simple borders of squares and X patches - ideal for using 5in charm square prints - and the touches of cheddar yellow, madder reds and icky overprinted greens make it a very cheerful quilt. Click here to see the quilt in more detail in the Museum's online collections.  I started making notes for a repro of this quilt a few days ago, but got stuck for the centre panel.

After looking online to see if there was anything suitable (just checking out the usual fabric stores online), I more or less decided that the best I could do would be to use one of the two remaining reprints of the Fife coverlet centre in my stash.  I think these were printed over a decade ago and they are definitely in short supply now.  They are also much smaller than I really wanted.  The Fife coverlet is in the Quilt Museum's online collection resource - click here.  I've already used this panel for the centre of my V & A checkerboard repro quilt (shown on the cutting mat with the central patchwork arranged) and I didn't really want to use it again.

 

This afternoon, the Quilt Museum posted on Facebook - it turns out that they have reprinted the Sidmouth quilt centre as a panel and it is available in their online shop!  Here it is.  I ordered one straight away.  Mine will become the centre of a modern repro of the Sidmouth quilt.

 

What an amazing coincidence! I hope some more repro panels are in the pipeline.  I would love some yardage of the Circles quilt too...