This writing was suggested by helpers on eBay boards because I get so much input for things I don’t do. I have a home based sewing business & specialize in repairing antique quilts. People skip the Repair, Finish & Design in my business name & call to ask if I buy old quilts. I don’t but I have suggestions.

If you’ve inherited an old quilt & want to know if it’s valuable do an internet search for QUILT APPRAISALS. Depending on where you live there may not be a certified appraiser in your town but a lot of people know a lot about quilts & have quilts. If you just want to know what it would sell for in your area ask a local antique dealer who sells at least some textiles & quilts.

If you want to know the age, history, date, name of pattern etc try an internet search for QUILT HISTORY & QUILT DATING. There are a lot of resources online. There is a quilt history list where people are dedicated to learning the origins of quilts.

If you mostly want to know who in your family made the quilt from what materials & for who, have it out a family gatherings, weddings & holidays when you are likely to see people who only come for xmas & funerals & may know something. You can take digital photos & send them around & see if anyone in the family knows anything.

It’s pretty typical that the person who inherits the quilt knows little about it & wonders if it’s valuable. I am not an appraiser but I’ve seen a lot of similar quilts over the years & most of the inquiries from the public are people trying to sell old quilts. I’ve never had anyone call to buy an old quilt. So I don’t know what the market is for old quilts but what my quilt repair business sees is 100 % sellers & no buyers.

If you want to know how to take care of it do an internet search for QUILT CARE. There is a lot of good free info online. If you want to try to repair it yourself do a search for QUILT RESTORATION. There are classes you can take in person & materials you can study at home.

For cleaning info do a search for QUILT CLEANING. You can also look for whoever cleans vintage textiles in your city. This could be done by a quilt collector, someone who’s always had quilts & always cleaned them, could be someone who doesn’t sew anymore but can advise you on your quilt.

I’d prefer you not try to sell it but get it as close to the original artist as possible even if they didn’t know her personally, her church, school, job, neighborhood & see if you can find someone with a connection to him/her who will take on the care & maintenance of it. This is somewhat like finding a good home for a pet. For some people the damage & problems & smell are too much. They are not home enough to air it out, they have allergies in the family & the dust & odor is too much.

Something the community can do is host FAMILY QUILT SHOW & TELL events in your town & invite people to come & talk about their quilt & see what other people know. Quilt shops & guilds don’t necessarily help people with old & damaged quilts which is why my business gets so many inquiries for things I don’t do.

My business is CRAZY QUILT Hand Sewing - Repair, Finish & Design & I am an independent artist using fabric, yarn & beads to create original designs. Most of my business is repair & I doubt there is much of a market for old quilts because people have so many & they are in such poor condition but if the retail value is what you want to know see if you can find something similar on eBay or ask a local vintage dealer.

If you care about this stuff & want to get the quilt to the best person to care for it see who can handle the condition & care without separating it too much from the original family because that makes it much harder to keep track of the origins.