Quilt. Kaminski Grazy quilt, circa 1900. silk (textile); wool (textile), cotton (textile). Eleanor Kaminski, Chicago (Ill.). Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Earl Peters and Mrs. Harriet Kaminski. 1985.127.1
Patchwork pieced crazy quilt made from various silks and velvets. Sewn together and bordered with feather stitching and intricate embroidery. Pieced star pattern is repeated throughout the quilt and the initials EK are embroidered in the center. Quilt is backed with wool.
Eleanor Kaminski placed her initials right in the middle of the crazy quilt that she made in the early 1900s. By that time, she had been living in Chicago's Bridgeport neighborhood for twenty years. A native of Poland, Kaminski (née Osinski) moved to Chicago in the 1880s, where she married and raised five children.The skillful stitching evident throughout the quilt hints at the fact that she made her living as a dressmaker. Like most crazy quilts from the time, Kaminski used luxurious fabrics to create a rich, colorful quilt where she could showcase her needlework talents and express her creativity.