Vintage Sunbonnet Sue Blocks

Today my sister brought me something very special:

Sunbonnet Sue blocks, appliquéd by hand by some of our aunts, great-aunts, high-school friends of our mother, and a few of their neighbors.  They were made in the mid-1930s.  There are 18 of them.  I plan to cut them all to the same size and put them together in a design I'll create in EQ7.  I'll do sashings and borders with 30s reprint fabrics.

Made by Dolly Winings, married to Virgil Winings, Mama's cousin and son of Aunt Lillie Winings.  Dolly worked for my Grandmother Winings when Mama was a little girl.

Made by Grace Dickens.

Made by Helen Hunter, friend of the family.

Made by Maurine Spencer, favorite teacher, for whom Mama was given her middle name.

Made by Helen Jean Harmon, friend of the family -- my cousin Helen Jean Lako Devries was named after her.

Postscript added 08-13-18:  My cousin Helen Jean told me this:  "My mom (that would be my Aunt Pauline, my mother's youngest sister) told me I was named after a girl named Helen, wheelchair-bound, but very sweet and cheerful!"

Made by Ella Winings, sometimes called Cynthia, which was her first name.  She was Grandpa Winings' mother -- my great-grandmother.

Made by Dorothy Eakew.

Made by Avis Lorine Roney, classmate and friend of Mama's.

Made by Betty Mitchell.

Made by Ruth Ray.

Made by Bernadine Holley.

Made by Lois Ordel, Philo, IL, 1936, later Aunt Lois Winings when she married Uncle Robert.

Made by Aunt Abby, Grandpa Winings' sister.

Made by Elna Nuttall.

Made by Marie Jones.

Made by Aunt Pearl, Great-grandmother Joicie's half-sister.

Joicie was Grandma Winings' mother and was married to Charles Bacon.  He died before Grandma was born.

Made by Lillie Winings, Grandpa Winings' sister-in-law, who was married to Grandpa's brother, Frank Winings.

Made by Frances Wilson, Mama's high-school friend.

The blocks with no captions other than names were made by friends and neighbors.