Quilt Labels...what's your take?

[Lisa in Nevada]

Some years ago I had seen quilt labels, but didn't think much about them. This year, all of a sudden, I feel that it is very important that my quilts be labeled for future reference. However, being slightly eccentric (okay...crazy), I feel my labels need to fit the quilt.....attached is a label I just made for the quilt I'm finishing.
My questions: Do you label your work? Do you use a standard label or customize?....how custom do you get? Do you care if 50 years that someone knows your work?

Lisa

[Judy B]

I love your label!
Yes, I label my quilts. Custom labels or I simply write on the back of the quilt with a permanent marker, and it depends on the quilt what sort of label and how detailed it is.
Some of my quilts, yes, I want people to know about the origin of the quilt, who I made it for etc. (I also sometimes need a quick reference myself to remember when the quilt was made or some other detail.)
Some of the labels have been incorporated within the design of sampler quilts, some have been embroidered and attached, some have been hidden in the quilting, some are now 'published' and then printed directly onto fabric.
Some quilts get very little information added to the label, some get a lot.
I also document my quilts, keeping details of all quilts in a folder with photos of finished project, sometimes work in progress as well, fabric scraps, measurements, and an edited/abridged version of the journal I keep of works in progress. (This is all that is left of my first quilt after a house fire destroyd the real thing.)
All of this adds value to what I do, and it actually makes me value it more personally as well. It is also very interesting to be able to look back at what I have achieved, especially as a lot of the quilts have been given away or sold, and how my skills have improved and interests have changed. I have recently decided that I should add other crafty works to these folders, and have been blown away by the sheer volume and variety of the 'catalogue' of my work, and realised I started designing way earlier than I remembered, and realised I had only ever used a handful of patterns without changing anything. It is also good for the ego to have a 'catalogue of work'!

[Sue McB]

Love the spider label - I'd like to see the rest of the quilt too please!

I did not used to put labels on quilts until a few years ago, and even then they often said little more than my name and date completed. Some quilts have nothing - because I believed I would remember the details and when they were made - and now, of course, I don't. These days labels tend to coordinate with the quilt - same fabrics, a left over block, or a border round the label that echos the quilt designs, with the information embroidered or printed from the computer, or written by hand. Usually they have the name of the quilt, the date, for whom they were made, possibly the reason, and sometimes a little embroidered design that fits with the theme. If they need to have more details because they are going in a show, then I would add a second printed label with those on it, and might remove this label once the show is over. I also keep a looseleaf folder with a page for each quilt, with details of fabrics, measurements, samples, photo and anything else I might want to remember. This is just a record for me, great to see what I have made over the years, and good to refer to when quilts may have been given away. Unlike Judy B, so far I have not added anything other than large quilts, and have even omitted all the journal quilts I have made this year, though most have a label of sorts on the back, and I still have them all.

[Magpie Sue]

That's a fantastic label! Mostly I take the quick and dirty way out... I use a Pigma pen to sign my quilt with my name and the date of completion. If it's a very special quilt in some way I might do more, but never have done anything as fancy as your spiderweb label! If I'm not mistaken, there's a whole book about the various ways one could make and apply a label to a quilt. It's really a whole 'nother place to design and embellish a quilt ;- )

[Carmen]

I usually make a label with part of the fabric on the top. A Block or small border around my information. Dreaming Quilts : ) Carmen

[Lynn Shaw]

I love quilt labels -- we can use them as a great avenue to experiment and play on a small scale!

I like to create a quilt label that is of the same character as the quilt it is identifying, too. I've made quite a few inked labels (with Pigma markers), painted labels (using textile paints), marbled and dyed labels, embroidered and cross-stitched labels, etc. I've also made pieced labels with fabric from the quilt I'm labeling. I use cotton and sometimes linen for my labels. I have also created labels using vintage-era linen towels (only using towels that are damaged), too. I love working with those discarded textiles, but only when I'm putting a label on a quilt that fits that era.

I do not ever use any form of computer-generated labels, however. The printing ink has not been proven in time to be a permanent ink, so it seems odd to trust unproven printer ink on a label that may fade or disappear in a decade or so. Too much of a risk for me to even bother with, but that's just my opinion.

I believe that all of our needlework should be "signed". Not only for family to appreciate the maker, but if any of our work is examined in 50+ years or more, an appraiser or curator would have a bit of documentation attached to the needlework.

[Violette Severin]

I have not been labeling my quilts. I probably will do so in the future using a standard label.

[Marilyn]

The spider label is awesome. If that is the label how much more spectacular must the quilt be !!!!! (love to see it).

I label most of my quilts but some wallhangings seem to have slipped through the system. I use a variety of methods too. Computer printed, painted, pieced, bought labels, left over blocks all have been used. Like others have said I try to match the label to the quilt in some way.

I label mine because I would like my family and friends who have received a quilt from me to have a reference - whether is is the occasion it was given, the date, or "just because..."

It is good to look back and see how we have developed as quilters and how our "style" has changed over the years.

[Lisa in Nevada]

I've posted a picture of the finished top here
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lisa_in_nevada/
it's under arachnophobia :)

[Judy B]

Lisa
Your quilt deserves the wonderful label. The spiders are great!

[Lynn Shaw]

BEAUTIFUL work! Thank you so much for pointing us to flickr to see all of your photos!