Does your quilt warrant an appraisal?

By Daintry Chitaroni

Each time that I finished a quilt, in the back of my mind was the thought-“ I wonder how much this would be worth?”

I know how much the quilt is worth to me- the fabric that I purchased or pulled from my stash; the hours spent piecing and appliquéing the top; many more hours spent quilting, binding and finishing, not to mention the design changes made and little parts of myself that I incorporated (usually including a little blood!) into the finished piece. I always tend to set a personal value on each finished quilt- what it would take to make me part with it. Because very few are willing to meet this price, I wanted to know if I was out to lunch in my personal calculations.

Well, I recently had an opportunity to find out- I took a trip to Commanda, which is a small village south of North Bay where Rita Rottman was holding a quilt appraisal weekend. My mother brought an old quilt passed down from my grandmother and I brought one of my newer pieces. I was very nervous about having someone put a value on my work, as it is extremely personal to me and I really wasn’t sure that I wanted to know how a complete stranger would view my quilt. I likened it to having a quilting judge inspect it for imperfections, outright breaking of the quilting rules and even my choices of colours and fabrics (yes I have poly-cottons in there!). However I gritted my teeth, and goaded on by my mother who is my biggest fan, I slowly made my way to the appraisal area.

Never having met Rita, I fully expected to be confronted by an elderly librarian-type quilter with no sense of humor and the knowledge of the ages of quilting hidden under a gruff exterior. Boy, was I wrong! Rita was actually very young, very pleasant and put me at ease immediately. But being the chicken that I am, I made my mother go first.

Because we have so many older quilts floating around, we were interested to find out if they should be appraised for insurance purposes. Basically a verbal appraisal was what we were looking for, just to get an idea in case the whole bunch should go up in flames or be ruined by any natural disaster (God forbid!). Because it was a utility quilt, and the fabric was deteriorating somewhat from frequent washing, it was valued at a couple hundred dollars- which is still good to know when you have a two dozen of these randomly thrown on beds, at camp and in cupboards. Rita was very upfront about this modest piece and also suggested a few ways to repair the damaged areas and how to care for it in the future, which was quite enlightening.

No longer able to put it off, I pulled out my quilt. Her silence was noticeable, and I waited for her to say something… She proceeded to put on her white gloves, and carefully open the quilt. I could see her eyes moving from one place to another trying to take it in, and wished that I could read minds at that point in time. Then she started with the questions- was it a pattern, was it changed, when was it finished, how many fabrics used, what kind of batt, was the backing 100% cotton, etc. Some I could answer, others I was not prepared for and really had to think back. Because I was looking for a written appraisal, the process was much more detailed than for the previous quilt and she made notations as we went along. She asked if I was a guild member, if I had won any awards, if I taught, where I displayed and many other questions that apparently are important in setting a value for insurance purposes. She checked the construction (quilt police!), the binding, my feeble attempt to miter the corners, the label, the sleeve and the quilting stitches. She commented on the colours, the fabrics, the overall design and the quilting while I held my breath, though never really giving me any insight into what she actually thought of the quilt. With the interrogation finally over, she pulled out her calculator- this I could relate to! Using standards set by the American Quilters Society and following the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice set out by the Appraisal Foundation, taking into consideration historical significance, fabric, workmanship and fame of the maker (me!), she was able to calculate a value on my quilt for insurance purposes. She finished completing the Appraisal Form, signed and dated and sealed, and it was over…

I now had a document to present to the insurance company for replacement value should anything happen to this quilt. As Treasurer of the Canadian Quilters Association, I have been asked to send quilts for display in Invitational Shows and I can now breath a little easier when I pack it in a box and ship it away. It was an excellent experience and I recommend that anyone who plans to teach, lecture, display or otherwise be in a position to leave your quilt somewhere out of your possession have an appraisal done. The costs range from $35 to $60 depending on the appraiser, the venue, etc. A verbal appraisal is considerably less. The appraisal also confirmed that my personal calculated value was well within the ballpark. Now all that I have to do is check with my insurance company to see if my quilt is covered under my home insurance or whether I need an inexpensive all-risk business rider added to my policy.

We have only a few AQS certified appraisers in Canada. Rita Rottman, Diane Shink and Judy Lyons perform quilt appraisals and are also available for lectures and/or workshops that can be held for guilds and quilt shows. I would highly recommend considering bringing someone in for Quilts on the Rocks 2003. However, if you choose to have your quilt appraised come prepared- extra photos for the appraiser were requested (a full view and a close-up), and try to remember the details of what went into it if, like me, you didn’t bother writing anything down!

Special thanks to Judy Lyons for all of the background information provided on quilt appraisals- though it would fill another whole article, and just might next month- and to the Forever in Stitches Quilt Show organizers at the Commanda Community Centre for giving me this opportunity.