Big Sister, Little Sister Quilts

These quilts are from 1985.  Back then, I was expecting my second child, and my grandmother asked me if I wanted her quilt group to make me a quilt.  Of course I did!  As a matter of fact, I wanted two, since the kids would be sharing a room.  I requested two Grandmother’s Flower Garden quilts, with light blue as the dominant color, and the rest, all pastels.

I could tell my grandmother was a little taken aback.  “Grandmother’s Flower Garden?  Are you sure?” she asked.  “That’s a lot of work.”  “Of course I’m sure,” I said.  “You can do it!”

Now that I know more about quilting, I am amazed that the quilting group did indeed make these two quilts, for someone they didn’t even know.  And even though they always had a waiting list, they finished the quilts and got them to me in just a few months, before my daughter was born in early 1986.  Hand-pieced, hand-quilted.  They are gorgeous.  I don’t remember if I thanked them, but even if I did, it wasn’t enough!

My grandmother has passed on, and I’m sure most of her group has too.  I can’t let them know how much I appreciate them, but I can and do pay it forward.  However, whenever I make a quilt for someone, they can pick the color palette, but I don’t ask them what pattern they want – I wisely make that choice for them!  That way they actually get the quilt within a decade or so.

As far as the kids, they grew up to be fascinating people – you can read their interesting takes on life at My Attempts at Cleverness and My Wildhood.  I’m sure their special quilts contributed to their creative outlooks!