My husband’s grandmother was a quilter.
When her grandchildren were born, she quilted special baby blankets to give each of them. When they grew older, she made quilts for their bunk beds. We still have both of Dave’s–the turquoise baby quilt and the larger navy and green one that was still covering his bed when I met him in college. Our son Jacob even slept under it until recently, when I feared for its life and removed it to protective storage.
Grandma Marks, as we call her, gave us a pink, white, and yellow quilt as a wedding gift. I have a wonderful photo of all the women at my bridal shower unfurling it together in a circle as Grandma Marks sat beaming in the background.
My sister-in-law Cindy loves quilts and collects them. She noticed that one of the older quilts that Grandma Marks had made was disintegrating and discolored from age and wear, so she cut it up and made pillows out of it for each one of us in the extended family so that we could share a piece of it. With the leftover bits of fabric, she made us this small heart, which now hangs on the door to Lily’s room.
Grandma Marks died when Dave and I were still newlyweds, before our children were born. But I think of her every time I walk through Lily’s door. Seeing that small quilted heart makes me feel like her spirit is in some way guarding over her great-granddaughter’s room.
And the heart gives Lily a tangible idea of who her great-grandmother was, because she sees her handiwork every day. “Grandma Marks? She’s the one who gave me my heart.”
{ 8 comments }
That is a very sweet post. Thank you for sharing with us about Grandma Marks!
i will have to send you photos of the quilt michael’s mom made us last year
That is so sweet! What a neat way to preserve the memory of the quilt as well as the one who made it.
What a touching story. Thanks for sharing it.
Oh man. You totally made me cry.
I love grandmas who quilt and knit and sew. My grandma did none of the above. She was a Brooklyn grandma. Brooklyn grandmas buy stuff.
Such a precious treasure! I love family heirlooms such as this.
We have some from my Dad’s grandma and some from Bill’s side. My Grandma did not quilt but she left me some wonderful treasures…nothing worth much money but rich in memories.
Isn’t it a blessing to be able to see this heart and think of her, relive sweet memories?
Such a joy! I truly enjoyed this post!
I hope you stayed safe during the recent storms!
Love,
Sue
I love quilts, and, though I would not sit and make quilts, I miss
how grandmothers don’t do that kind of stuff anymore, but I
still love my grandmothers just as much.
Oh, that is so sweet! I love little things that trigger happy memories!
I agree with Tori, grandmothers don’t quilt much these days. I teach Family & Consumer Sciences at the high school level. Sewing is no long an objective at the state level. In fact, we often get ripped for trying to fit home skills into our course curriculum. The kids DO want to learn. Add to that WalMart one by one removing the fabric dept from each of their stores. Oh, don’t get me started!
Blessings, Shay
Comments on this entry are closed.