What's in a Blanket?

I love family heirlooms. This is probably because I love history and tradition and family stories. And I am realizing that one of my favorite types of family heirlooms are quilts. Not only are they beautiful and the patterns and colors so interesting, but they are also practical. You can use a quilt on a bed, as a throw, to wrap a baby, or even as a wall hanging. Quilts are also such a distinct part of American history – all of the quilting bees and societies that have existed for hundreds of years. I don’t know a ton about this, but I’d love to learn more about the history of quilts in America.

James and I have developed a bit of a quilt collection, especially since Madeline has come along. We have some very special people in our lives who have spent hours picking out fabrics, designing, sewing, and quilting some beautiful blankets for us. Every time I use one of these quilts, I am reminded of who made it and the love they have for us. What a special gift, right?

Here are some of the quilts we have received:

Lois made this quilt as an anniversary present for James and me. We love it - it's beautiful, warm, and full of the prayers she poured into this quilt as she made it for us. Lois is an incredible seamstress, but this was her first quilt project. Pretty amazing!

My dear College friend Emily and her mother Janet made this quilt for Madeline. The colors go with the nursery colors we picked – navy, pink, and white. I love everything about this quilt – the cool prints, color scheme, and unique design are all perect! It’s not everyday you see a quilt with fun circles on it – it’s a fresh, modern take on quilts. And this quilt even has a name: “Madeline’s Day at the Beach.”

My aunt Kerri made this quilt for Madeline. Such fun prints and colors, right? I know Kerri picked out these fabrics knowing my personality - it looks like a quilt you could find at Anthropologie with its fun and whimsy.

Madeline’s great-grandmother Houghton (Lois’ mother) knit this blanket for her. It’s not a quilt, but it fits in the blanket-family-heirloom category. I love the simplicity of all white with clean lines on this blanket.

And Madeline’s great, great, grandmother made this quilt. But she made this quilt for James when he was a baby. This quilt was made by Lois’ maternal grandmother, grandma Loewen. Lois said she made dozens of quilts, all stitched by hand. It doesn’t show as well in this photo, but the hand quilting on this blanket is beautiful. And how special to have a quilt from your great, great, grandmother!

And this is a quilt my Nana made for a crib bedding set for my younger cousin. I'm so glad that Madeline's nursery has my Nana's fingerprints on it. She wasn't really a quilter, but she was an incredible seamstress. I wish I could have done more sewing projects with her - I had some really beautiful dresses made by her when I was a kid.

I've been slowly entering into the quilting world. It takes a lot of time, skill, and patience to create quilts and I'm not sure how far into this world I'll enter. But I do find it really satisfying to give a gift to someone that you've taken time to create just for them, and try to spend time praying for the recipient when I make a quilt. Well, let's be honest, the blankets I've made so far aren't really quilts. They are very, very simple. But I am currently working on a quilting project that will be a bit more complicated than the last ones I've made. Here is a peek at the fabrics I'm using:

I'll have to let you know if it turns out!