A Gift for Grandma

To celebrate my Grandmother's blessed 80th Birthday, I embarked on a grand adventure, fraught with frustrations, perilous pin pokes, and broken sewing machine needles - but ultimately made of love and filled with joy and fond memories. I made my grandma a memory quilt - my very first attempt at quilt making EVER!You can see the charming results above. I collected baby pictures of her children and their spouses, grandchildren and their spouses, and great grand child. After scanning the photos into the computer, I chose to colorize all of the photos in a black and white scheme to compliment the fabrics I chose. White Pima Cotton and Black Cona Cotton accent the white-on-black & black-on-white Moda filigree fabrics bordering each of the family photos.

Over 50 years of my Grandmother's greatest treasures and accomplishments (her family!) are pictured on this memory quilt. And in memory of my late Grandfather, I hand-made appliques of baby red cardinals for family members I didn't have photos for. Crafted from felt, I hand stitched embroidery floss accents and outlines on each gentle birdy. To amplify the black, white, and red color scheme, I added a red satin border on the outer edge of the photograph panels to complement the cardinals.

After 4 months of sewing, ironing, and embroidering, the results may not have been sheer perfection, but sure joy was created in celebrating the wonderful life of my grandmother!