It’s been 9 years years (to the day) that my Mom passed away. Not a day goes by that I don’t think about her. Although she did not quilt, she was always very interested in whatever quilt I was working on. My Mom did a fair amount of travelling and she always returned home with quilting fabric of some sort for me. Ah, memories!
This is the quilt that I made for my Mom.
It brings back some lovely memories for me and for that reason, I cherish it. I started this quilt about three years before she passed. I chose a pattern that I could stitch together fairly quickly and I assumed I would just have it machine quilted and that would be that! But no, my Mom insisted that I hand-quilt her quilt. I put up a bit of a fuss…I was working full time and my three teenage kids always seemed to have to be driven somewhere. I just didn’t think I had the time to hand-quilt a queen sized quilt at that stage in my life. But, there was no arguing with her. Long story short, I set aside 1 hour every evening to hand-quilt her quilt. Those small chunks of time added up and before I knew it, the quilt was finished! Not long after I finished the quilt, my Mom was diagnosed with cancer and a year later, she passed away.
I had some of the navy blue fabric left over and I have used it in a few special quilts. I used the fabric on my “Bouquet For A New Day”….
….and I used it in my daughter’s Christmas quilt……
…and, I also used it for one of the birds in my Civil War Bride quilt. Where will the special fabric show up next?
Till next time….
Kerry
Simple Bird Applique 
I love this special story of love and memories Kerry. Thank you
You are welcome. Thanks for the lovely comment:)
How wonderful that you were able to get the quilt made in time for your mom to enjoy it. I know what you mean about ‘special’ fabrics. There are some that are full of memories and need to be carefully used.:)
So true! I am definitely picking and choosing which quilts the fabric goes into. Don’t want to waste an inch of it:)
Always love to hear special quilt stories, it makes creating them (all that hard work) definitely worth it. Thanks for sharing.
When I think back on it, I am so glad I took the time to hand quilt it for her. I think that is what makes it even more special:)
I bet I know where. Kerry you made me cry. You tell stories with words and fabric.
Hi there Valerie! Didn’t mean to make you cry.
Hi Kerry
As a Mom and not in good health I was very touched by your not today. I have been a cancer patient for the past 22 years and now have a now have Pulmonary Fibrosis, for which there is now treatment that will cure. I am working on all of my ufo’s mostly applique and I love your work.
Thanks, Marlee. Your comment touched me very much. I wish you all the best. Please stay in touch. I’d love to see some of your applique:)
I was so touched by your words. Made me feel how special I am in that I still have my mom. Thanks for the words, Kerry.
Thanks, Susan for the lovely comment. Yes, cherish your Mom while you still can:)
Thank you for sharing your story. I think of my mother also every day. What friends we have in mothers. Unconditional love!!!
Martha from Tellico Plains, TN
So true! Unconditional love…that is what I miss the most!
What a touching story. I’m sorry that you lost your Mom but how nice that she was able to enjoy the quilt that you made for her. It is also nice that you have some of the blue fabric and that you stitch it into special quilts.
Thanks Karen. I always get sentimental around the anniversary of her passing and thought this post was a nice way to remember her by.
Beautiful quilt and beautiful story…her memories live on in each quilt that you have made with a piece of the fabric. Thank you so much for sharing, Kerry!!
Thanks you for the lovely comment:)
Thank you for sharing. I feel your words – my mom is gone 10 years today. I miss her so!
My thoughts are with you on this day. It just seems that the time has flown and I still can’t believe my Mom is gone.
My sister and I have been making quilts since the mid 70’s. Whenever we had visits with our Mom it seems it always involved a trip to a quilt shop. Mom was not a quilter but loved quilts and especially trips with us to our favorite shops. Many times she would buy a quarter yard of whatever we were buying. After she passed away very suddenly of a heart attack we were closing her estate and came upon little towers of fat quarters all neatly bundled and tied together still on shelves in full view. I think perhaps this was Mom’s way of having us close by. We buried Mom on 9/11, a doubly sad day for us. My sister and I went through the bundles of fabric and made 5 matching little lap quilts, one for each of the 5 of us. I love your memory of your Mom and thank you for sharing.
What a beautiful story. You must have been overwhelmed when you found all of her fat quarters…thanks for sharing this story:)
Thank you for sharing that memory with us. I know we don’t need ‘things’ to help us remember loved ones but it must feel as if you’re putting a bit of your memory of your lovely Mum in those quilts you use your special fabric in.
That is so true. Every time I see that navy blue fabric, I think of my Mom and it tugs at my heart:)
Thank you for including us in your remembrance of this special day. That quilt will always hold the memories of making it, memories of her, and how she got you to slow down for an hour an evening during a very busy time in your life (some fabric therapy…)! I love how some of the fabric has creeped into other projects. More great memories…
Teresa :o)
Thanks, Teresa, for the beautiful comment. I will be including some of that same fabric in my Friends of Baltimore:)
What a special post, your sharing about your Mom and the story of the quilt. How wonderful that you were able to finish the quilt for her and she was able to enjoy it before she passed. My Mom died many years ago, when I was young, and before I learned to sew & quilt. I can tell you from experience that as the years go by, I still miss her and think about her often (as you mentioned you do also). She was a loving Mother and as I’ve raised my kids and they have families of their own now, I admire her more and understand her better. I’m so thankful that she was my Mom.
Thank you so much for this lovely comment. You are so right. As time goes on I appreciate everything she did for our family. As I mentioned she was not a quilter but she certainly was my biggest fan:)
Very beautiful blue and quilts that you made with the fabric. My step son is dying of cancer – very unexpected diagnoses in April of this year on his 50th birthday. He is still with us. About 6 weeks ago I decided to make him a quilt. When I first started it I was so happy because I thought I could finish it in about 2 weeks (lap quilt/long arm quilted) BUT what I did not allow for was the depression that I experienced when I realized that he would not live long enough to see the quilt turn into a used utility quilt. He loves the quilt and is proud of it. I am so glad that I made it for him – even if it is for a short period of time. Life is challenging and memories are things that can keep us going. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving.
It’s good that you listened to her and that she had time to enjoy it. So terribly sorry that she passed on but you did what she asked, like a good daughter 🙂
That is exactly the lesson I learned from that quilt. Turns out, Mama is usually right!!
I have the quilt which I made for my Mum – it is a cheap and cheerful quilt made with (shock horror) poly/cotton sheeting, made in a hurry for her birthday …….. but it kept her cosy, as she felt the cold terribly. It’s 19 years since she died, but the quilt looks as fresh and bright as ever on my guest bed.
Thanks for sharing this wonderful story. What wonderful memories you must have.
My Mum was my biggest fan – she would say “that looks lovely” …… then she would add “what is it?” !! I made her applique cushions for her 70th birthday – but when she died and we found her birth certificate, I discovered it had actually been her 72nd birthday – she had fibbed as she didn’t want to be older than my Dad!!
She is alive as long as you have your memories and share them. What a special post, Kerry.
Thanks Angie. You are so right, every time I look at the quilt, I think of my Mom.
Thank you so much for this post. I used to sew and do crafts with my mom, which was such a special time. She has been gone for 18 years, and I miss her. I am thankful for all the happy memories of time spent with her.