This month, I’ve had quite a few commissions for memory quilts. These are created from the sentimental clothing of a loved one. The commissions I receive are largely from parents wanting a way to use and preserve the baby clothes of their children. I always enjoy making these quilts, because I’m creating heirlooms that will be treasured for many years to come.
All of these commissions got me thinking about the memory quilt I started for my daughter in 2020, while I was 7 months pregnant with my son. I began to quilt it, then had to stop part-way through. It was so heavy (I used a thick batting and then had fleece as the backing) and I couldn’t focus (courtesy of baby brain), so I put it aside until after I’d given birth, for fear of ruining it.
I decided it was finally time to finish off the quilt, so that it could be used by the children. It wasn’t a task I was particularly looking forward to because it was heavy and huge! It meausres a little over 80” x 80” and it was quilted on a domestic sewing machine. It gained the name ‘Goliath’ and I’m proud to report that it was defeated!
It brings my heart so much joy to see the quilt being used. The children play on it, snuggle under it, run/crawl around on it. They get so much pleasure from this quilt, which makes all of the effort it took to create it well and truly worth it. My daughter will have a keepsake quilt that she will cherish for life. It’ll soon be time to make Goliath 2.0 for my son, but that’s a challenge for future Corrine to worry about.
SEWING 4 SELF CARE 