Grandma’s Flower Garden… Double Wedding Rings… How about a Log Cabin or a Split Rail Fence? Ask the average person what all of this means and they might look at you a little oddly! Ask a quilter, and she will tell you about her latest project she is working on, or if she’s in a sentimental mode, she may start talking about Mom’s or Grandma’s quilts!

One of the most fascinating things to me is looking at an old quilt- it may be worn with age, or stained and torn, but each block tells its own story.

That purple square? One of grandma’s old aprons that caught fire in the kitchen while she was canning. Nothing is wasted, but laid aside for a new creation.

The navy paisley? That’s Grand-dad’s hankie that got holes in it when he was working in the field. Not much good for wiping noses, but great to put in a intricate quilt block!

And those wonderful, beautiful little retro prints- (or at least that’s what we would call them today!) Those were feed sacks that held the animals’ supper. What didn’t get used for grandma and her siblings’ dresses was saved in the sewing basket, then lovingly pieced into a quilt.

Nothing went to waste, and each block holds a memory. If you have a mother or grandmother that quilts, be sure and ask her the story behind her quilts. These are memories to be handed down to the generations to come! Maybe we can be inspired to start our own memories!