What’s Your Story? – Memorial Quilt by Jean L.

BLOCK Magazine is always looking to publish original stories from quilters like you. We believe that everyone has an important story to tell and that sharing our stories brings us closer together. Today’s story is incredibly special:

“My mother passed away in April 2000. As a gift for my dad for her October birthday, I suggested to my siblings (7 of us) that we make a memorial quilt for him. We each designed a block (including one for the two children that passed), and one of my sisters and I created the blocks, and I put it together. 

As I was thinking about the backing, I thought of doing a snippet quilt of a picture of them from their 50th wedding anniversary party from 1994. While creating that quilt, I determined it was too detailed to make it a backing and decided to make an entirely separate quilt.

At the family gathering to celebrate our mom’s birthday with our dad, we presented the quilts. First the block quilt, then the separate snippet quilt (with textile embellishments.)

It goes without saying that my dad was overwhelmed with emotion. He hung the quilts in his living room, where they remained until his passing in 2013. The quilts now hang in my home.”

-Jean L.