Memory Quilts for Cheryl

My friend and former colleague, Cheryl G., contacted me in January with a special request. She asked if I could make two baby quilts for expected grandchildren from her deceased husband’s dress shirts. I am honored that she thought of me for such a special project. I suggested that she look on Pinterest for ideas of “easy quilts,” “baby quilts,” “memory quilts,” and “quilts from shirts.”

Cheryl found a design of nine Pinwheel blocks that fit the bill. Her husband, Robert, had flown helicopters for the Army, and Pinwheels reminded her of the rotors. We selected several shirts with blue overtones to use for the grandson’s quilt, and I added some Civil War style shirtings and a star print. A purple shirt, and light pink shirt, and several white shirts were set aside for the granddaughter’s quilt. I added some coordinating prints from my stash.

Cheryl loved receiving the progress pictures I emailed her as I worked on the quilts. I finished them in January, but we decided to keep images from social media until after the parents-to-be received the quilts. Cheryl chose “Becker’s Shooting Star” quilting pantograph for the grandson’s quilt to represent her husband’s Army career.

And I quilted numbers on the granddaughter’s quilt because, according to Cheryl, Robert was a numbers guy.

After completing the two baby quilts, I asked Cheryl if she would like a remembrance for herself. My idea was to make a quilt using the shirt pockets. My request for an additional shirt of a bold or bright color for the sashing and border reminded Cheryl that Robert had a couple of Hawaiian shirts. Perfect!

I used some of the plackets and buttons for embellishments. Simple quilting 1/4″ away from seams stitched on my home machine adds a classic look. The pocket from the Hawaiian shirt is hand appliqued on the back of the quilt which is composed of large pieces of the shirt fabric. Cheryl just received her quilt in the mail, and she loves it!