Memories are made stitch by stitch...

Once upon a time in 1923, there was a mother who held her baby son and had a wonderful idea.  The mother was my grandmother, Greta and the baby was my father.  The mother began to stitch a quilt, block by block for her baby.  She used white and red blocks with red embroidery thread to follow nursery rhyme patterns from a book.  She finished the quilt in 1925 and marked the date on a special block.  She also designed a block with her son's name.  Then the mother had two more children and they in turn were tucked in on cold winter nights and snuggled under the warmth of the quilt.  Years and years passed and the son married a beautiful war bride and they had a daughter they named Barbara and the quilt became hers until her brother, Philip was born.  Several years later, the quilt went from house to house in the small New Brunswick village, as babies were born...a red and white community comfort blanket.  When Barbara was fourteen and Philip was thirteen, they welcomed a little baby sister, Jayne.  The quilt was there to wrap her in its folds as it did her father so many years before.  When Jayne married and had children, the quilt made its journey from the east coast to the west coast and found a place of honour hanging on a wall in her home.

One day, Jayne decided to take a picture of the quilt and posted it on flickr.  Far away in Germany, a lovely woman saw it and a new journey began through photographs.  The woman is Etja and her life's passion is redwork...collecting antique and vintage pieces and the incredible work she creates new.  Etja decided to take on the daunting task of reproducing Greta's quilt, block by block.  Jayne sent her photographs of each one and Etja researched the patterns and actually found a vintage copy of the original ones that Greta used.  She painstakingly chose the exact colour of red floss and white cotton and devised her own way of transferring the patterns from Greta's blocks to the cloth.  Here's the original quilt with some of the redwork blocks.

   

Block by block the quilt is being reborn by Etja's capable hands.  When my father passed away in July, Etja did a special block as a tribute to him...a copy of the one that his mother made just for him over eighty years ago, his name block.  Here's Greta's...

And here is Etja's...

I thought that Etja should have a photograph of Greta and her baby.  Another photo I sent to her was a portrait that my grandmother had done for my father to take with him when he went off to war.  As inspiration, Etja tranformed the portrait into a piece of redwork and has it sitting on her worktable.  Here's my nanan, Greta...

   

This fascinating saga continues with each newly created block.  To read how Etja began the process of this immense project with thirty plus blocks to be completed, it can be found in her archived posts of April 2006 at www.redwork-in-germany.blogspot.com.  We feel so privileged and grateful as a family that this legacy continues, that a few pieces of cloth became a quilt and that the quilt has connected us with this wonderful woman.  News of the quilt became such a focus for my father in the last year of his life and I'm thrilled that he could follow the progress picture by picture.  From Greta's hands to Etja's hands, from first stitch to last, the quilt's journey continues.  And in her words, my grandmother would have been so proud from the bottom of her pea-picking heart!

Comments

[Sandra]

dear Barb, this is such a heart-warming story! I love your family tradition of giving a precious handmade gift from generation to generation! How wonderful!!! The quilt is so beautiful! And connecting two women from different times and countries through the quilt is moving.

[carolyn]

What a wonderful post.

[Katie]

What a wonderful story and a beautiful quilt!!!!!

[cara]

i love this story barb, i remember you talking of it before. and that the quilt just continues to live a strong life! oh it warms me from here.

[Sandy]

What a wonderful story! I'm glad I found your site (thru Apron Thrift Girl).

[Betty Jo]

Oh My Goodness! What an incredible story. It gave me goose bumps, and even brought tears at one point. Thank you so much for sharing the saga of your family quilt.

[Amanda Button]

what a wonderful story, and how lucky you are to have such an amazing legacy!!!!

[Jenny]

What a miraculous and beautiful story and legacy. It proves how the power of love reached across time and other lands. Your grandmother's quilt has touched so many.

[Sarah Jane]

This is such a great story!

[Fi]

*Sigh* that is just wonderful. As your commenters have said what a fantastic legacy.

[gwendolen]

I didn't realize all the village babies used this too...

[catherine]

that is SUCH an Amazing story!
so heartwarming and beautiful. thanks so much for sharing!
xo
catherine

[Zelia]

How beautiful:)

[Gina]

That actually brought a lump to my throat! That she would go out of her way to do such an amazing tribute to your dad is beyond words! I LOvE it!!!!

[Lallee]

What a wonderful, wonderful story! A very nice legacy for your grandmother.